1 Introduction

Threatened by climate change and suffering from inequalities, our planet and the humanity need sustainable development. ‘A world in which poverty and inequity are endemic will always be prone to ecological and other crises. Sustainable development requires meeting the basic needs of all and extending to all the opportunity to satisfy their aspirations for a better life’.Footnote 1 Sustainable development, as a meta-project, aims at developing solutions while securing actual development without causing harmful consequences to the environment and the humankind to offer, ultimately, the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.Footnote 2

Adopted by all 193 UN member states on 25 September 2015 and entered into force in 2016, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (‘UN 2030 Agenda’) and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (‘SDGs’) constitute a major milestone for sustainable development: they set forth the new global and universally applicable frame of reference for sustainable development that shall include social, economic and environmental dimensions.Footnote 3

Intellectual Property (‘IP’) aims at protecting creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce. IP has an important role to play in helping companies and people protect creative and innovative products and services that are the result of major investments. IP offers also visibility, attractiveness and value of products and services on the market, but also access to technical and business information and knowledge.

With respect to sustainable development, IP can represent either a critical incentive or a hindrance to innovation and creativity. The purpose of this report is to go beyond the positions of principle and to underline the current and prospective IP protection and uses that would create positive impact to achieve sustainability. Convinced by IP’s role for sustainability, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (‘WIPO’)’s statement should be kept in mind: ‘[o]nly through human ingenuity will it be possible to develop new solutions that: eradicate poverty; boost agricultural sustainability and ensure food security; fight disease; improve education; protect the environment and accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy; increase productivity and boost business competitiveness’.Footnote 4 The role of IP in sustainable development shall therefore be a global effort to tackle challenges in relation to biodiversity, traditional knowledge, climate change, transfer of clean technologies, agrobiotechnology and food security.Footnote 5

Through the analysis of the various IP rights enshrined in Swiss IP laws, this contribution aims at discussing the role of these legal instruments and/or other measures taken or proposed in Switzerland to encourage sustainable enterprises and innovations.

After describing the different IP rights protected under Swiss law and their respective/current role in sustainability (see Sect. 20.2 below), we will provide an overview of the measures and initiatives proposed in Switzerland (see Sect. 20.3 below). Further, a few thoughts on the success of IP in its role for sustainable development and the potential improvement to fulfil its role will be shared before concluding this report (see Sect. 20.4 below).

2 Swiss IP Legal Framework Current Role in Sustainability

2.1 Preliminary Remarks

By essence, IP plays an essential role in sustainable development as it aims to provide creators with legal protection for their ideas. Offering protection to ideas and entitling companies and people to exploit them shall incentivise them to engage means for innovation. Promoted under Goal 9 of the SDGs, innovation and environmentally sound technologies are necessary to increase resource-use efficiency and to adopt ‘clean’ industrial processes to make infrastructure and industries sustainable.Footnote 6 Innovation is therefore an important tool for achieving environmental, economic and social sustainability and has also an impact on many other SDGs, such as Goals 2 (Zero Hunger), 3 (Good Life and Well-Being), 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) and 13 (Climate Action).Footnote 7

In Switzerland, unlike other areas (e.g. territory planning or equality), only a few provisions of the laws protecting IP rights have yet been amended to specifically further incentivise sustainable development. However, the Swiss IP legal framework offers means that can be useful for innovation to become (rapidly) economically and socially profitable. These provisions and means will be further described in the following sections.

2.2 Swiss IP Legal Framework

Under Swiss law, IP consist of:

  • Copyright, which is protected by the Federal Act on Copyright and Related Rights (Copyright Act,Footnote 8 ‘CopA’);

  • Design, which is protected by the Federal Act on the Protection of Designs (Designs Act,Footnote 9 ‘DesA’);

  • Patent, which is protected by the Federal Act on Patents for Inventions (Patents Act,Footnote 10 ‘PatA’);

  • Trademark, which is protected by the Federal Act on the Protection of Trademarks and Indications of Source (Trademark Protection Act,Footnote 11 ‘TPA’);

  • Plant varieties, which are protected by the Federal Law on the Protection of New Plant Varieties;

  • Topographies and semi-conductor products, which are protected by the Federal Law on the Protection of the Topographies of Semiconductor Products.

