The European Patent Office (EPO) has been granted observer status at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference which takes place in Copenhagen on 7-18 December 2009. A total of 192 countries will participate in the negotiations which are expected to lead to a global climate agreement for the period from 2012.

The EPO launched a joint study on green patents in April 2009 together with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD). The three organisations plan to present preliminary findings in Copenhagen at a UNFCCC side event organised by the EPO. The study, which looks at technology and patent landscapes and examines licensing practices in specific sectors of environmentally sound technologies (ESTs), aims at enhancing the understanding of the role of patents in relation to the transfer of, access to and deployment of ESTs.

A large number of companies and institutions that are active in this field have been invited to take part at a licensing survey, carried out specifically for this purpose.

The project is actively supported by the OECD (Environment Directorate), Licensing Executives Society International, the International Chamber of Commerce, the World Business Council on Sustainable Development, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and other national and international associations and organisations.

Tags: European Patent Office