King Hall Student Participates in Mexico City IP Conference

King Hall student Krista Celentano '11 traveled to Mexico City to attend an international intellectual property conference entitled "Harnessing Intellectual Property to Protect and Promote Traditional Arts and Crafts and to Empower Women."  Celentano is participating in an externship with the International Intellectual Property Institute (IIPI), which partnered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Instituto Mexicano de la Propiedad Industrial, and the Organization of American States to put on this conference.  UC Davis School of Law was proud to support Krista in attending this unique conference.

IIPI aided nearly 100 indigenous artists, representatives, and policy makers from Mexico and six countries in Central America travel to this three-day conference.  The conference opened with a welcome address by Bruce Lehman the Chairman of IIPI, Jorge Amigo Castaneda the Director General of the Instituto Mexicano de la Propiedad Industrial, Sharon Barner the Deputy Director of the USPTO, and Jorge Saggiante the Director of Economic Development with the Organization of American States. 

Initial presentations focused on identifying and preserving traditional arts and crafts.  The techniques used by the artisans at this conference were hundreds, many times thousands of years old.  Panels discussed the use of Intellectual Property to aid in the preservation of traditional arts by protecting and strengthening their techniques, as well as promoting the marketability of indigenous arts worldwide.  The day ended with a beautiful welcome banquet on the terrace of the Gran Hotel Ciudad de Mexico overlooking the Historic Center. 

The conference progressed to discussions providing guidance to those trying to build collective brand names, certification systems for trademarks, and other means to protect their creations.  Avenues such as internet advertising, marketing campaigns, and cultural tourism were highlighted as ways to encourage production and expansion of indigenous arts and crafts.  In the evening, the conference attendees visited the University Club of Mexico City on Reforma Avenue, and witnessed a stunning fashion show of collections by Paulina y Malinali, two successful Mexican fashion designers who use traditional garb as their inspiration, as well as Eliuh Kolektif, a nonprofit focusing on the promotion of original indigenous textiles. 

The final day of the conference focused on ways to initially fund the creation of traditional art and many speakers also focused on the attitude of the individual artisan in order to effectively build their traditional crafts-based businesses, specifically never to undervalue their own pieces.  Memorably, an artisan from Panama expressed her feelings stating, "I never want to hear anyone say, ‘I don't have a job, that is why I make crafts.'  We are the keepers of our traditions, but we are also providing a valuable service to our country and can have a strong impact on our economy.  We must all be very proud of what we create."

The closing address by Bruce Lehman, emphasized the importance that the conference should have for the representation of artisans, protection of tradition and cultural, and economic growth through promotion of the value associated with cultural expression.  In a broader sense, this conference highlighted that be protecting and promoting indigenous arts and crafts, law and policy can encourage the flow of culture across borders.