Welcome back to another week of Bells & Whistles.
As always, we’ve rounded up a mix of developments, opportunities, and thoughtful reads from across the IP world along with a Bell of the Week that’s well worth revisiting.
Bell of the Week: Who Speaks for the Public Domain?
Every now and then, I come across an organisation that makes me pause not because of the number of people it represents or the size of its operations, but because of the idea it has chosen to organise itself around.
COMMUNIA was one such organisation.
When we talk about copyright policy, there is usually someone very clearly speaking. Authors, publishers, film studios, music companies, technology platforms and collecting societies have organised voices, policy positions and representatives making the case for their interests.
But who speaks for what lies on the other side of copyright?
This week’s Bell takes us to COMMUNIA, a European association that advocates for policies that strengthen the public domain and ensure that copyright serves the public interest.
What caught my attention isn’t simply that COMMUNIA works on copyright. It is the rather clear idea of copyright that sits behind its work: the public domain is not merely what is left over after copyright expires; it is something worth actively protecting and expanding.
And COMMUNIA has taken that idea beyond advocacy in the abstract. It produces policy recommendations, responds to legislative and policy consultations, publishes research and engages directly with European policymakers on questions ranging from copyright exceptions and education to the preservation of the public domain and users’ rights. It has built a network that brings together researchers, lawyers and civil society organisations from across Europe and beyond, while maintaining a presence in the EU Transparency Register as part of its commitment to transparency and accountability (more information can be found here).
There is something interesting about watching an idea become an institution.
A particular understanding of copyright that copyright policy should also protect the space around copyright has been turned into research, recommendations, advocacy and sustained policy engagement.
So this week, we ring the bell for COMMUNIA and for the question it makes us ask: who speaks for the public domain?
EVENTS
1. Intellectual Property and Traditional Medicine: Rethinking Access, Benefit Sharing and Data Governance
22 September 2026 | 1:00–3:00 PM CET | Hybrid
This side event will examine the implications of recent developments in the international intellectual property landscape for traditional medicine, including the WIPO Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge, ongoing IGC negotiations, and broader discussions on access and benefit sharing and digital governance. The discussion will address emerging policy questions around equitable benefit sharing, governance of traditional medicine data, and the recognition of Indigenous Peoples and local communities as rights holders in the stewardship and governance of their knowledge systems, particularly as traditional medicine knowledge becomes increasingly digitized and used through research, artificial intelligence and innovation ecosystems.
More info | Register here
2. Webinar and Ask the Expert Series 2026 – AI and Copyright Laws | WIPO
25 September 2026 | 2:00–4:00 PM Geneva time | Virtual
As part of WIPO’s Webinar and Ask the Expert Series 2026, under the theme “Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Knowledge Economy,” Ms. Blessing Mawire, Program Lead, Countries at Research4Life and Partnerships Coordinator at CLIR, will deliver a session titled “AI and Copyright Laws.”
More info | Join here
3. Case Studies of Successful Hague Registrations | WIPO
30 September 2026 | 4:00–5:00 PM Geneva time | Virtual
WIPO is hosting a practical webinar exploring real-world examples of Hague System applications, covering both successful filings and common pitfalls that can lead to irregularities, refusals or delays. Through selected case studies, participants will learn how to prepare stronger international design applications and avoid frequent filing errors. The session will cover issues including quality of reproductions, consistency of product indications, designation requirements, priority claims, and responses to refusals, with case studies involving registrations with top designated Contracting Parties.
More info | Register here
OPPORTUNITIES
1. Call for Proposals: Ninth IP & Innovation Researchers of Asia (IPIRA) Conference Submission
Deadline: 16 November 2026
The Ninth IP & Innovation Researchers of Asia (IPIRA) Conference will be held in person on 18–19 March 2027 at the Royal University of Law and Economics (RULE), Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The conference invites academic researchers, including PhD candidates, to submit proposals on IP and innovation-related topics in Asian Law, Comparative Law, and International Law, as well as interdisciplinary perspectives on IP and innovation. Applicants must be affiliated with an academic institution or an organisation with a research institute or academy. Applications from students, including LL.M. students, will not be accepted. Early submissions are strongly encouraged.
More info
2. Call for Papers – ATRIP 45th Annual Congress
Submission Deadline: 25 January 2027
The 45th ATRIP Annual Congress will be held from 27–30 June 2027 at York University, Osgoode Hall Law School, Toronto, Canada, under the theme “The Good Use, Misuse and Abuse of Intellectual Property.” The Congress will be held in a strictly in-person format. Doctoral students are encouraged to apply to the dedicated ATRIP call for Doctoral Student presentations, which will be circulated in the coming weeks. Doctoral students may not submit papers to the main Congress independently and may do so only in collaboration with a senior researcher.
More info
Thanks to Swaraj for the heads up on Intellectual Property and Traditional Medicine event!
All non-sponsored listings featured here are events or opportunities free or nominally charged and ones we think our readers may be interested in. Sponsored listings will be marked as such. Unless specifically mentioned, SpicyIP has no affiliation to anything listed here. Know of an event worth sharing? Write to us at contact[at]spicyip[dot]com.