IFIA urges the European Union and its organisations to focus more on the role of independent inventors, especially during the current economic crisis. An awareness-raising exercise on the benefits of innovation for society must be undertaken on a large scale.

With over 85 member countries, IFIA will do everything within its reach to support the EU initiative of the European Year of Creativity and Innovation, mainly through world-wide activities organised throughout 2009. IFIA believes in the benefits of co-operation, therefore it works on a global scale, including non-European countries in its various activities.

IFIA will contribute to the achievements of the objectives of the Year and will convey its core messages in the following innovation events:

ITEX International Invention, Innovation and Technology Exhibition

May 15-17, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

[webpage: www.eventseye.com/fairs/f-itex-9573-1.html ]

IWIS International Warsaw Inventions Show

June 2-4, Warsaw, Poland

[webpage: www.confabb.com/conferences/59957-iwis-2009 ]

World Championship of Inventors

September 4- 6, Sangeorgiu, Romania

GENIUS EUROPA International Fair of Inventions, Works of Fine and Applied Arts, Student Works Exhibition

September 9-13, Budapest, Hungary

[webpage: www.inventor.hu/genius6/genius7/genius7einf.htm ]

ARCA International Autumn Fair of Inventions

September 16-20, Zagreb, Croatia

[webpage: www.zv.hr/sajmovi/300/index_en.html ]

IENA Ideas, Inventions, Products International Trade Fair

November 5-8, Nuremberg, Germany [webpage: www.iena.de/en/home.html ]

For more information, please visit: http://www.invention-ifia.ch/