Youth are invited to take part in a competition on intellectual property protection

Call for Entries: “Create Wise – Create. Care. Be Aware.” International Youth Competition Now Open.

On February 1, 2026, registration opened for the international youth competition "Create Wise - Create. Care. Be aware." organized by the Latvian Performers' and Producers' Association (LaIPA) in cooperation with partners – the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia, the Estonian Performers' Association (EEL) and the Lithuanian Association of Neighbouring Rights (AGATA). The project is funded by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).

The competition gives young people aged 14 to 25 individually or in groups the opportunity to submit their ideas in the field of intellectual property protection, focusing on the challenges of protecting digital content and reducing illegal consumption, with a particular focus on the music industry.

The competition will take place in several stages. In the first stage, from February 1 to May 22, 2026, participants will apply to take part in the competition. After evaluating the applications, the competition jury will announce the participants or youth teams that will advance to the second stage – the idea development and refinement stage in IP (intellectual property) laboratories. The second stage of the competition is scheduled to take place in the summer of 2026, inviting approved participants to attend the IP laboratories in person.

In the IP labs, participants will receive consultations, take part in masterclasses, and refine their ideas together with mentors and industry experts. By September 4, 2026, more detailed ideas will be submitted for re-evaluation, and the five best teams will be nominated for the international final round. On October 1-3, 2026, they will be presented to an international jury at an in-person event in Latvia to determine the winner. The winner will receive a prize – a creative scholarship of 1,500 euros to implement their idea.

LaIPA Director Liena Edvardsa emphasizes: "Young people's understanding of intellectual property protection in the digital age is becoming even more important. Educated and knowledgeable young people are our future, so it is important to inform them about both responsible content creation and use. "Create Wise – Create. Care. Be Aware." is an excellent project that will give young people the opportunity to learn about intellectual property and related opportunities, as well as get involved in innovation development."

"Create Wise" offers a unique opportunity for young people aged 14 to 25 from all three Baltic countries to establish international cooperation and have a real impact on intellectual property protection practices in the 21st century. All partners involved in organizing the competition see significant added value in it, as it will result in the development of a real innovative solution for the protection of digital content or the reduction of illegal consumption, including aspects of copyright and other intellectual property rights protection, data security, and responsible digital behaviour. The Patent Office of the Republic of Latvia and the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA), under whose wing creative industry representative companies create copyright-protected content, will also promote the visibility and accessibility of the initiative within the framework of the project.

Applications for the competition can be submitted individually or in teams of up to five people. The organizers emphasize that this is an opportunity for young people to expand their network of contacts and make new friends, as it is possible for young people from different countries and different educational institutions to participate in the same team (international applications and belonging to an educational institution are not mandatory).

Various experts from all three Baltic countries will be involved in the IP lab stage. The team of experts is represented by Liena Edvardsa, director of LaIPA and founder of the Autorskola initiative, Agnė Begetė director of Lithuanian Association of Neighbouring Rights (AGATA), Urmas Ambur director of Estonian Performers’ Association (EEL), Ilona Pētersone, Head of the Copyright Division at the Ministry of Culture, and other industry experts. "

More information about the competition and copyright is available on the website www.autorskola.lv , under the section #CreateWise , where information is available in both Latvian and English. For more information, interested parties are invited to follow the Autorskola profiles on social media. Young people can apply for the competition until May 22, 2026.

As previously reported, the Latvian Performers' and Producers' Association (LaIPA) has signed an agreement with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) to implement the international project "Create Wise. Create. Care. Be Aware." in the Baltic States. The competition is taking place as part of this project.

For more information:
Laila Bēķe,
LaIPA Public Relations Consultant,
tel.: 28483640
e-mail: laila@tels.lv

The project "Create Wise – Create. Care. Be Aware." is implemented by the Latvian Performers' Association (LaIPA), the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia, the Estonian Performers' Association (EEL) and the Lithuanian Association of Neighbouring Rights (AGATA), with financial support from the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) (Agreement No. 1320250001). The project will run until 12 December 2026. The content produced during the project is the responsibility of the project implementers and does not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union Intellectual Property Office.

The aim of the project is to raise public awareness of the benefits of intellectual property rights protection and the harm caused by infringements of these rights, emphasizing the importance of intellectual property in supporting creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship, as well as improving young people's understanding of issues related to intellectual property in general. Any media outlet, university, educational institution, or other interested party that shares the goals of the "Be Smart – Create. Respect. Know." project is invited to contact the project implementers.