At the meeting of the Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) on 10 and 11 March 2021, members discussed among other topics the use of IP by small businesses in relation to innovations in green technology.

The group of countries known as the friends of IP, which includes the US, Japan and the European Union, proposed a discussion based on a paper entitled Intellectual Property and Innovation: Making MSMEs Competitive in Green Tech. It is recognised that micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are an important part of the efforts to promote innovation and growth. MSMEs provide around 50% of the employment in the G20/OECD economies and MSMEs in the green tech sector are key to addressing the global challenges of climate change, environmental degradation and food security.

Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) can improve the dissemination and protection of inventions and innovative processes and can improve the competitiveness of MSMEs. However, many MSMEs are put off by the relatively high costs of protecting their intangible assets and inadequate information about the IP system and the advantages of using it.

The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and the WTO are sources of information on IPR and can bring governments together to discuss experiences and new approaches. The WIPO GREEN initiative is a marketplace bringing together providers of environmentally friendly technologies with those searching for them, with an online database of IP experts and seminars and briefs on areas of green technology.

In the area of climate technology, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Technology Mechanism facilitates collaboration between the stakeholders in climate technology in developing and developed countries, providing technical assistance and training to build up capacity in identifying relevant technologies.

Searches for patent information are also facilitated by the patent classification schemes in the green sector such as the WIPO International Patent Classification Green Inventory and the Y02 classification system of the European Patent Office and the US Patent and Trademark Office. These can be used by MSMEs to review green tech innovations, while investors can identify opportunities for MSMEs innovating in green technology.

National governments, including IP offices, can also help MSMEs in the green technology sector. IPRs can protect environmentally friendly technology and thereby make green tech MSMEs more competitive. Patents can help potential investors to identify inventors through searches on public patent information databases. A patent can open the way for financial resources, and this can help small scale innovations which often benefit resource-poor communities in developing countries.

Trade secret protection, which is less formal than patent protection, is an alternative to patent protection that can protect important commercial and technical information of MSMEs, give them a competitive advantage and help innovation in green technology.

National IP offices can give guidance and assistance on aspects of IPR, including help with patent searches and provision of resources on legal assistance for use by businesses and inventors in the green technology sector. IP offices could consider accelerated patent examination procedures for green tech patent applications, so MSMEs can access financial support more quickly. They could also consider measures to help MSMEs such as customised workshops or awards for the best green tech innovations.