The experts of the Advisory Board of the Network for International Cooperation on Technology Commercialization (NICTC) are meeting

On 15th April, the Advisory Board of the Network for International Cooperation on Technology Commercialization (NICTC) convened, which aims to foster international cooperation in technology transfer processes.

Promoted, among others, by the International Technology Transfer Network (ITTN) and the China Technology Exchange (CTEX), the NICTC brings together 103 international entities including incubators, accelerators, trade associations, innovation centres, research centres, and departments of prestigious universities (including Peking University, Tsinghua University, Cambridge, Federico II, Algarve).

The working session focused on organising the 2021 edition of the Zhongguancun Forum, which will be held in October in Beijing in one of China's leading high-tech industrial development zones. Now in its thirteenth edition, the Zhongguancun Forum is a programme dedicated to cooperation and entrepreneurial development for research centres, companies, and innovative startups interested in internationalisation processes. 

The selection of the “100 Best Industrial Innovations for International Technology Transfer” was also discussed. These innovations will be showcased at the Zhongguancun Forum.

The NICTC Advisory Board is chaired by Tony Raven, President of Cambridge Enterprise (the University of Cambridge company responsible for commercialising the prestigious English university's research and knowledge). 

The Board members are recognised scientists, innovators, and entrepreneurs from Asia, Europe, Africa, and North America. From Italy, the members include Prof. Plinio Innocenzi, Professor of materials science and technology at the University of Sassari and former Scientific Attaché at the Italian Embassy in China, Prof. Luigi Nicolais, President of Materias and former Minister for Reforms and Innovations in Public Administration, and Dr. Vincenzo Lipardi, President of SPICI.

International members include:  John Zhang, Secretary-General of the International Technology Transfer Network; Prof. Carl A. Rust, Vice President for International Cooperation at the Georgia Institute of Technology (one of the top research universities in the United States); Bankole Oloruntoba, President of the Nigeria Climate Innovation Center and Consul of Finland in Lagos; Vijay Kant Mishra, President of the India China Technology Transfer Center (ICTTC); Prof. Zhang Lei, Director selected by the World Trade Organization and Dean of the Trade Negotiation School and WTO Chair Institute-China at the Shanghai University of International Business and Economics (SUIBE); Stella Liu, President of the US China Innovation Alliance (UCIA); Yin Hang, President of the German Institute of Innovation and Technology; Rina Neoh, ITTN Office Director in Kuala Lumpur, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Ficus Venture Capital; Nedeljko Milosavljevic, Technology Transfer Advisor at the European Commission, former Vice President of the Association of European Science & Technology Transfer Professionals (ASTP) and Director of the Technology Transfer Office at the University of Belgrade; and Igor Rozhdestvenskii, Founder of the Association of Brokers of Innovations and Technologies (ABIT).

Several special guests also participated in the meeting, including representatives from the Japan Science and Technology Agency in Japan, Dongshin University in South Korea, the TusStar incubator in China, and experts from Finland.