World IP Day: To the Strongest Innovators Powering Change
On this Thursday, April 26, we celebrate World IP Day. The event, started by the Global Innovation Policy Center is an annual celebration of innovation, creative ideas, and all the laws that protect intellectual property (IP). This year, World IP Day will be centered around some of the strongest women in the industry.
The theme “Powering Change: Women and innovation and creativity,” will be honoring women innovators and creators from different fields. Over the past few years, we have seen and started to acknowledge, more than ever, the rise of talented and creative women in our world. From powerful female CEOs to researchers driving change around the globe, women continue to raise their profile throughout business, science and technology fields. Intellectual property can be represented by a patent, copyrights or trademark. Nevertheless, no matter how IP is represented, its purpose among several industries serves the same function: protecting the ideas that motivate these creators and innovators.
Beyond celebrating women and their advancements in research and innovation, World IP Day also serves as a reminder for each country, and for policymakers, to strengthen Intellectual Property Laws. Without the right enforcement of patents, copyright or trademarks laws, millions of industries would be affected. Not to mention, these IP laws keep women researchers, creators and innovators motivated to keep driving global changes. The impact of IP laws contributes to several other factors of our economy, even if it’s hard to see these first hand. For example, the Global Innovation Policy Center estimates that IP intensive industries help employ thousands of people worldwide. In fact, solely in America IP industries employ over 55 million people, and these industries and jobs will only continue to grow as our world becomes more modern. Nevertheless, this is why it becomes crucial to place the protection of IP laws as our country’s main priority. After all, our country’s IP is worth $5.8 trillion.
Let us also acknowledge how protecting these IP rights helps consumers ensure their purchases are authentic, how the pharmaceutical industry helps peoples lives across the world because of the patents that protect this industry, and how IP accounts for $1 trillion of our country’s efforts. But most importantly, let us recognize the women entrepreneurs, scientists, and researchers that we are celebrating this World IP Day. Women who are powering change and rely on the right protection of IP property to motivate their work, their creativity, and their innovation.