JA Alumni Work for Global Climate Change Solutions with Hack for Earth

December 6, 2023

Last weekend, more than 1,200 young people gathered online for Hack for Earth 2023, the hackathon for climate change at COP28. Representing 113 countries, hackers worked in teams to focus on finding real solutions to climate-related challenges. They brainstormed and developed concepts to create real solutions that could be implemented for the good of society. All teams had access to 190 mentors, open data, information on relevant subjects, and other support from the partner community to create the best solutions.

Hackers selected one of eight challenge categories to tackle for the hackathon. Selected based on the level of urgency with which they need to be solved, each challenge relates to one of the United Nations United Nations Global Goals for Sustainable Development (SDGs).

Challenge categories:

  • Water

  • Partnership

  • Environment

  • Cities

  • Energy

  • Food

  • Transport

  • Education

Co-founded by Ung Företagsamhet (JA Sweden) alumnus Love Dager, the 2023 hackathon counted 79 JA alumni teams among the participating hackers. Hack for Earth winners will receive admission to the Build for Earth acceleration program to bring their ideas to life, and one JA alumni team will receive the JA x PMIEF Impact Award, which includes admission to the JA Worldwide 2024 Global Alumni Summit.

Throughout the hackathon, hackers attended workshops and lectures in addition to spending time with their teammates to develop their ideas and solutions. Hackers attended a workshop on project management with the Project Management Institute Educational Foundation (PMIEF), a lecture on the future of AI, Q&A sessions with the Hack for Earth team, a session on pitching, a film screening, and more. (See the full schedule.)

Teams submitted their solutions in video form to the Hack for Earth jury on Sunday, December 3. Jurors will evaluate each submission based on team diversity and the proposed solution’s comprehensibility, realizability, innovativeness, scalability, and correlation to the SDGs. JA Worldwide’s Learning Design Developer Emmalyn Green, JA Worldwide Gather Reporter and INJAZ Lebanon alumna Dana Khairallah, PMIEF Grant Manager Amber Buschmann, and PMIEF Manager, Grants and Partnerships, Andrew Whitmire are among the hackathon jurors, and will select the winner of the JA x PMIEF Impact Award. (Meet the full Hack for Earth jury.)

Hack for Earth will announce the 2023 winners on December 11. Watch it live!

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