Although not granting an absolute right to its owner (as the above IP rights), IP shall also include trade secrets (protected by several provisions, i.e. Articles 321a et 418d of the Swiss Code of Obligations, Articles 162 and 273 of the Swiss Criminal Code as well as Article 4 (c) of the Federal Law against Unfair Competition).

The following subsections will focus on few amendments entered into force recently in the PatA and PatO (see Sect. 20.2.3 below), in the TPA (see Sect. 20.2.4 below) and in the CopA (see Sect. 20.2.5 below) to implement sustainable development objectives.

2.3 PatA and PatO

Where innovation can be a solution, patent protection should be considered. Patents are indeed directly relevant to technology with a bearing on sustainability and such knowledge shall benefit to everyone to effectively engage in a sustainable environment. In Switzerland, the PatA and its Ordinance of application [the Ordinance on PatentsFootnote 12 (‘PatO’)] set forth the conditions to protect inventions and contain useful tools to implement SDGs.

2.3.1 Compulsory Licences

Articles 40 to 40d of the PatA provide for the granting of compulsory licences particularly (i) for inventions that present a public interest (Art. 40 PatA), (ii) for inventions in the field of semiconductor technology (Art. 40a PatA), (iii) for inventions that are intended to be used as research tools (Art. 40b PatA), (iv) for inventions concerning a diagnostic product or procedure for humans (Art. 40c PatA) and (iv) for the export of pharmaceutical products (Art. 40d PatA).

Compulsory licences limit the rights of the patent holder and must therefore be seen as an exception regulation which must be applied with restraint. They are however particularly appropriate when there is a latent risk of abuse of a dominant position and can guarantee access to and development of research results in problematic cases.Footnote 13 In this scenario, their effectiveness lies less in the frequency with which they are imposed than in the pressure they can exert in favour of an amicable solution.Footnote 14 As regards the compulsory licences that present a public interest (Art. 40 PatA) or for the export of pharmaceutical products (Art. 40d PatA), the aim is however to enable private as well as public stakeholders to have access to technology at an affordable price.

Switzerland has adopted Art. 40d PatA to implement the World Trade Organization’s (‘WTO’) decision to allow WTO Member States with sufficient pharmaceutical production capacity to provide for a compulsory licence for the manufacture and export of patented pharmaceuticals under clearly defined conditions.Footnote 15 This measure aimed at enabling countries (particularly developing countries) with insufficient or no in-house production capacity to have access to patented pharmaceuticals at reasonable price, when they need them to fight serious public health problems, such as HIV/AIDS or malaria.Footnote 16

Article 40d para 1 PatA provides that:

[a]ny person may bring an action before the court to be granted a non-exclusive licence for the manufacture of patent-protected pharmaceutical products and for their export to a country that has insufficient or no production capacity of its own in the pharmaceutical sector and which requires these products to combat public health problems, in particular those related to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other epidemics (beneficiary country).

As already stated by William O. Hennessey in 1996, ‘[l]icensing can also foster the diffusion of environmental technologies to other geographical markets which desperately need them but which remain beyond the reach of the technology developer’.Footnote 17 Thus, this type of measure is directly in line with a logic of sustainability. However, it is regrettable that these compulsory licences are very little used and their contours very little (or not yet) tested in court.

