04/04/2023
The IPCC, the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change, has published its AR6 Synthesis report.
It summarises the state of knowledge of climate change, its impact and the effective options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to human-caused climate change.
The present situation does not make for pleasant reading. Human activities have “unequivocally” caused global warming and the pace and scale of existing efforts to keep warming to 1.5℃ are insufficient. More than a century of burning fossil fuels, alongside unsustainable energy and land use, has already led to global warming of 1.1℃ over pre-industrial levels.
The window in which to act is narrowing but thankfully what comes next is in our hands. According to the IPCC there is sufficient global capital to cut greenhouse gas emissions, provided financing climate investments becomes a priority.
It means government, industry and investors all pulling in the same direction to provide access to the clean energy and technologies required to arrest global warming and become more sustainable. It’s here that intellectual property proves critical. Without it, the confidence needed for the rapid commercialisation of ideas, international cooperation and adoption quickly dissipates.
Some technologies, such as solar, are already mature and are playing their part. Others, such as CCUS, nuclear and hydrogen are showing promise and need help in order to scale. Finally, according to the IEA, almost half of the reductions we need to reach Net Zero by 2050 must come from technologies that don’t yet exist outside of the R&D environments in which the prototypes are being conceived, actualised and developed.
As a specialist intellectual property law firm our specialisms include cleantech, advanced engineering, chemistry & materials, software and future transportation. We’re therefore very much aware of the many ways inventors are reimaging the world around us, ensuring technology and innovation plays its part in addressing the climate emergency. Some by focussing on newly emerging technologies. Others by adapting legacy technologies, perhaps with the addition of AI or machine learning.
Embracing and investing in unproven concepts, technologies or business models always carries a degree of risk. That’s why intellectual property rights, especially patents, incentivise those willing to challenge what’s gone before and come up with something better.
We’re proud to support those with the vision to look beyond how things are now towards how much better they could be in the future. We look forward to working with any start-up, multinational or institution looking to protect its IP, take new inventions to market and respond to the climate emergency.
This article is for general information only. Its content is not a statement of the law on any subject and does not constitute advice. Please contact Reddie & Grose LLP for advice before taking any action in reliance on it.
