Local non-profit organisation, Freedom to Innovate South Africa (FTISA) would like to invite you to join in their support of the movement towards opening up local innovation.  The organisation, which was established in 2006 by open-patent trailblazers such as Bob Jolliffe ex Meraka Institute, aims to provide a formal platform through which local and international patent systems can be monitored and critiqued.  Read more about the organisation’s origins here.

In the lead-up to the annual AGM which will be held on Thursday, 28 January 2010, FTISA would like to invite you to take part in the IMAGINE IF … campaign to help spread awareness amongst local stakeholders.   The campaign will run late December 2009 to late January 2010 concluding with the general meeting in Johannesburg.  So as you head back to the office, get creative between reading that long list of back-to-work emails. Here’s what you need to do!

VISIT FTISA WEBSITE AND GET CREATIVE … Help us create electronic posters that tell a story of a world where unnecessary software patents hamper innovation. We’re looking for slogans that begin with: Imagine if … Submit your slogan idea via FTISA homepage and we’ll design an open-licensed poster around the most creative catchphrase for people to put on their websites.

SPREAD THE WORD … Upload the first e-poster to your blog, website or social media profile pic for the month of January.  And share the word with your own networks.

BE HEARD … So you have all the answers; now you just need someone to listen! Are you bursting with great ideas? Or are you a self-proclaimed realist who sees that cloud linings are not always silver? Either way, FTISA needs you!  Attend their annual AGM on Thursday, 28 January 2010 for a meeting with a difference. You’ll be encouraged to brainstorm, connect with other like-minded souls and share ideas about where FTISA will be heading into the future.  Send us an and we’ll keep you in the loop!