European Patent Forum 2008 and European Inventor of the Year 2008

Please reserve space in your diary on Tuesday 6 and Wednesday 7
May 2008 for a headline event in Ljubljana, Slovenia:

"Inventing a cleaner future" - the first ever international
conference on climate technology and patenting strategies.

The European Patent Office, the European Commission and the
Slovenian Presidency of the EU will be hosting a two-day conference
(http://www.epo.org/about-us/events/epf2008.html), with top-flight
speakers and guests, dedicated to climate change and opportunities for
intellectual property. This landmark event focuses on the question
"How can the fields of patenting and intellectual property support
innovations that benefit the environment and counteract climatic
change?"

6 and 7 May 2008, European Patent Forum: Inventing a cleaner
future

Conference (both days) with the main objective to identify the
main technological challenges posed by climate change and to
contemplate ways in which the patenting of inventions can address
these issues.

Keynote speakers are Jeremy Rifkin, President of the Foundation of
Economic Trends, who will set the tone by looking at what lies ahead
with respect to climate change, Gunter Verheugen, Vice-President of
the European Commission, who will provide a European perspective on
the issues at hand, Alison Brimelow, President of the European Patent
Office, the Slovenian Minister of Economy, Andrej Vizjak and Ivo de
Boer, Executive Secretary of the UN Climate Change Convention and head
of the Bali Conference in December 2007.

Are there patenting trends in environmental technologies? How can
patents be used to generate revenues in the area of clean technology?
Are patent rights too strong to support the eco-innovation process?
What is the role of patents in technology transfer?

About 300 IP experts, researchers and representatives of
government and NGOs from all over the world will be among those
attending.

6 May 2008, evening: "European Inventor of the Year 2008"- gala.
In this annual event, the European Patent Office and the European
Commission´s DG Enterprise honour some of Europe´s brightest minds
with awards in four categories as inventors of the year.

The programme:

-- 6 May 2008, morning (tbc): press conference
Announcement of the award-winning "European Inventors of the
Year 2008" (www.european-inventor.org)

-- 6 May 2008, all day: European Patent Forum, Meeting of
experts, with presentation and discussion of several climate
and IP-related topics under the heading "Technologies to save
the planet"

-- 6 May 2008, evening: Gala and award ceremony for the "European
Inventors of the Year 2008"
(by personal invitation only), opened by the Slovenian
President, Danilo Turk.

The awards will be presented in four award categories: Industry,
SMEs/Research, Non-European Countries, Lifetime Achievement

-- 7 May 2008, all day: European Patent Forum, Meeting of
experts, with presentation and discussion of several climate
and IP-related topics under the heading "Patenting practice
and eco-innovation"

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Venue: Grand Hotel Union
Miklosiceva 1, 1000 Ljubljana
Slovenia
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For more information, please consult www.european-inventor.org.