Blog Post: IIPSJ Attendance at the 65th World Intellectual Property Organization General Assemblies
(WIPO GA) (Geneva, 9-17 July 2024)
By Dr. Metka Potočnik (she/her/hers), Senior Lecturer in Law, Wolverhampton Law School
IIPSJ attended the 65th World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) General Assemblies (GA),
in their capacity as the WIPO Accredited Observer. Now attending regularly, IIPSJ participated in the
official hearings at the WIPO Headquarters in Geneva, with the Associate Director for International
Programs, Dr. Metka Potočnik, attending the length of the proceedings in person. These
assemblies brought together another record number of delegates. A full list of participants is
available here, and all the sessions are available for viewing here.
IIPSJ attended the GA sessions for the second time in Geneva, after having observed several WIPO
meetings online, since 2020. IIPSJ continues to take the GA meetings as an opportunity to build
strategic partnerships with Member States and other stakeholders, interested in creating access,
inclusion and empowerment for under-represented creators and innovators in the global eco-
system. IIPSJ contributed to the discussion in writing (see here), and in the session (view here, at
02:31:12).
IIPSJ representative, Dr. Metka Potočnik, also attended the 11th WIPO-NGO Stakeholder Dialogue,
which was organised in parallel with the 65 th WIPO GA and took place on Thursday, 11 July 2024, at the WIPO New Building. WIPO Director General Tang, Deputy Director Edward Kwaka and other WIPO experts met with over sixty Accredited Observers and NGOs, in discussing global challenges, which require a multi-stakeholder response. IIPSJ sent their question in advance, and continued informal conversations with WIPO and several interested stakeholders for the duration of the GA meetings. The event has been placed in the spotlight for its importance, and more can be read here.
IIPSJ is continues to contribute to future discussions in WIPO, with the aim of building a more inclusive WIPO eco-system. The IIPSJ team are working towards a meaningful participation in the 46th Session of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCRR) (see here, 2025 dates to be confirmed) and the 33rd Session of the Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP) (see here). If you are interested in contributing to IIPSJ work in this space, do contact the IIPSJ directly.
Blog Post: IIPSJ Oral Statement to WIPO
IIPSJ Oral Statement to the 65th World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) General Assemblies (GA)
July 9-17, 2024
Honorable Chair, Director General, distinguished Delegates, thank you for the floor.
Institute for IP and Social Justice stresses that IP systems must balance economic and
social aims equally, in a manner that offers access, inclusion, and empowerment for all.
WIPO’s IP Gender Action Plan should include initiatives designed to also address
intersectional discrimination and misogyny in the creative and innovative ecosystems. We
stress the need to move away from projects that prioritize only “getting more women into the
system.” Intersectional discrimination and misogyny are systemic barriers that must be
corrected. IP laws must form part of the solution.
Efforts to address intersectional discrimination must also be at the heart of data collection
projects. More should be done to develop methodologies for non-registrable IP rights
(mainly, copyright); and methodologies beyond the mere binary counting of genders, so that
we also include gender-diverse people.
For more, please see our written statement.
Prepared by Dr. Metka Potočnik
IIPSJ Associate Director for International Programs
