Indigenous products have always been a valuable local resource, with wisdom passed down through generations carrying value that science is only now beginning to acknowledge. Such products can increase the resiliency of local supply chains to the coming climatic changes and thereby address SDG2, SDG3, and other goals.

Around the world, individual WAITRO members are involved in developing products based on natural and local resources and, in some cases, commercializing them. Can they learn from one another’s experience? Is there commonality between products for agriculture, cosmetics, and health? Can WAITRO help build capacity to capture the value of such products in the local ecosystem rather than have it leak away into large multi-national corporations?

On August 29th 2023, the WAITRO Secretariat China Office is organizing a webinar to bring together researchers developing various local products to share knowledge on how to make them more valuable and bankable in the local ecosystem. There is potential impact on multiple SDGs here, and it is hoped that the webinar will form the basis for new partnerships and capacity development efforts for WAITRO Members to impact the SDGs.

The webinar will include keynote speeches, project showcases, an example experience of commercializing indigenous products, as well as a panel discussion on the challenges and path of indigenous and local product R&D.

Keynote speakers include Dr. Sechaba Bareetseng from CSIR South Africa, Dr Nurul Izza Nordin from SIRIM, Malaysia for our keynote speeches, also 2 teams of WAITRO Innovation Award winners to share their wonderful projects. A small Panel Discussion will be moderated by Dr Jeffrey Robens, Editorial Development Manager at Springer Nature.

The event is free and open to WAITRO Members interested in indigenous and local products commercialization.

Register here