The first capacity building workshop of the IPICA Project was held at the premises of the University of Technology Jamaica in Kingston, from the 27th to the 28th of November 2014.

The objective of the workshop was to provide the participants with an overview on how to promote innovation and knowledge transfer on a strategic, as well as practical levels involving the different stakeholders.

The workshop gathered some 50 stakeholders from the Jamaican Innovation System (including several Universities, Industry Research Institutes and Ministries), as well as the project partners: ONAPI and INTEC from Dominican Republic, UWI from Barbados and TTIPO Trinidad and Tobago.

Experts from the University of Alicante, FH JOANNEUM Austria, WIPO, SPTO and CARICOM delivered the programme.

The workshop aimed to provide good practice examples and stimulate discussions around three main topics:

• Policy and strategic level: Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Systems:
  • Caribbean STI systems and the role of IPR
  • How National IP offices can support HEIs to foster innovation
  • University IP Policies, good practice
• Intellectual Asset Management applied in practice:
  • how to identify, report and use IP for strategic management
• Knowledge transfer from University to Industry – a key driver of innovation:
  • Strategic consideratons
  • support services at universities
  • Key processes and support measures for university-enterprise cooperation
  • International platforms and resources for knowedge transfer

Prior to the workshop, the project partners held a coordination meeting – on 26^th of November, to review project progress and plan the project activities to be undertaken in the upcoming months.

The second IPICA Capacity Building Workshop will be hosted by UWI and take place in Barbados in March 2014. The second workshop will be tailored particularly towards STI policy-making issues.