2.3.2 Disclosure of Source

In implementing the SDGs, the role of innovation and technology is essential; scientific knowledge is central to solve economic, social and environmental issues. However, innovation is not the only form of knowledge, and closer links between science and other systems of knowledge are made to address sustainable development problems at the local level such as natural resources management and biodiversity preservation. Traditional societies have nurtured and refined systems of knowledge in very diverse fields (i.e. agriculture, botany, ecology, geology, health, meteorology, and psychology) that represent an enormous wealth.Footnote 18 However, traditional knowledge is often only transmitted orally and is therefore not documented. In the past, several patents were granted for inventions that were based on and/or used traditional knowledge, and thus should have been considered not sufficiently inventive. In most of the cases, such ‘not inventive’ patents were granted because patent authorities had no means to access such knowledge and to determine whether there was prior art as regards this knowledge.

It was therefore acknowledged that the sharing of commercial and other benefits related to the use of genetic resources and the related traditional knowledge can cause numerous issues. To address them, several international instruments have been concluded, including in particular the Convention on Biological Diversity (‘CBD’), the Bonn Guidelines, and the International Treaty of the Food and Agriculture Organization (‘FAO’). In the context of the CBD, it was decided to set an International Regime on Access and Benefit Sharing. Among the measures taken, particular requirements with respect to patent application have been included to disclose certain information in patent applications so as to increase transparency and prevent ‘not inventive’ patents. The purpose was to ensure that the sharing of the benefits arising from the use of genetic resources and the related traditional knowledge allow the providers of such knowledge (particularly developing countries and indigenous and local communities) to benefit from the patent system.Footnote 19

In this context, Switzerland submitted several proposals to WIPO bodies and working groups to introduce a ‘disclosure of source’ of genetic resources and traditional knowledge in patent applications.Footnote 20 The aim was ultimately to achieve four policy objectives: transparency, traceability, technical prior art and mutual trust (also known as the ‘four T’s’).Footnote 21

The proposals, which Switzerland worked for on an international level, have also been implemented on a national level: Article 49a PatA (as well as Article 138 let. b PatA for international applications) obliges the patent applicant to provide information regarding the source of genetic resources and related traditional knowledge in their patent application. Under Article 81a PatA, anyone who intentionally violates such obligation is liable to a fine of up to CHF 100,000 and the court may order the publication of the judgment.

2.3.3 Fast Track

Like many other countries (and more recently SingaporeFootnote 22), Article 63 PatO offers patent applicants the possibility to request an accelerated procedure. It provides that: ‘[t]he applicant may request that the substantive examination be undertaken under an accelerated procedure. Until the expiry of 18 months from the date of filing or priority, such a request may only be made if the formal requirements set out in Articles 46 to 52 are fulfilled’. An additional fee of CHF 200 is required to request this procedure (Annex 3 of the Swiss IP Office Ordinance on fees).

In Switzerland, patent applications usually undergo a substantive examination which is carried out by the Swiss IP Office and usually begins about three years after filing.

By speeding up a patent grant, the accelerated procedure may help companies investing to find innovative solutions to address pressing issues, such as climate change, food security and public health, to give visibility to their project as well as protecting it. It might however be adapted to further encourage the development of sustainable inventions (by exempting applicants from the surcharge).

2.4 TPA

The more consumers are environmentally conscious and wish to buy products and/or services that are sustainable, the more certification marks have an important role to play. They both contribute to ensure that products and services comply with certain standards and allow the consumer to distinguish green or environmentally friendly products and services. Therefore, it is increasingly common to witness the use of marks indicating that a product is certified by a specific organisation or has a specific geographical origin and possess qualities, characteristics and/or a reputation that are due to that origin. Such marks are provided by most legal systems around the world and known as certification marks, collective marks or guarantee marks.Footnote 23 In Switzerland, both guarantee marks (Art. 21 TPA) and collective marks (Art. 22 TPA) exist.

As regards appellations of origin (‘AOs’) and geographical indications (‘GIs’), those collective rights are protected under Articles 47–50f TPA and shall help producers obtain a fair compensation on their efforts in building the reputation of traditional origin-based products. In this specific regard, the Swiss IP Office participates in cooperation projects with other countries to help them setting a legal framework that would support businesses and therefore improve the socioeconomic situation of the project countries (see Sect. 20.3.2.2 below).

