Beyond the Poster Boy of the Maker Movement
Some people tour Europe’s finest vineyards others tour Australia’s sweetest surf spots—I tour South Africa’s pioneer makerspaces; part of the growing global maker movement. The movement is a culmination of people becoming “makers” (someone who uses their personal abilities to create anything from mechanical or electrical to visual or musical) and spaces becoming makerspaces (an interdisciplinary area stimulating people to create by providing resources and idea sharing).
AI and Gender in Africa
By: Nagla Rizk
AI and Gender in Africa The original version of this essay was written as a section in a paper titled “Integrating Africa...
Common Misconceptions of Patents in Egypt
Earlier this year, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) held a two-day workshop on “Supporting Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Use the Intellectual Property System in Their Competitive Strategy” at the Academy of Scientific Research and Technology in Cairo, Egypt, which some of our Open AIR NERG members attended. The goal of this meeting was to discuss how to encourage young innovators to protect their inventions by patenting them at the Egyptian Patent Office. The workshop had vibrant and sometimes heated discussions between these innovators and government officials regarding many of the obstacles faced in the patenting process in Egypt.
Historic Gathering of Africa’s Open Science Hardware (OSH) Innovators – the...
By Chris Armstrong
Open AIR was privileged to be a supporting partner of the inaugural AfricaOSH Summit, held 13-15 April 2018 at the Kumasi Hive...
Open Call for Case Studies
Open AIR is calling for African case studies that shed light on the following two overarching research questions:
How can open collaborative innovation help businesses scale up and seize the new opportunities of a global knowledge economy?
Which knowledge governance systems will best ensure that the social and economic benefits of innovation are shared inclusively across society as a whole?
L’innovation au service de l’informel à l’ère de la COVID-19
Par : Abdelhamid Benhmade
La COVID-19, et si nous en profitons pour renouer des liens plus étroits avec l’informel? Nombreuses sont les personnes frappées de...
Ramifications of the WIPO IGC for IP and Development
Authored by: Chidi Oguamanam. Over the years, the idea of traditional knowledge has progressively unraveled as a traction point for complex issue linkages between intellectual property and, for example, genetic resources, biodiversity conservation, the rights of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (ILCs), food, nutritional and environmental security.
Workshop on Integrating Gender Perspectives into Research Projects: Focusing on Social...
By Desmond Oriakhogba
Recently, Open AIR participated in a workshop which focused on the integration of gender perspectives into research projects aimed at promoting social...
Open AIR NERG presents at Windsor Symposium on Copyright User Rights...
By Uchenna Ugwu
How can “user rights” and exceptions to copyright be used most effectively to ensure access to knowledge for all? This question is...
Strong Qualitative Research During the Covid-19 pandemic: A Reflection
By Larry Onyango
Covid-19 has not just altered everyday life but has also upended modes of doing research. This especially applies to qualitative research that...













