April 21-23: "Make for the Planet" Hackathon (Smithsonian Institute)

[Kevin Cole]

Hi,

As part of the Smithsonian Institute's Earth Optimism Summit [http://earthoptimism.si.edu/], the Smithsonian's Innovations Commons [http://earthoptimism.si.edu/innovation-commons/] is hosting a "Make for the Planet" [https://www.makefortheplanet.com/] hackathon from April 21 to April 23, organized by

 ​

Conservation X Labs [http://conservationxlabs.com/].

A few people from HacDC [http://hacdc.org/] will be participating

​ and providing equipment​

. (Sadly, this weekend coincides with the Scientists March on Washington [https://www.marchforscience.com/] and the Rockville Science Day [http://rockvillesciencecenter.org/rockville-science-day/] not to mention any other Earth Day activities.)

​​

​Details from the web site:​

Where: Ronald Reagan Building, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, D.C.

 

When: Morning of April 21 through the afternoon of April 23, 2017 (Agenda TBD).

 

What: Team competition/hackathon to create hardware and/or software solutions to specific conservation challenges. Teams will also have access to a pop-up maker's space with 3D printers, controllers, sensors, model-making software, and other equipment.

 

How: Conservation X Labs will send teams a set of predefined conservation challenges two weeks before the event (Friday, April 7th) and global conservation experts will pitch the problems in Washington, D.C. on Friday, April 21st to kick-off the event. Teams will have until the morning of April 23rd to create solutions for display in a science-fair setting for viewing by judges, the public, and other Smithsonian Earth Optimism attendees. Solutions must be presented as a physical or digital representation and more than a written explanation or pitch. We expect teams to create solutions for one of the proposed conservation challenges using the equipment provided on-site over rather than bringing a pre-baked solution.    

 

Who: Multidisciplinary teams of 4 in 15 teams. There are no restrictions on age, occupation, education, or gender. However, due to space limitations, we can only accept 15 teams of 4 in the event, thus, participation will be highly competitive! We will select teams based on organizational and disciplinary diversity as well as a genuine interest in solving global conservation challenges through creative and transformative solutions that harness emerging science and technology, entrepreneurship, and design.

Spread the news to your constituents ;-)