This article is written by MS SHAHEEN HIRANI, a 4^th year student of Keshav Memorial College of Law.

As Intellectual property rights are required for the safeguarding of various IPs, it not only functions commercially but also for the environment at large where we live and aiming at the betterment of climate and curbing the climatic issues as far as it can. IPR majorly categorises the promotion of climatic changes stages by stages and among the Intellectual Properties few of them plays crucial role in protection and development of climatic issue solutions.

What is actually Climate Change?

Climate change refers to a long term shifts in weather and temperature. This can be natural by changes in solar system but since the human evolution took place it’s the human activities resulting in this weather and temperature changes, like burning of fossil fuels, pollution and many others. Burning of this fossil fuels results in generating of green house gas emission forming as a blanket around earth, trapping sun’s heat and raising the temperatures.

Intellectual Property mechanism is stimulated and is spread in formulation of new technologies that mitigate damages to climate.

Among various IPs, patent protection plays crucial role in protection and developing solutions for the climatic changes. Patents are considered as of the dominating ones when comparing it with several others in view of its functioning over climatic changes. Therefore along with patents, multiple IP protection is required for improvising technology for licensing and commercialising.

PATENT IF NECESSARY?

Patents are well designed for encouraging development of advanced technologies. As a Patent protection is obtained only when the inventor proves its innovative work, and he must satisfy the patent officer or any other appropriate body as the product being Novel. Environmental considerations are balanced interest of the inventor and the public at large. Also the patent officer has the power to exclude or rule out any technology that cause damage to environment if exploited. 

Thus the above matter can be helpful enough for us to interpret that IPR are illustrative in nature and doesn’t particularly focuses mainly on the invention and its marketing but also considers the climate as one of the essentials.

The main fundamental growth for climate change from a real world view is to make sure that all the natural resources which are in relation to human as well as the preservation of resources must be maintained and the new technology and ideas relating to it must work in favour of mitigating the damages to the climate and thus this will be helpful  too.

CLIMATE CHANGE BASICS ACCORDING TO IP PERSPECTIVE

Climate change when discussed about it necessarily highlights the point of human intervention in increasing massive growth of temperature with negative impact on the nature. Two particular themes from the interest of IP Perspective is of either Mitigation or Adaptation. Mitigation- is about how can we reduce green house gas emissions and how can we mitigate the climate change; Adaptation-refers to as the climate change is happening and now we have to live with it and borne all the consequences. Therefore all this consequences led it for the international treaties and UN to act as a major agreement within the nation states, few of them are- UNFCCC (UN Framework convention on climate change) that led to the formation of Kyoto Protocol and thus with long arguments and judgements it led to the creation of PARIS AGREEMENT. This helped in setting new standards and targets to reduce the emissions and the strong work through Paris agreement and UN was the wider act of technology which ensured that we live in sustainable ways.

ROLE OF INNOVATION AND IPR IN MITIGATING CLIMATE CHANGE

United Nations stated that countries must invest more and more in eco-friendly technology.

IPR must function in accordance with the proper rights and technology that can secure it all over world and help in developing research on such areas and patenting such technologies.

.For eco-friendly policies there may be difficulty from nation to nation and local to global level and technology aspects must be inserted properly in policy.

.International technology transfer means transferring of technology processes all over the countries from host country and if its eco-friendly it helps in growth of medium and large scale and better IP protection can be given.

.Greentech IP is patenting in green technology and influenced by govt and economic incentives, IPR policies of country and where country stands in technological development.

.Less than 1% of patenting is done in eco-friendly in whole world by countries like USA, Russia, China, Korea.

DRAWBACKS IN PATENTING GREEN TECH

 New field, new area in patent and IP benefits the large firm and many international firms are likely to invest in developed countries and don’t prefer under developing countries.

Its highly competitive but it impacts positively as more countries will invest in green tech.

SOLUTION TO CLIMATE CHANGE BY IPR

Proper policy framework of global patent protection and IP rights and combing with local policies of every country and balancing them.

Promotion of international technology transfer and initiating programs like WIPO Green, which is an online platform that helps in initiating establishments of green tech school.

Hence with proper combination of innovative technology, policy framework and IP we can provide solutions for climate change. 

To understand the working of IPR in reference to developing and developed nations can be explained as-

THE COPENHAGEN ACCORD

On 19 dec 2009, at end of United Nations climate change conference(COP 15) Many countries like USA, China, India, South Africa signed an agreement. The accord was that outlining voluntary pledges by UN member states, If any nation short fall of setting simple emission targets of their own, no substantial action will be taken.

This was disappointing because no clear word was made to the global markets about the important change in fight against climate change would be unavoidable.

No binding obligation was made on industrialised countries to transfer to developing nations what are commonly known as ESTs.

The use of EST will help developing nations, to organise and fight against climate change. In this accord developing countries were in favour of clarifying role of IPR in stimulating the diffusion of ESTs, while industrialised nations held that IPR should not be part of it.

Thus on other negotiations on other environmental agreements, industrialised nations have finally agreed to incorporate IPR.

Protection and Deployment is not just an individuals responsibility, but it needs to be part of larger cause in society so that collective issues of environmental and sustainable development goals and balancing the climate change can be served in the interest of humanity.

REFERENCES

1. Lawwiser.com
2. Un.org
3. www.counsel.com
4. Lawscot.org
5. Wipo.int

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