PARIS STATEMENT ON INNOVATION FOR DEVELOPMENT An International Conference on “Innovation for Development” was held at UNESCO, Paris, on 3-4 May 2007. The conference was co-organised by the European Association for the Transfer of Technology, Innovation and Industrial Information (TII), and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The conference included sessions on technology and innovation for development, north- south university partnerships, exchanges with emerging countries, innovation support policies, services and management, knowledge transfer from the research base, corporate social responsibility and public-private partnerships. The concluding plenary session included a panel discussion and the production of a “Paris Statement on Innovation for Development”. Conference speakers and participants included both TII members - innovation specialists and managers – and representatives of UNIDO, the UNESCO delegations, The World Bank, OECD, WIPO, the European Commission and the European Investment Bank as well as national development agencies and delegates from developing countries, thereby reflecting the interest of TII, in partnership with UNESCO, to develop a network on innovation for development. PARIS STATEMENT ON INNOVATION FOR DEVELOPMENT The European innovation community at the TII-UNESCO conference on “Innovation for Development” emphasised the importance of innovation for sustainable economic development, and highlighted various support measures, policies and programmes that have contributed to successful innovation, with particular reference to developing countries and the UN Millennium Development Goals. Innovation depends upon the development of products or services with a competitive advantage, responding to market needs and acceptance, making effective use of natural and financial resources, human and institutional capacity in research and development, in a public environment that is supportive of private sector entrepreneurs and enterprise. Innovation and the transfer of technology is particularly facilitated by the employment of young graduates familiar with current knowledge, financial support for research in key areas, effective intellectual property asset protection and management, the dissemination and commercial exploitation of research results and new technologies through licensing agreements and contract research, spin-off companies that commercialize university research, as well as legal and business support services which help entrepreneurs succeed in complex business environments. Towards an action plan In pursuit of the UN Millennium Development Goals and other issues such as climate change and the need for clean technology, the European innovation community resolves to: - Assist developing countries in promoting innovation, entrepreneurship and associated support policies, capacity building, staff exchange schemes, studentships and information exchange, in order to build comprehensive and efficient innovation support systems, - Develop strong partnerships with developing country counterparts, especially European research and cooperation partner countries, - Help increase research and innovation capacities in developing countries with support funds, including European funding facilities (such as the European Commission and the EIB), the World Bank and the EBRD, - Support, protect and disseminate research results from developing and emerging countries, through patenting and equitable contract practices, support entrepreneurship, incubation and technology transfer, financial tools and associated policies and investments. The innovation community pledges to assist governments in helping to promote innovation for development and to address the Millennium Development Goals, and calls upon UNESCO and other UN, European, national, regional and financial organisations to be partners in this process, including all stakeholders in innovation and technology transfer. The innovation community offers and invites partnership with UNESCO and related agencies in the following areas of service and activity: - Facilitating dialogue between policy makers and innovation support practitioners in developing and emerging countries to improve the uptake and application of innovation support services, - Competence building and professional skills development through seminars, workshops, summer schools, quality control, innovation management techniques and the exchange of good practice, - Increasing education capacities (create modern Master and Executive programmes) in entrepreneurship, technology commercialization and innovation in developing countries, - Consensus building support among all types of innovation support practitioner through seminars, workshops and advice, - Information, dissemination and networking activities including the development of website and associated resources, professional directory, events calendar, organisation of international, national and regional activities, monitoring and brokerage with support services and funds. Jeremy Hunsinger Information Ethics Fellow, Center for Information Policy Research, School of Information Studies, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (www.cipr.uwm.edu) Words are things; and a small drop of ink, falling like dew upon a thought, produces that which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think. --Byron