Patent Climate Change Program Targets Greenhouse Gas Emissions

In June 2022, the US Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO") launched the Climate Change Mitigation Pilot Program (the "Program"). This program was enacted to support President Biden's January 27, 2021 Executive Order, which emphasized that "[t]here is little time left to avoid setting the world on a dangerous, potentially catastrophic, climate trajectory." The Program aims to encourage businesses to prioritize climate change mitigation by offering faster and more affordable intellectual property protection. The Program has a particular focus on patent applications directed to technologies related to greenhouse gas reduction, including transportation (e.g., electric vehicles), waste management (e.g., recycling), energy generation (e.g., wind turbines), energy transmission (e.g., batteries) or other similar green technologies.