This policy brief looks at the role of intellectual property rights in developing and accessing technologies for mitigation and adaption to climate change. It provides an overview of intellectual property rights as the main mechanism of encouraging technological innovation for responding to climate change, and describes the issues that prevent constructive discussion in the area. The brief brings together diverse perspectives to propose action, beginning with building trust and exploring potential policy options, challenging countries to go beyond their entrenched positions and thus enable productive climate talks. It concludes with a caution that without reaching a compromise, the impasse will prevent a significant move towards green technologies.

This report aims to give practical recommendations on the design of Climate Innovation Centres (CICs), which seek to tackle barriers to the transfer, development and deployment of climate technologies in developing countries. It was commissioned by infoDev in collaboration with the UK Department for International Development and the UN Industrial Development Organization.

The report argues that developing countries lag in their capacity to transfer, develop and deploy innovative climate technologies — making them passive recipients of technologies developed elsewhere that are not suited to local conditions.

It highlights gaps and barriers to climate technology innovation based on a survey of 62 developing countries, and after screening more than 550 organisations to identify 67 as potential CICs. To be successful, it says, CICs will need to perform several functions such as committing their own capital to climate technology innovations or finding new ways to attract investors; coordinating research and development; and performing technology needs assessments.

This handbook offers developing countries guidance on how to conduct technology needs assessments systematically to address climate change.

It was prepared by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), in collaboration with the Expert Group on Technology Transfer of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat and the Climate Technology Initiative.

This updated version of the 2004 handbook provides a more detailed framework for the development and implementation of needs assessments designed to help countries make informed choices on the technologies they can adopt to mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change. In particular, it advises on how to identify, assess and prioritise technologies. It also examines ways to support capacity building and help establish environments to enable technology transfer.