2.4.1 Certification Marks

Article 21 para 1 TPA provides that: ‘[a] [certification] mark is a sign that is used by several undertakings under the supervision of the proprietor of the mark and which serves to guarantee the quality, geographical origin, the method of manufacture or other characteristics common to goods or services of such undertakings’. The proprietor of the certification mark must allow its use for goods or services that possess the common characteristics set forth under the regulations governing the use of the mark in return for equitable remuneration (Art. 22 para 3 TPA).

Certification marks are used by several companies under the control of its proprietor, with the aim of guaranteeing that goods and services have specific characteristics (i.e. quality, geographical origin, manufacturing methods, etc.).Footnote 24 Certification marks are also intended to distinguish goods or services of a group of companies (those subject to the trademark regulations) from those originating from companies outside that group.Footnote 25

It is worth mentioning that the proprietor of such mark (or of an undertaking with which he has close economic ties) may not use it for the goods or services he offers on the market (Art. 21 para 2 TPA): as the proprietor has to monitor the use of the label, it is considered that he cannot monitor himself and shall avoid any conflict of interest.Footnote 26 The certification marks conditions of use must be determined in regulations that must be approved by the Swiss IP Office (Art. 23 para 1 TPA). They set out the common characteristics of the goods or services subject to guarantee and also provide for an effective control mechanism and adequate sanctions (Art. 23 para 2 TPA).

As of now, less than 250 certification marks are registered (or subject to IPI review for registration) in Switzerland,Footnote 27 they can represent an important tool to support environmental awareness and implement SDGs.Footnote 28 Indeed, when certification marks are used to distinguish green or sustainable products and services, companies and holders of such certification mark draw consumers to their products and/or services. The use of such products and/or services shall in turn contribute to generating positive environmental impact as they comply with standards and requirements which have been tested.

2.4.2 Collective Marks

Article 22 TPA provides that: ‘[a] collective mark is a sign of an association of manufacturing, trading or service undertakings which serves to distinguish the goods or services of the members of the association from those of other undertakings’. Whereas guarantee marks ensure the presence of specific common properties of the goods and services they designate, collective marks serve to attest the membership to ‘an association of manufacturing, trading or service undertakings’. It may have a guarantee function, but this is not an essential function of the collective mark.

At international and national levels, collective marks are also used as a tool for promoting sustainable development goals.Footnote 29 However, from a consumer perspective, collective marks offer less guarantees compared to the guarantee marks: not only do they only serve to prove membership of a designated grouping, but holders of such mark are not subject to control procedures neither to sanction should they not comply with the specific requirements deriving from the use of such mark.

2.5 CopA

Copyrighted works have also their role to play in protecting green technologies, especially as regards scientific research. Those creative works are necessary to the development of sustainable solutions and shall be disseminated to support innovation but also education (in this particular regard, see also Sect. 20.3.2.4 below).

In this respect, a new restriction—Article 24d CopA—has been adopted and entered into force on 1 April 2020 with the aim of facilitating access to scientific research and to incentivise it.

Article 24d CopA provides that: ‘[f]or the purposes of scientific research, it is permissible to reproduce a work if the copying is due to the use of a technical process and if the works to be copied can be lawfully accessed’ (para 1); ‘[o]n conclusion of the scientific research, the copies made in accordance with this Article may be retained for archiving and backup purposes’ (para 2) and an exception for computer programs ‘[t]his Article does not apply to the copying of computer programs’ (para 3).

