By Chinwe Ohanele Agwu
Join us throughout October to celebrate IP Awareness Month!
The History of IP Awareness Month
On August 14, 2024, the California Senate passed SR 106 and deemed October IP Awareness Month. Supporters—including students from Mira Loma High School, Le Grand Elementary School, and Calistoga Unified School District—ushered in the bill alongside 54 others. Members of the California IP Alliance, US IP Alliance, Michelson Center for Public Policy, Michelson 20MM Foundation, and The Michelson Institute for Intellectual Property felt excited to attend.
Senator Josh Newman is joined by students, who are excited to see the resolution pass.
Senator Josh Newman introduced the resolution, emphasizing the ways in which intellectual property plays a significant role in the economy of the state of California, the fourth largest economy in the world. Following his remarks, the Senate unanimously passed the resolution.
How Lemelson-MIT Is Inspiring California K-12 Students to Embrace IP
The day offered an incredible opportunity to witness the resolution’s passage and engage with students from elementary through high school who participated in Lemelson-MIT’s invention program. Of the schools that attended, two invention teams are currently developing pending patents, thanks in part to attorneys from various law firms who volunteered their time to help the students with the patent filing process.
Through their invention teams, Lemelson-MIT hosts state, national, and international competitions where teams of students showcase inventions that solve everyday problems. Many young inventors begin at age five and continue in the program through graduation. Programs such as invention teams and science fairs are examples of K-12 initiatives that encourage innovation, and expose students to intellectual property concepts early enough to address many of the obstacles to diversifying the innovation economy.
A National Endeavor
Michelson IP and CAIPA team members with Senator Steven Bradford right before going into Senate Chambers for the resolution introduction.
Although advocates have officially recognized IP Awareness Month in California, they continue to work on the national level. The Michelson IP team is proud to partner with the US Intellectual Property Alliance (USIPA) on this effort.
USIPA believes that IP is the key to the knowledge economy™ and the future of our country. Their mission is to help the US become a much better IP ecosystem for the benefit of all citizens—particularly since IP is embedded in the Constitution. Under their IP Education and Awareness pillar, USIPA actively ensures that states pass proclamations or resolutions identifying October as IP Awareness Month. Then, state-level IP Alliances pass this mandate down to champion that effort within their state.
Michelson IP proudly supports the recognition of October 2024 and each subsequent October as Intellectual Property Awareness Month in California as a member of the California Intellectual Property Alliance (CAIPA) and the USIPA. We acknowledge the significance of raising awareness about the importance of IP and its role in fostering innovation, creativity, economic growth, and social justice.
Celebrating IP Awareness Month with Student Inventors
Inspired by the success of the resolution, join us and the CAIPA for a series of webinars that will highlight the value of IP in California! There are two opportunities to learn from California’s high school students on October 1st and October 22nd during the Ideas to Invention series! The invention team at Mira Loma will share their story on the 1st. Then on October 22nd, we will learn from the Calistoga invention team. Patent attorneys working with the invent teams will also be invited to share their perspective.
We look forward to celebrating IP Awareness Month with you!
The Michelson Institute for Intellectual Property, an initiative of the Michelson 20MM Foundation, provides access to empowering IP education for budding inventors and entrepreneurs. Michelson 20MM was founded thanks to the generous support of renowned spinal surgeon Dr. Gary K. Michelson and Alya Michelson. To learn more, visit 20mm.org.