The Prize
The European Drug Prevention Prize is awarded every two years to active youth drug prevention projects that are currently functioning. Its objective is to recognize the importance of active youth participation in creating a better and healthier environment for all communities in Europe. The Prize will be awarded to three youth projects that will each receive a monetary benefit of € 5,000.
Being innovative is a feature of youth cultures in all countries, therefore projects including innovative approaches such as video, Internet, mobile phone and text messaging, as well as targeting young people under 18 are particularly encouraged to present themselves. In this respect the Prize is also a way to present new approaches to an interested audience. To ensure
this, a descriptive inventory of shortlisted projects will be published and disseminated by the Pompidou Group.
To enter your project, please complete the application form and send it to the Pompidou Group Secretariat. The closing date for entries for the European Drug Prevention Prize 2012 is 30 March 2012. No entries will be accepted after this date.
The entries will be judged by a Jury composed of 7 young people from different European countries. The Jury for the Prize 2012 includes young people from Austria, Bulgaria, Finland, Ireland, Lithuania, Spain and the Russian Federation. The Jury will be supported by an advisory group of experts.
Projects which previously submitted their application and were not selected by the Jury can
reapply.
Eligibility Criteria
A project that enters the competition for the Prize should make certain that it meets the following eligibility criteria:
1. The project must be currently running or must have recently finished in one (or more) of the Council of Europe member states1, in Morocco which has recently become a member state of the Pompidou Group or other countries from the southern rim of the Mediterranean which are members of the Pompidou Group’s Mediterranean network for co-operation on drugs and addictions (MedNET) (Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Tunisia). Projects whose work is mainly outside this geographical area are ineligible.
2. The project must be run by more than one person and have some formal structure, for example a management committee or steering group (Documentary evidence of this will be required). Projects can be government sponsored, run by NGOs (nongovernmental organisations), in the private sector, or organised by local communities. Projects do not have to be funded to be eligible – they can be entirely voluntary.
3. The work of eligible projects must be wholly or mainly in the area of drug prevention. Projects that are not concerned with drug prevention will not be eligible. We accept a broad definition of drug prevention, and we encourage you to apply if your project defines itself as a drug prevention project. Projects that address risk or protective factors associated with drug use are extremely significant, even if they are not directly concentrating on drug issues. However, projects that are exclusively working with people who already have developed problems with their drug use (‘indicated prevention’) are unlikely to be successful.
4. Young people, under the age of 25 years, must be involved in the work of the project. There is no lower age limit.
What we mean by ‘drugs’
We include in the definition of ‘drugs’, illegal drugs; alcohol; tobacco; volatile substances (glues, gases, aerosols, etc.); so called ‘legal highs’; and prescription and over-the-counter medicines when they are misused. However, it is likely that successful applications will have some element of their work addressing illegal drugs specifically.
What we mean by ‘drug prevention’
By ‘drug prevention’, we mean the prevention of the misuse of drugs by a range of methods. Interdiction (the control of supply by law enforcement, etc.) and treatment activities are not included. Drug prevention can take many forms, and may not always be direct – it could, for example, include teaching people generic life-skills or improving their self-esteem which might be expected to have an impact on drug use. It might also include activities that divert people from drug use, such as improving leisure facilities. However, we would expect all applicant projects to have an explicit drug prevention orientation in their objectives.
The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) identifies three prevention strategies: universal, selective and indicated prevention.
Universal prevention is aimed at the whole population, where all groups are equally considered to be at a low risk. It includes school-based programmes and activities as well as family-based approaches such as parents' evenings, lectures, seminars and workshops.
Selective prevention targets specific groups within the population that are at risk of substance abuse, for example young offenders, school drop-outs, ethnic groups thought to be at greater risk, young people from problem neighbourhoods, families or even entire communities where people may be more likely to develop drug problems.
Indicated prevention aims to identify individuals with behavioural or psychological problems that may be predictive for developing problem substance use later in life, and to target them individually with special interventions. Such individuals include those with mental health problems psychiatric disorders, and early signs of drug use.
If your project uses an older framework for classifying prevention (‘primary’, ‘secondary’ and ‘tertiary’2), please note that projects solely undertaking ‘tertiary’ prevention would probably not be eligible for the European Drug Prevention Prize.