Under certain conditions, the reproduction of a work for science research and its saving for archiving and backup purposes are now allowed. In the research field, the technique of ‘text & data mining’ is often used.Footnote 30 It consists of an automatic technical process treating big volumes of documents and data with the objective of analysing texts and compiling information so to establish interconnections and correlations among them, including copyrighted works (such as texts, audios, images and other kind of data).Footnote 31 Reproducing, copying and retaining copyrighted works would normally require the authors’ consent in the form of individual licenses. This restriction authorises now under certain conditions the reproduction of works for science purposes. It allows also to save the works used for archiving and backup purposes, as long as it is necessary to verify the research results and procedure.Footnote 32

3 Specific and Current Measures for Sustainability in Switzerland

3.1 Mandate of the Swiss IP Office re Swiss 2030 Sustainable Development Strategy

If Swiss IP laws offer a few means to promote sustainable initiatives, as of now, the Swiss government has essentially set out high level measures strategies in this prospect. In its 2030 Sustainable Development Strategy (‘2030 SDS’) adopted on 23 June 2021, the Swiss Federal Council outlines the priorities it intends to follow to implement the 2030 Agenda over the next ten years.Footnote 33 The 2030 SDS sets out the guidelines for the Swiss government’s sustainability policy and positions sustainable development as an important requirement for all federal policy areas.Footnote 34 Under these guidelines, all federal units are called upon to participate in the implementation of 2030 SDS within the scope of their responsibilities. The Federal Council has therefore adopted the 2021–2023 Action Plan for the 2030 Sustainable Development Strategy (‘2021–2023 Action Plan’), which gives concrete form to the strategy with a selection of 22 new measures at the federal level. Each of these measures includes a description, the main objectives, the responsible federal units and those involved in their implementation.Footnote 35 Section 19 of the 2021–2023 Action Plan provides that the autonomous units shall take proper measures to strengthen sustainable development in their strategic objectives.

In May 2022, the Swiss Federal Council has therefore issued specific and strategic goals for the Swiss IP Office, as an autonomous unit of the Federal Administration.Footnote 36 According Section 13 of this roadmap, the Swiss IP Office is expected to contribute to the implementation of the UN Agenda 2030 in the area of sustainable development and to pursue a sustainable strategy based on ethical principles. The Swiss IP Office shall identify areas of sustainable development where it has a significant influence and set targets based on the 17 SDGs.Footnote 37 Based on this mandate, the Swiss IP Office has undertaken a number of specific measures to contribute to and implement the SDGs. Not only the Swiss IP Office is part to international cooperation programs (see Sects. 20.3.2.1 and 20.3.2.2) but has also taken more local measures (see Sects. 20.3.2.4, 20.3.2.5 and 20.3.2.6).

3.2 Measures

3.2.1 WIPO GREEN Partnership

Since the end of 2019, the Swiss IP Office is an official partner of WIPO GREEN. Launched in 2013 by WIPO, WIPO GREEN is a marketplace for sustainable technology and offers an online platform which contributes to the diffusion of green technologies.Footnote 38 This platform is a free database which compiles green technologies, a network of interested parties, as well as specific WIPO GREEN projects. It aims at supporting global efforts by connecting providers with seekers of such technologies.Footnote 39 The Swiss IP Office actively contributes to the diffusion of green technologies (for example with assisted patent searches)Footnote 40 and is part of the Core Committee, which consists of a selection of WIPO GREEN partners from different backgrounds reunited to make recommendations on the strategy, priority areas and topics, as well as partnerships to implement the goals of WIPO GREEN.Footnote 41 The partnership with WIPO GREEN is also part of the Swiss IP Office’s contribution to the achievement of the UN’s sustainable development goals.

3.2.2 Cooperation Projects

Sustainable development needs global and widespread transfer of clean technologies and knowledge.Footnote 42 To mitigate the effects of climate change, there is yet an urge to deploy environmentally sound technologies on a large-scale and rapidly in all sectors and all countries, whether developed or developing.Footnote 43

The Swiss IP Office has engaged in technical cooperation with developing countries in the field of IP. Such technical cooperation projects include providing assistance to the competent authorities in their operations, providing training to the employees and drafting legislation.Footnote 44 These cooperation projects aim at creating an environment that is more conducive to business and therefore improving the socioeconomic situation of the project countries. This involves, in particular, (i) to develop technology and knowledge transfer, (ii) to prevent piracy and trade of counterfeit goods (e.g. medicines, auto parts and batteries) and (iii) to protect IP in an appropriate, effective, calculable and easily applicable manner. This involves weighing up the economic benefits and the interests of all those affected by IP rights.Footnote 45

