This hackathon will run from Friday, January 30th at 5:00 PM EST through Sunday, February 1st at 10:00 AM EST, providing participants with focused time to develop, refine, and submit their projects. All hacking, designing, and coding must take place within this timeframe.
Event Timeline:
- Friday, January 30th, 5:00 PM EST: Hacking begins
- Sunday, February 1st, 10:00 AM EST: Submission deadline
- Sunday, February 1st, 3:00 PM EST: Finalists announced
- Sunday, February 1st, 5:00 PM EST: Finalist judging and presentations begin
- Sunday, February 1st, 7:00 PM EST: Winners announced
This event is open to middle school, high school, and college students interested in sustainability and environmental technology. Participants may compete individually or in teams of up to four members. All work must be original and created exclusively for this hackathon. We welcome participants of all skill levels—from complete beginners to experienced developers!
Project and Submission RequirementsParticipants must build a project that addresses an environmental or sustainability challenge of their choice. Each submission must include:
- Working project (code, prototype, or functional demo)
- Project presentation using Google Slides, Canva, or similar platform
-
Written explanation on Devpost outlining:
- What inspired your project
- What it does and how it works
- Technologies and tools used
- Challenges faced and lessons learned
- Future plans for the project
- Sustainability impact
All submissions must be uploaded to Devpost before the deadline: Sunday, February 1st at 10:00 AM EST.
PrizesTotal Prize Pool: $250 in Amazon Gift Cards
🏆 Best Overall: $100
🌱 Best Sustainability Impact: $75
💡 Most Creative Solution: $50
🎓 Best Beginner Project: $25
All winners will also receive official certificates recognizing their achievement.
Judging Criteria and Winner Selection| Criteria | Description | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Innovation & Creativity | Originality of idea, unique approach, wow factor, thinking outside the box | 12 |
| Technical Implementation | Code quality, functionality, use of technologies, completeness | 10 |
| Impact & Sustainability | Real-world applicability, environmental/social impact, scalability potential | 12 |
| Presentation & Demo | Quality of pitch, clarity of explanation, demo effectiveness | 8 |
| Effort & Learning | Dedication, overcoming challenges, growth demonstrated (especially for beginners) | 8 |
Total: 50 Points
How Winners Are Determined:- Best Overall: Highest total score across all criteria
- Best Sustainability Impact: Highest score in "Impact & Sustainability" (minimum 30 total points required)
- Most Creative Solution: Highest score in "Innovation & Creativity" (minimum 25 total points required)
- Best Beginner Project: Best combination of "Effort & Learning" + overall functionality (self-identified beginners only)
Judges will independently score each submission using the rubric above. Scores will be averaged to determine final rankings. Finalists will be selected by 3:00 PM EST on February 1st and will present their projects starting at 5:00 PM EST. Winners will be announced at 7:00 PM EST.
In the event of a tie, judges will confer to review tied submissions and make a final determination based on overall project quality and potential impact.
Note: A project may only win one category even if it scores highest in other categories.
