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Technology and Innovation, Vol. 19, pp. 631-634, 2018 ISSN 1949-8241 • E-ISSN 1949-825X
Printed in the USA. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.21300/19.3.2018.631
Copyright © 2018 National Academy of Inventors. www.technologyandinnovation.org

BUILDING IMPACTFUL NATIONAL ACADEMY OF INVENTORS

(NAI) CHAPTERS

Karen J.L. Burg
College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA

INTRODUCTION Spotlight will also discuss the importance of academic
The National Academy of Inventors (NAI) has invention recognition and the role the NAI chapter
several initiatives that advance its core mission to plays in that process.
honor and promote academic invention and inven- Both the panel and the new Chapter Spotlight have
tors, including member institutions, the Fellows grown out of an increasing need for information from
program, and local chapters. The last item in this the NAI’s constituencies. As a member of the NAI
category, local chapters, has not heretofore received Board of Directors, I share information about the
as much attention as the other programs, but there NAI with others, and I am frequently asked questions
is a growing recognition that local NAI Chapters are like:
an important way for individual member institu- • What is a chapter?
tions to recognize and honor inventors, to celebrate • What is the purpose of a chapter?
leadership who foster and nurture innovation, and • Who belongs to a chapter?
to engage the next generation of innovators. • How do we launch a chapter?
The growing importance of local chapters of the
NAI has been the stimulus for the very first panel dis- My answers to those questions are built on the funda-
cussion dedicated to chapters at the NAI 6 Annual mental belief that each chapter should be constructed
th
Conference and for the creation of a new feature in to suit the needs, opportunities, and personalities
Technology and Innovation (T&I), the T&I Chapter of a particular organization. In other words, there’s
Spotlight. Building on the important conversations no one-size-fits-all, cookie cutter scheme. To that
started during the panel discussion, each new T&I end, we can learn about each other’s chapters and
issue will highlight information about chapters, consider good and bad practices elsewhere as we
exploring different facets of invention and innovation reflect on the fabric of our own organizations and
communities across the globe, including how NAI what aspects might be the best fit for each. Our hope
chapters support those communities, what initiatives is that both the panel and the Chapter Spotlight serve
they are undertaking or will undertake to support as a starting point for an exchange of ideas, providing
invention, and, most importantly, how to success- an opportunity to ponder the logistics of launching,
fully establish and grow impactful NAI chapters. The growing, evolving, and institutionalizing a chapter. As

_____________________
Accepted: October 15, 2017.
Address correspondence to Karen J.L. Burg, H-325 CVM, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30606, USA. E-mail: kburg@uga.edu

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