In the performance of these technical cooperation projects, the Swiss IP Office is committed to international standards set out in the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness.Footnote 46 Among others, the Swiss IP Office shall contribute to ‘enhancing the individual responsibility and independence of project countries and partner institutions (Ownership)’ and make the projects ‘perennial and [are] geared towards the national development strategies of project countries and the needs of partner institutions (Alignment)’. Moreover, ‘[t]he results achieved continue to have an impact after the projects have ended (Sustainability)’.Footnote 47

As of today, the Swiss IP Office is supporting more than ten projects across the world under the program named ‘Global Program for Intellectual Property Rights’ funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (‘SECO’).Footnote 48 Since its launch in June 2018, this program has supported the following countries: Albania, Colombia, Myanmar, Peru, Serbia and South Africa. Additional activities and projects are being planned in Albania, Benin, Iran, Colombia, Myanmar, Peru, Serbia, South Africa and Tunisia.Footnote 49

For example, since January 2020, the IPI has entered into a cooperation agreement with Iran [Iranian-Swiss Intellectual Property Project (‘IRSIP’)]. According to the IPI, ‘the overall objective of the IRSIP is to strengthen the Iranian IP system to improve business competitiveness and commercialization of intellectual property assets, and to make a positive impact on Iran’s economic development’.Footnote 50 In this context, one of the main objectives of the IRSIP was to enable Iran to capitalise on its internal resources, for example in the field of GIs, and to provide assistance to the national GIs system.Footnote 51

3.2.3 Technology Transfer Agreements Templates

When accessible, technical data can contribute to technological innovation and is of major economic interest. However, these data are often held by private entities either voluntarily or due to a lack of sharing solutions. Concerned by researchers, businesses and civil society’s interests in setting the conditions for the legal, secure and fair sharing of technical data, the Swiss Federal Council commissioned the IPI to issue a report on access to non-personal data in the private sector.Footnote 52

Therefore, the IPI has entrusted various specialised stakeholders to carry out different analysis. Among them, one had the objective of proposing standardised agreements to facilitate exchanges of technical data held by private sector actors to other organisations. After identifying in a report the major stakeholders’ needs and concerns with respect to this question (i.e. loss of control over shared data, protection of interests when sharing, complexity of the legal framework, absence of good practices, etc.),Footnote 53 three model of agreements were proposed covering three types of cases:Footnote 54

  • The one-time provision of data covered by an Agreement for the Transfer of Technical Data;

  • Access to a data feed or the regular provision of long-term data covered by a Subscription Agreement for Access to Technical Data;

  • The exchange of data between parties covered by an Agreement for the Exchange of Technical Data.

Such initiative (although not directly related to IP) contributes to transfer of technologies and therefore implementing SDGs.

3.2.4 National Open Access Strategy

Out of the 17 SDGs, ten need constant scientific input. Considering that these goals have to be achieved globally, it is essential to remove restrictions to disseminate research outputs widely. Governments as well as international organisations such as UNESCO have acknowledged this connection and officially recognise open access (‘OA’) has a major role to support and achieve sustainable social, political, and economic development.Footnote 55 UNESCO ‘believes that OA has a fundamental role to support the SDGs and is committed to making OA one of the central supporting agendas to achieve the SDGs’.Footnote 56

In 2016, on behalf of the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation and in collaboration with the Swiss National Science Foundation, swissuniversities (the Swiss Conference of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions) developed a national strategy for Open Access. On 31 January 2017, the Swiss National Strategy on Open Access has been approved by the plenary assembly of swissuniversities and has been subsequently endorsed by the governing board of the Swiss University Conference. It sets forth the following objective: ‘[…] by 2024, all scholarly publication activity in Switzerland should be OA, all scholarly publications funded by public money must be freely accessible on the internet’.Footnote 57

