The collaborations that were formed during the COVID-19 pandemic epitomize the value of technology transfer and intellectual property. In today’s episode, Jennifer Brant, the Executive Director of the Innovation Council and the co-author of Unprecedented: The Rapid Innovation Response to COVID-19 and the Role of Intellectual Property, joins us to explain why! 

After providing an overview of the diverse range of work being done by the Innovation Council (from tackling the IP gender gap to looking at how to expand biomanufacturing networks globally), Jennifer delves into the key findings from the Unprecedented report. 

If you’re interested in learning how companies overcame the enormous challenges of bringing COVID-19 vaccines to the world and how this relates to IP protections (which could be undermined by the TRIPS waiver), this episode is for you!

In This Episode:

[00:52] Introducing Jennifer Brant, Executive Director of the Innovation Council. 

[02:02] Jennifer explains the diverse range of work that the Innovation Council is responsible for. 

[03:55] How the Innovation Council’s Inclusive Innovation Ecosystem is helping to close the IP gender gap. 

[08:12] An overview of the report that Jennifer co-authored about the essential role of IP during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

[13:54] Why the COVID-19 vaccines can be described as an “overnight success years in the making.”

[14:37] Factors that made the pandemic an unprecedented challenge. 

[15:57] Collaboration in times of crisis; stories from the COVID-19 pandemic.  

[21:55] An example that highlights the complexity of value chains relating to COVID-19 vaccines. 

[22:51] How regulatory authorities adapted to the demands of the pandemic response. 

[25:07] Debunking a misconception about the COVID-19 manufacturing process. 

[27:06] Jennifer’s thoughts on the TRIPS waiver.

[29:37] How companies are likely to respond to the removal of IP projections.

[32:04] The patent infringement lawsuit that had been filed against Pfizer-BioNTech.

[33:52] How countries can enhance their biomanufacturing capacity. 

[37:42] Impacts of the Russia/Ukraine war on biologics manufacturing in the region.

Find Jennifer:

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