Georgia | Adjara Community Policing Initiative | 19 Jun 2020

9th and 10th grade 30 students from Khulo, Shuakhevi, Khelvachauri, Keda and Kobuleti municipalities took part in an online event with ACPI program: Ideathon – Innovative Ideas Competition.

Ideathon was all about generating, developing and presenting in a limited time period innovative ideas on new forms of communication between police and youth.

Ideathon itself is an innovative model of communication between youth and police, which was developed within ACPI program during pandemic period.

Ideathon consisted of an intensive 2-day online program. First of all, students learned through online workshop techniques of creative thinking and generating new ideas. Then, there were interactive presentations on what is community policing and what are international and national examples of police-youth communication forms. Two ACPI police officers from Shuakhevi and Khelvachauri shared their own examples of how they were engaged within our program and what community policing activities they have imitated and organized. Afterwards, the six teams, who were formed randomly during the event, started to work independently on innovative ideas together with their facilitators. On the second day, each team had an opportunity to get an advice from mentors: police officers, a creative consultant, representatives of ACPI and SCOPE programs, a Cop expert.

Finally, the teams presented their innovative ideas in front of the jury. The jury consisted of representatives from PH International, US Embassy/INL and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Interior, a police officer, non-formal education and innovative projects consultant, and a student.

Some of the ideas presented by the students were following: comics magazine, short documentary film, educational multimedia platform, mobile app with educational animations and fast response service, new subjet at schools and e-learning platform "Me and the Law".

The winning idea was about education online game: the world with and without the police“.

All participants will be awarded with certificates, symbolic gifts from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the book "Creator's Diary". The members of the winning team will be awarded with the Georgian board game "Innovator".

„I liked „Ideathon“ a lot, because I have never had such an informal and direct communication with the police officers and presented my ideas to them. I learned a lot about the police work, COP, got to know my peers from different schools and municipalities and I learned how to come up with an innovative ideas, develop and present them in a limited time. It was so much fun. “- Student, Ideathon participant.