Many environmental problems are placing nature and humans in danger. Human activities like burning fossil fuels, cutting trees and overusing natural resources, has made the problem greater. We are now facing climate change, air and water pollution, deforestation, poor waste management, natural disasters and water shortage.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called for net-zero greenhouse gas emissions within the next 25 years to keep climate change to a few degrees Celsius. His message is clear, that climate change isn’t just one country’s problem, it’s something we all have to face together.

What is Clean Technology?

Clean technology defines innovations that use less resources, release fewer emissions, and use energy effectively, all of which lowers the influence on the environment. Some common categories include renewable energy like solar and geothermal technologies, energy efficiency like smart grids, led lighting and high efficiency HVAC systems, waste management like waste to energy systems and water conservation like irrigation and water purification systems.

Importance of Protecting Green Innovations Through Patents

Patents play an important role in promoting innovation by allowing inventors exclusive rights to their discoveries for a limited time (often twenty years). Patenting green innovations provides multitude of benefits & protection, financial incentives, licensing and technology transfer, investors etc.

Steps to Patent Clean Technologies

First, perform a prior art search for comprehensively check and confirm that the invention is novel or not. Second, draft a patent application that clearly explains the problems with prior art and how the invention solves them and also include specific claims and detailed description of its features.

Next, select the jurisdictions where the invention has commercially profitable. The Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) can simplify the process by allowing applicants to file a single international application.

Global Policies and Incentives for Green Patent

IP bodies are promoting climate change related inventions with some special rules to bring together like minded inventors. The world intellectual property organization has developed an International Patent Classification green inventory that allows easy searching of patents that are related to green technology, as well as a platform called WIPO green that connects environment friendly technology solutions to the global innovation ecosystem.

Many countries provide financial incentives and grant to inventors for developing clean technologies. These initiatives include tax benefits, subsidies and funding opportunities for patented inventions.

In India, many policies like startup India aimed at promoting patents for green technologies by startups and MSME’s. The opportunity to file patents faster and at lower costs with focus on sustainability.

The united states also targeted tax incentives, government funding and relationship between public and private sectors, made a framework for green patents. Programs such as the green technology pilot program accelerate the examination of patents.

Challenges in Patenting Clean Technologies

Green innovations are difficult to patent because many of them build upon existing concepts, making it more difficult to prove their novelty. It is expensive to file patents worldwide and may become ineffective due to quick improvements.

Conclusion

Protecting intellectual property, promoting innovation, and accelerating the global shift to sustainability that all depend on patenting clean technologies and green inventions. Inventors can work on innovations and help build a cleaner, greener future by taking advantage of available incentives.

About Effectual Services

Effectual Services is an award-winning Intellectual Property (IP) management advisory & consulting firm offering IP intelligence to Fortune 500 companies, law firms, research institutes and universities, and venture capital firms/PE firms, globally. Through research & intelligence we help our clients in taking critical business decisions backed with credible data sources, which in turn helps them achieve their organisational goals, foster innovation and achieve milestones within timelines while optimising costs.

We are one of the largest IP & business intelligence providers, globally serving clients for over a decade now. Our multidisciplinary teams of subject matter experts have deep knowledge of best practices across industries, are adept with benchmarking quality standards and use a combination of human and machine intellect to deliver quality projects. Having a global footprint in over 5 countries helps us to bridge boundaries and work seamlessly across multiple time zones, thus living to the core of our philosophy - Innovation is global, so are we !!!