What we mean by ‘young people’s participation’
By ‘young people’s participation’, we mean the active involvement of young people in the work of the project. See the list below (under ‘Assessment and selection criteria’, the criteria n°2.) for different areas where young people might be involved. Simply ‘consulting’ with young people or ‘taking their opinions into account’ is unlikely to be sufficient. We would also expect young people to be involved in more than the delivery of the project’s activities – we would expect them to have some say in the design.
Assessment and Selection Criteria
The application form must be completed in full and additional documentation presented in order for projects to be eligible. A contact e-mail address and telephone number must be provided so that additional information can be obtained if necessary.
Eligible projects will be assessed according to two main criteria of equal weight:
1. The quality of the prevention work
Projects will be assessed on the quality of the drug prevention work. The following aspects will be considered:
- the philosophy of the project must be stated and have a strong dimension of active youth participation, which is central to its work;
- the objectives of the project must be clearly stated and they ought to be achievable;
- there must be some evidence of achievement relating to the objectives (for example, evidence must be supplied that appropriate leisure activities concerning drug prevention have taken place in which young people have benefited from the experience);
- a formal evaluation of the work, if supplied, will also be taken into account.
Documentary evidence will be required to enable the Jury to reach its decision.
2. The extent of young people’s involvement in key aspects of the project
Projects will also be assessed on the extent of young people’s involvement in all aspects of the project. The following aspects of involvement will be considered:
- Strategy: young people are involved in helping to create plans and strategies;
- Structures: young people are involved in decision-making processes;
- Systems: systems are in place to ensure and enshrine young people’s involvement;
- Development of skills and knowledge: the contribution that young people’s experience can make to improve the service is acknowledged and utilised;
- Management: young people have a role in the management of the project and have the power to hold accountable adult and youth staff, as well as volunteers;
- Delivery: young people are involved in the delivery of services and activities;
- Assessment: young people are involved in the monitoring and evaluation of project activities.
Further consideration will take into account:
- Scope: young people who are most at risk (‘difficult-to-reach’) are successfully involved in the project;
- Service-user involvement: young people are recipients of the project objectives in an active participatory way.
Documentary evidence will be required to enable the Jury to reach its decision.
Presenting evidence
In order for the Jury to have a thorough and complete understanding of the project, it is necessary to include a maximum of 3 items of evidence that will assist the Jury’s decision. Your evidence could be in any form:
- documentation regarding the work of the project;
- a reference from a professional who knows the project and can testify to its effectiveness;
- a report from young people who have benefited from the work of the project (a written report, a video tape, a video of a drama performance, etc.);
- an example of a participant’s work from an activity (for instance, include a sample of a youth’s writing from a creative writing session).
You can also provide any relevant active website addresses. Besides, each project is encouraged to create a Facebook page or provide a link to any other social networking site as part of its application.
Please note that any material that is sent becomes the property of the Pompidou Group – it will not be returned. We reserve the right to use material that was sent in publicity, etc. However, if you indicate that particular material is for the Jury’s consideration only and not to be used for other purposes, we will respect this – please indicate on each item if this is the case.
If you include materials that require equipment to view them (such as DVDs, PowerPoint presentations, etc.), please make sure they are in a suitable format for viewing on standard Western European equipment. Computer material should run on a standard basic Windows PC. Any videos or film presentations should be limited to a maximum of five minutes running time. PowerPoint or other slide-type presentations should be limited to a maximum of 10 slides.
Factors that will NOT influence the Jury
The Jury will not make its decision based on:
- the size of the project;
- the length of time a project has been running;
- how much adult involvement or professional support your project has;
- glossy reports and media coverage;
- lobbying of the Jury (this will automatically disqualify a project).
An example of a previously submitted project:
Sweep the Weed out of the Gate (Bulgaria) aims to raise awareness about alcohol and drug misuse through peer counselling, strategy games, workshops and activities. The activities create a drug-free environment for young people where they can increase their self esteem and socialise in a positive way. The project is directed at school students in grades five to seven. The students participate in the programme and are volunteers in its administration. Young people are involved in decision-making process and implementation of the activities, including major campaigns, which enables the project to reach its targeted group. The project uses popular games, like computer games, to get the message of drug prevention across to students. The project’s team-friendly environment encourages young people to learn to work as a team, to develop an awareness about health and safety matters and gives them confidence to enjoy themselves without using drugs. The use of popular culture extends the project towards ‘hard-toreach’ groups and allows for a more active participation by the students, spreading the project’s drug prevention message to a broader target group.
