41 teams totalling 205 students and 34 teachers from various Latvian educational institutions have applied for Creative Intellectual, the first hackathon for schoolchildren organised by the Latvian Patent Office (LPO).
Having evaluated the submitted motivation letters, LPO representatives selected 10 teams that will gather from 10:00 to 15:00 on 26 November at the Science and Innovation Center of Riga Technical University to participate in the hackathon and improve their innovative solutions under the guidance of mentors.
The participating teams will be:
“Cepumiņi”, Valka Jānis Cimze Gymnasium (teacher G. Gaidlazda)
“Efektīvie”, Riga Johann Steinhauer Secondary School (teacher L. Hroloviča)
“Intelektuālais piecītis”, Jēkabpils Technology School (teacher I. Veipa)
“Izgudrotāju ciema komanda”, Carnikava Secondary School (teacher A. Kampāne)
“LORAKS”, Druva Secondary School (teacher I. Bušinskis)
“Nova five”, Cēsis State Gymnasium (teacher I. Lapsiņa)
“Patentibus”, Latgale Secondary School of Music and Art (teacher I. Laganovska-Vesere)
“RECOVER”, Valmiera Pārgauja State Gymnasium (teacher S. Kazaka)
“Vizionāri”, Eleja Secondary School (teacher I. Gausiņa)
“Vizuālā māksla”, Riga School of Design and Art (teacher O. Veilands)
Teams from all over Latvia
Applications have been received from various regions of Latvia, covering the entire territory of the country and representing 34 educational institutions from 12 cities and counties. This year, the most active teachers have been Guntra Gaidlazda from Valka Jānis Cimze Gymnasium, who submitted four applications, as well as Intars Bušinskis from Druva Secondary School and Ingrīda Veipa from Jēkabpils Technology School – each with three team applications. These teachers prove the important role of educators in inspiring young people and their interest in the topics of creativity and intellectual property.
11th and 12th grade students comprise the majority of the participants, which indicates a great interest in innovation and entrepreneurship topics especially at the secondary school level.
Young people: ideas are like sparks that need to be protected
Analysing schoolchildren’s motivation letters, the LPO's selection committee could see that young people highly value creativity and understand the importance of protecting ideas. They compare ideas to seeds, light, sparks and stars – the symbols that reveal the fragility and power of creative thought. Many participants would like to gain in-depth knowledge of patents, trademarks and designs, while design school students particularly emphasise the importance of originality and ethical understanding of creativity. Young people have also highlight issues of sustainability and responsibility, perceiving intellectual property as a tool for the fair and responsible use of ideas. It is positive that some teams have already created intellectual property and now would like to gain practical knowledge of its protection.
What will happen at the hackathon?
The selected teams will be continuing to work on their ideas for solving the problem defined by the LPO until the day of the hackathon. And during the event, they will, with the support of their mentors, refine their ideas, prepare presentations, and defend them in front of their mentors and other participants.
The teams will be assessed by the following mentors:
Agris Batalauskis – LPO Director
Dace Liberte – Chair of the Industrial Property Board of Appeal
Liena Edvardsa – CEO at the Latvian Performers’ and Producers’ Association (LaIPA)
Alise Plotova – a representative from Junior Achievement Latvia (JAL)
Kristīne Viļķina – a patent attorney at VILKINA LAW
Luīze Mantiņa – a representative from Printful Latvia
The total prize fund of the hackathon is 3,000 euros.