BIAC "Connected Communities, Connected Lives" Hackathon

You should be part of this special BIAC hackathon in partnership with the Mexican Ministry of Economy and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). This hackathon is taking place in association with the OECD Ministerial on the Digital Economy and focused around the theme of Connected Communities, Connected Lives.

Participants will be challenged to use technology in innovative ways to build projects that enhance community connections in people's everyday lives. The competition categories of Connected Communities, Connected Lives are:

• Cultural Heritage - Apps related to historical and cultural heritage; tourism and geography; arts and culture.
• Smart Cities - Apps related to e-government; Crisis management; Environmental protection; Sustainable Development; Urban transport solutions; Energy and/or water conservation.
• Social Inclusion - Apps related to reaching traditionally marginalized groups such as the disabled, seniors, residents in rural areas, and the under-skilled in order to give access to healthcare, education, and other public and private services; digital skills development, including coding skills development or other forms of e-learning; e-government or to promote citizen engagement with the government, reduce administrative burdens between citizens and the state, report violence and corruption, rate public services, and encourage community engagement.
• Entrepreneurship - Apps related to building business connectivity; increasing scope of small- and medium-size businesses; digital entrepreneurship; transforming new ways of employer-employee relations or buyer-supplier relations.

Up to 5 members of the winning team from each category will be invited to attend the Ministerial Dinner on Wednesday, 22 June, in order to recognize your achievement and announce the Grand Prize winner. Winners must be present. Lodging will be provided on 21 June and 22 June for the winning team representatives attending the Ministerial Dinner.

Hackathons are coding competitions, where individuals and teams build mobile apps from scratch over a period of time. The apps are then pitched to judges and prizes are awarded for the best apps. Hackathons are a great opportunity to learn new technologies, network with fellow developers, enjoy some food, most importantly have some fun!

You Bring...

Your laptop, skills & ideas. Come with a collaborative, team focused mindset and/or team up in advance. Use the #HackathonCancun hashtag to find other attendees before the event. Whether you are a backend person, designer, entrepreneur, student, or just interested in tech you are invited to attend this event. Every group needs a good balance of talent and your development skills are needed!

We Supply...

Food and refreshments, and technical mentors to assist you in building smarter, faster and with new tools.  The following loaner hardware will be available on-site (limited supply) for you to use in your solutions:

• Arduino Boards: Sunfounder Super Kit with Uno R3 for Arduino (Documentation)
• RobotLinking 37 Sensor Kit
• Intel Edison (Documentation) + Grove - Starter Kit Plus Intel IoT Edition
• CanaKit Raspberry Pi 2 Complete Starter Kit (Monitor and keyboard not included)
• Raspberry Pi 2, Model B 1GB, Documentation (Monitor and keyboard not included)
• Photon Board Maker Kit (Documentation) 

Feel free to spread the word and let them know about the hackathon.   There is more than $15K USD in total prize money on the line, so in addition to representing Mexico to the rest of the world, they could possibly also take home some cash.  Again, there are only 50 spots available, so please spread the word quickly.  Please click on the links embedded above and read the press release below from one of the other BIAC organizing members for more details.