Offer a multimedia activity in which to express opinions about the damage caused by piracy. It was with this objective in mind that students, aged 10 to 12, from the public school system in São Paulo, participated in the Video Legal Competition, organized by Amcham and the United States Consulate.

Practical activity showed the importance of intellectual property to more than XNUMX young people. The closing ceremony of the contest was held at Amcham-Sao Paulo, on June 1, and was attended by students and teachers from participating schools.

“The project not only promotes respect for intellectual property, but helps participants to create their own works. Films and videos stimulate creation, a value that depends on intellectual property ”, emphasizes the United States acting general consul in São Paulo, William Popp.

The winners

Of the 35 videos selected in the first phase, which ended in April, 9 reached the final phase. Of these, 3 were considered the best:

1st - “Little Black Riding Hood”, From the Municipal School of Elementary Education (Emef) Padre Manoel de Paiva;

2st - “In Terras de Cego”, From the Presidente Tancredo Neves State School;

3st - “The Drug Mafia”, By Emef Armando de Arruda Pereira.

The Legal Video integrates the educational activities of the Legal School Project (PEL), coordinated by Amcham. The PEL was created in 2007 and works to raise the awareness of elementary school students about the damage brought about by piracy and has the sponsorship of ETCO.

The representative of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in Brazil, Albert Keyack, highlighted the creativity of the works and encouraged students to follow the path of creation. "Innovation is very important for Brazil and will be more and more in the future."

Google will receive winning students in June

The first and second placed in the contest won, as a prize, a visit to the Google headquarters in São Paulo, which will be held this month. “As Video Legal has a lot to do with technology, we thought about taking students to learn about the operation of a company in the sector”, explains the Institutional Relations representative at Google, Helena Martins.

Eduardo Paranhos, advisor to the Brazilian Institute of Ethics in Competition (ETCO) said that the most important thing is not to win prizes, but to learn from the theme. “Creativity and education are the winners. Those who lose are piracy, backwardness and lack of education and development. ”

For more information about the Legal School project, visit www.projetoescolalegal.org.br

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