A Year of Impact Licensing Initiative

Over the past year, the Impact Licensing Initiative (ILI) has taken its first steps toward reshaping how intellectual property can serve both the market and society. What started as a collaborative project among partners in Belgium, Germany, Croatia, and the UK has grown into a shared effort to make technology and data work for real-world impact.

From the start, ILI aimed to show that intellectual assets can be used more purposefully, not only to create economic value, but also to tackle pressing social and environmental challenges. Over the past twelve months, that idea has taken shape through partnerships, policy dialogues, and collective learning with experts, institutions, and innovators around the world.

Engaging through events and dialogues

After the kick-off in Brussels in 2024, ILI has been active at international and regional events raising awareness and connecting the impact licensing approach to broader conversations on innovation and sustainability.

At the WAITRO Summit in China, ILI presented impact licensing as a tool for advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals and improving access to technologies during crises. Through EU-13 Roadshow events in Novi Sad, Brno, and Nicosia, the team joined discussions exploring how licensing can balance economic and societal value and open new opportunities for innovators in widening countries.

Along the way, ILI gathered insights from leading experts through interviews and dialogues on sustainable finance, philanthropy, and innovation policy, helping shape a shared understanding of how responsible licensing can drive inclusive innovation.

Building partnerships for global impact

This year also brought new partnerships with international organisations. A key milestone was the Memorandum of Understanding with the UN Technology Bank for the Least Developed Countries, aimed at improving access to affordable, high-impact technologies. Earlier, ILI contributed to the Technology Needs Assessment in Tanzania, linking impact licensing to national innovation priorities in the blue economy and agriculture.

Together with the Medicines Patent Pool, ILI also convened leading foundations and policymakers at the European Commission to explore how licensing, data, and equitable access can shape a more impact-oriented approach to research funding, reaffirming that intellectual property can be managed as a tool for collaboration and shared progress.

Looking ahead

The first year was about learning, listening, and building trust among universities, companies, policymakers, and funders who see the value of using IP for societal benefit. The year ahead will focus on turning these lessons into lasting practice, strengthening the role of impact licensing as a practical path toward a more inclusive and sustainable innovation ecosystem. This will include refining the ILI Toolkit, launching the first demonstration projects, expanding the Community of Practice, and deepening policy dialogues that connect impact licensing with Europe’s broader research and innovation goals.