A significant step taken to achieve this goal was the signature of the four-year contract OA agreement with John Wiley & Sons in 2021. It shall offer and ‘provide students and researchers from over 40 Swiss higher education and research institutions access to the Wiley Online Library with over 1,450 journals. At the same time, this agreement enables authors affiliated to these institutions to make their scientific Articles published in the hybrid journals openly accessible immediately upon publication’.Footnote 58

3.2.5 Innosuisse: Swiss Innovation Agency

As the Innovation Agency for Switzerland, Innosuisse’s role is ‘to promote science-based innovation in the interest of the economy and society in Switzerland’.Footnote 59

Innosuisse action aims at accelerating the transfer of knowledge from academia to industry and to help innovations and start-ups to strengthen the competitiveness of Swiss SMEs and start-ups on the market, therefore contributing to the sustainable development and prosperity of Switzerland. More concretely, Innosuisse’s support is threefold: (i) to promote networking and expanding knowledge, (ii) to help implementing innovation projects and (iii) to help found and establish start-ups.Footnote 60 Should Innosuisse have approved an application for funding and when providing support for the implementation of the project, Innosuisse offers—in collaboration with the Swiss IP Office—two free services: the Assisted Patent Search and the Assisted Patent Landscape Analysis enabling applicants to find out whether their innovation can be patented and gain valuable insights into their innovation.Footnote 61

3.2.6 Swiss Cleantech Report Contribution

Published for the third time, the purpose of the Swiss Cleantech Report is to highlight the efforts being invested by the Swiss industry to overcome the challenges presented by climate change. This publication aims at promoting and broadcasting these technological innovations and concrete solutions brought to the market. To better illustrate Switzerland position on an international level, the Swiss IP Office shares its observations and statistics on the Swiss cleantech patent landscape.Footnote 62

3.3 Prospective Measures

According to the latest information available to us, the Swiss IP Office has set up a new working group whose aim is to deal with issues related to sustainable development and to evaluate new measures to support green innovation/technology.

Among these measures that the Swiss IP Office is currently further evaluating are the following ones:

  • be even more active in the field of international cooperation and specifically in green technologies (see also Sect. 20.3.2.2 above);

  • set up more workshops on green innovation issues and the role of intellectual property in this context;

  • facilitate access to patent searches (e.g. support provided by Innosuisse, see Sect. 20.3.2.5 above);

  • set up platforms for exchange between the various players by offering training, events and prizes/grants to promote green technologies;

  • set up a ‘recycling’ and ‘upcycling’ programme for certain counterfeit goods that have been seized, rather than destroying them.

4 Conclusion

Overall, despite global efforts to support the implementation of sustainable policies and practices aligned with the SDGs, many initiatives are being overwhelmed by the reality of the market. Notably, the WTO decision on the waiver of IP rights under the exceptional circumstances driven by the COVID-19 pandemic illustrates the outstanding challenges to the inclusion of sustainability considerations in IP laws.Footnote 63

That being said, Switzerland and the Swiss IP Office (as well as other countries, including for instance Singapore, Japan and the US) have undertaken multiple steps to integrate and contribute to the realisation of the SDGs. This is highlighted by numerous measures leading to cooperation, transfer of technology or knowledge (see Sect. 20.3.2 above). Some of the existing IP regulations have been progressively adapted to integrate specific incentives, but most importantly to support access to science, or even vulnerable individuals. There is, however, room for improvement.

Switzerland should follow the implementation of recent amendments to IP laws facilitating the access to patent protection or creating green technology classification schemes for patent, as well as providing assistance to entrepreneurs and raising awareness on IP’s role for sustainability. In this context, the efforts of WIPO GREEN and its stakeholders should be commended, and we further hope that the policies and programs launched will be the right means to accelerate the green transition.