World IP Day 2023: Women and IP

Each year on April 26, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) hosts World
IP Day, a celebration of the role of intellectual property (IP) in spurring creativity
and innovation. This year’s theme, “Women and IP: Accelerating Innovation and Creativity”,
focuses on celebrating enterprising women around the world. USF Tech Transfer is pleased
to raise awareness and highlight some of the women inventors we work with who use
IP rights to accelerate their technologies and inspire the next generation of innovation.

Video: Dr. Tomar Ghansah and Dr. Victoria Marshall give advice to young girls who
want to invent and discover

WIPO’s 2023 campaign has a strong emphasis on gender equality, seeking to raise critical
public awareness and advocating for more women inventors, creators and entrepreneurs
to participate in the IP system. Women everywhere are shaping the world, but often
don’t have access to the knowledge, skills, resources and support they need to succeed.
The goal is to recognize and demonstrate how closing the IP gender gap would benefit
society.

“Creative freedom should not be defined by gender, but more so by an inventor’s passion
to make a difference and be a change agent for humanity,” said Dr. Sylvia Thomas,
interim vice president for research and innovation at USF. “Women and girls are poised
to be creative in every walk of life, fueling our groundbreaking ideas; therefore,
encouraging generations of female entrepreneurs, inventors, and creative thinkers
is essential to the world’s sustainability and longevity.”

Video: Dr. Tomar Ghansah and Dr. Victoria Marshall speak about the challenges for
women in innovation and IP

World IP Day was first launched in 2000 to help promote and protect creative ideas,
including music, art, trademarks, writings, and inventions. The annual campaign offers
USF a unique opportunity to join with others around the globe to explore how IP drives
technological innovation as well as showcase the discoveries and inventions happening
every day at the University of South Florida.

Video: Dr. Victoria Marshall talks about her current technology, OncoCare Connect

Dr. Tomar Ghansah talks about her discovery, a protein that can improve chemotherapy
and immunotherapy responses

Dr. Ghansah and Dr. Marshall are only two of the great examples within USF of the
role intellectual property plays in achieving your goals. Both have spoken on the
importance of mentorship to inspire the next generation of inventors, creators, and
entrepreneurs. USF has hundreds of technologies across all disciplines available.
To learn more about World IP Day or to partner on any of the technologies happening
at USF, please contact ttoinfo@usf.edu.