The centre's mission is to facilitate and conduct advanced research into all aspects of intellectual property, particularly the proper role of intellectual property in the light of the new technologies. The centre's present and future projects include the conduct of long-term interdisciplinary research aimed at involving researchers drawn from not only the law faculty but also those of economics and management.

Based at the University of Oxford, United Kingdom, PTRR aims to extend to indigenous peoples and local communities "knowledge of appropriate mechanisms for protecting the integrity of their knowledge and resources".