The Jury
The Jury is composed of 7 young people from Pompidou Group member States. They are identified by the Secretariat of the Pompidou Group based on proposals received from the member State’s representatives as well as the non-governmental organisations that work with young people across Europe and other parts of the world.
Collectively, the Jury has an understanding of drug prevention programmes that involve participation of youth and have experience in prevention projects, peer-to-peer work, outreach programmes and risk behaviour. They are also eager to promote healthy lifestyles for young people. They are aware of what setting-up and running a project involves and how to assess programmes and projects of this kind.
The composition takes into account gender and geographical balances, as well as diversity of backgrounds and cultures in order to ensure, as far as this is possible, an adequate cross-section of today’s young people in Europe. In addition the ability of young people to cooperate with each other, communicate with experts and interact in cross-cultural working context is taken into account.
Selected young people serve for two consecutive Prize cycles on the jury. To ensure that tacit knowledge and experience is kept, as well as know-how transfer is ensured, every cycle, 3 or 4 members of the Jury are replaced (‘rolling exchange’).
The Jury meets twice in a Prize cycle, which is two years. In year 1, the preparatory jury meeting focuses on teambuilding, considering regulations and procedures as well as defining a plan of work. The selection meeting takes place in year 2 to shortlist projects, choose the prize-winners and prepare the award ceremony. Between meetings the Jury members will receive incoming project applications from the Pompidou Group Secretariat and support by experts as agreed or by request.
The expert advisory group
The Pompidou Group Secretariat identifies a team of three experts to serve in an advisory group to the Jury. The expert advisory group will bring together experts on drug prevention, peer group education and children’s and young people’s participation in drug prevention. The advisory group retains the right to indicate to the Permanent Correspondent responsible for the event any decision by the Jury that violates commonly accepted standards of prevention knowledge and good practice, as well as projects that are in violations of the fundamental principles of the Council of Europe. In such cases, the Permanent Correspondent can present the cases to the Bureau of the Permanent Correspondents of the Pompidou Group, which has the right to discontinue the activities under the European Drug Prevention Prize at any moment in time.
The Jury’s decision
The Jury’s decision is final and there is no appeal. No discussion or correspondence will be permitted concerning the process of making the award, but brief feedback will be given if required. The Pompidou Group reserves the right not to award the Prize or any part of it.
The Prize money will be paid in Euros to the 3 winning projects’ bank account. The 2012 Prize money has been fixed at € 5,000 per winner. There are no special conditions attached to the use of the Prize money. Projects are however required within six months of payment to report on the use of the Prize money.
Projects that are recipients of the Prize will not be eligible for resubmission. Nevertheless, the Pompidou Group would like to continue to remain in contact with the youth and their projects through its website.
The Jury will draw up a shortlist of projects based on agreed selection and assessment criteria. Shortlisted projects not selected for the Prize because of being unable to meet all of the criteria but nevertheless considered by the Jury to be of a high standard will receive a letter of recognition from the Secretariat of the Pompidou Group.
The Award Ceremony
The award ceremony of the European Drug Prevention Prize 2012 will be held during the Pompidou Group Mid-term conference to take place in autumn 2012.3
How to apply
Electronic application forms are available on the Pompidou Group’s website www.coe.int/pompidou and by e-mailing the Secretariat: dg1.preventionprize2012@coe.int
The application form must be submitted in English or French to the Secretariat of the Pompidou Group as text attachment only by e-mail on the above mentioned address and before 30 March 2012.
Applications submitted by post or fax cannot be considered, but evidence in support of the application can be submitted by post when indicated in the application form. The additional evidence must match the description in the application form
1 List of Council of Europe member states (in bold, the Pompidou Group member states as of 1st December 2011):
Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, San Marino, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, ”The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom.
2 ‘Primary prevention’: stopping people before they have started, or delaying onset of drug use ; ‘Secondary prevention’: helping people to stop once they have started, or aiming to reduce the amount they are using or the risks they are taking; ‘Tertiary prevention’: work with drug users who may have been using for some time, allied with treatment of their condition
3 The decision concerning the venue and the dates of the conference will be confirmed before June 2012.
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