"That ideas should freely spread from one to another over the globe, for the moral and mutual instruction of man, and improvement of his condition, seems to have been peculiarly and benevolently designed by nature, when she made them, like fire, expansible over all space, without lessening their density at any point, and like the air in which we breathe, move, and have our physical being, incapable of confinement or exclusive appropriation. Inventions then cannot, in nature, be a subject of property." - Thomas Jefferson

Intellectual Property policy has always been about striking balances: between the rights of creators to control their work and the rights of the public (and other creators) to draw on and participate in a rich common culture fed by that work. The past two decades have seen massive change in all the contributors to this balance: in the technologies of expression and innovation; in the accompanying legal regimes and enforcement mechanisms, and in the rise of both massive corporate stakeholders interested in strengthening IP rights and a vast democratization of expression and uncontrolled (often illicit) distribution.

What is the public interest in this conversation? The Global Congress sought an answer at an event Aug. 25-28 at American University, where it brought together over 180 scholars, policymakers, and policy advocates to help develop and implement a positive policy and research agenda for the next decade. The meeting was co-sponsored by The American Assembly, The Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property at American University, the Center for Technology and Society at the Getulio Vargas Foundation (Brazil), and the Center for International Trade and Sustainable Development (Geneva). So far 175 participants have endorsed the document, which is open for further endorsements and comments here.