Name: Open Sea Lab 3.0 Hackathon
Start: 2023-03-27T04:00:00.000-04:00
End: 2023-03-28T12:00:00.000-04:00
Location: Open Sea Lab 3.0 Hackathon

Hello

Welcome to the EMODnet Open Sea Lab 3.0 Hackathon!

What is the Open Sea Lab 3.0 Hackathon?

The Open Sea Lab Hackathon is a unique event that brings together data and multidisciplinary scientists, software developers, social innovators, and changemakers in Europe and around the world to harness the wealth of open-source, marine data offered by EMODnet to develop solutions to Ocean challenges.

This third edition of the hackathon –OSL 3.0– will invite participants to explore and test the new features brought by EMODnet’s new centralised portal and to put their skills to test in evolving innovative ways of using open-source data to support important marine targets.

Hackathon winners will be featured at the European Maritime Day 2023 (Brest, France), treated to a thriving program of activities and enjoying the exhibition, pitching, and networking opportunities to showcase their talent and solutions before an international maritime audience.

If you are at least 18 years old and have an interest in harnessing open-source data to co-create solutions to Ocean challenges, OSL 3.0 is for you! Whether you are a professional with a background in science, data, marine research, coding & software development, communications, Ocean policy, environmental management, innovation, or business, or a student working to build any of such skills, there is a Team that can use your talent, ingenuity, eagerness or expertise.

How to participate

Get familiar with EMODnet

Follow a 3-week (optional) virtual ideation warm-up at your own pace and learn about EMODnet's services & tools. The warm-up is guided by EMODnet (Project & Associated) & OSL 3.0 Partners, coaches, mentors, and professionals and will kick off in February 2023. Its Agenda will be published soon. Stay tuned!

Form a team and propose your idea

During the warm-up, you will be able to engage with other participants through this platform and you will be able to form and/or join a Team to shape the idea that you will work on during the hackathon.

Participate in the 3-day virtual hackathon

Together with your Team and your EMODnet Coaches & Mentors, develop your idea for the OSL 3.0!

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IMPORTANT: Please note that the Hackathon is intended for Teams in which at least one (or more) team members are familiar with coding and/or programming.

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What is EMODnet?

The European Marine Observation and Data Network (EMODnet) is the flagship EU data service for in situ Ocean and human activities observations, data and data products, working with Copernicus Marine Service, which provides leading expertise in satellite-derived marine environmental data, modelling, prediction and forecasting capability. EMODnet provides open access to a wealth of data that is harvested through a collective effort involving more than 120 European organisations and a growing family of public and private partners across Europe. Access to EMODnet data resources and services -which have been offered through 7 thematic portals for years- are being centralised and will be incorporated into the EMODnet Central Portal in the last quarter of 2022. This will allow the network to work more efficiently, and most importantly will further simplify and enhance the user experience.

Why now? Supporting the EU Green Deal and UN Decade of Ocean Science

Following the 10 years anniversary of EMODnet in 2020, the network has seen a massive increase in the amount and usefulness of data being made available to users, having been a key resource to collectively meet and support European targets towards enhanced marine knowledge by 2020. In the decade to 2030, EMODnet will be one of the pillars of the future EU Digital Twin of the Ocean, which will open new opportunities to further advance our understanding, knowledge, and prediction of the Ocean. EMODnet will seek to continue servicing and empowering stakeholders and citizens across Europe and beyond towards delivering on the objectives of the EU Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030” and the wider goals of the EU Green Deal, as well as contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN Agenda 2030, as a key partner to the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. OSL 3.0 will be geared at fostering community networking and promoting the development and uptake of innovative, science-based solutions based on EMODnet resources at a wider scale, in support of the EU Green Deal and the UN Agenda 2030.

Why apply?

Who can participate?

If you are at least 18 years old and have an interest in harnessing multidisciplinary open-source data to co-create solutions to Ocean challenges, OSL 3.0 is for you! Whether you are a professional with a background in data science, marine research, coding & software development, communications, Ocean policy, environmental management, innovation, or business, or a student working to build any of such skills, there is a Team that can use your talent, ingenuity, eagerness or expertise.

The Open Sea Lab Hackathon 3.0 welcomes participants from diverse backgrounds. Don’t let a lack of experience put you off! During the warm-up phase leading to the hackathon, you will have plenty of time and opportunities to form or find a Team. Likewise, during the hackathon, you will receive support from a great team of Coaches & Mentors.

Participants in OSL 3.0 will benefit from:

Exposing their talent to leading organizations working in the marine domain.
Being inspired by professionals working for Ocean observation, conservation & innovation.
Making new professional contacts amongst peers working in the marine domain.
Learning about and mastering the use of EMODnet’s central portal resources & expanded capabilities.

The brightest ideas from OSL 3.0 will receive recognition at the European Maritime Day 2023 (Brest, France).

Who are the Coaches and the Mentors?

Coaches & Mentors will be available for the whole duration of the Ideation Warm Up and of the 2-day Hackathon. The Coaching & Mentoring Team includes:

"EMODnet" Coaches: As data experts, they offer support to ALL participants on specific topics (e.g., accessing and/or exploiting specific data; using EMODnet’s map viewer; navigating the Central Portal, etc).
Mentors: They're subject matter experts and/or marine researchers with a good scientific background. One mentor will be assigned to one team. The mentors offer general knowledge, expertise & advice to guide you in the development of the team's proposed solution to the challenge that they wish to address.

The Coaches & Mentors will be visible in the “Coaches & Mentors” tab that will appear soon on this platform.

Requirements

The Hackathon Challenges

OSL 3.0 will invite participants to form Teams to address specific Ocean challenges by using EMODnet and other relevant, available resources. A total of 6 challenges have been envisioned, namely:

Challenge 1 - Protecting and restoring marine & freshwater biodiversity

How might we leverage EMODnet to evolve a true trans-European nature network that protects our sea areas; to restore rivers or to scale up nature-based solutions that improve the resilience of coastal communities?

Participants will be challenged to use biology, seabed habitats and human activities data, interacting with EMODnet map viewer and data catalogue.

Challenge 2 - Eliminating pollution of our ocean, seas and waters

How might we leverage EMODnet to reduce microplastics and plastic litter at sea or to reduce the use and risk of chemical pesticides, through innovative solutions or improved international governance?

Participants will be challenged to use chemistry, physics and human activities data, interacting with EMODnet map viewer and data catalogue.

Challenge 3 - Making the blue economy carbon-neutral and circular

How might we leverage EMODnet to eliminate or sequester greenhouse gas emissions from maritime economic activities; develop zero-carbon and low impact aquaculture; promote low-carbon, multi-purpose use of the marine and water space; or mobilise the ocean and inland water’s potential for carbon-free energy?

Participants will be challenged to use physics and human activities data, in combination with e.g., satellite data from Copernicus Marine Service and/or other data & research infrastructures (e.g., ICOS- Centre, Lifewatch, EMBRC), and any other data deemed relevant, interacting with EMODnet map viewer and data catalogue.

Challenge 4 - Contributing to the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development

How might we leverage EMODnet to advance a digital knowledge system that supports international collaboration towards better understanding, monitoring, forecasting and protecting the Ocean?

Participants will be challenged to merge data from EMODnet (including resources available for Global Stakeholders), Copernicus Marine Service, Copernicus Earth observation and/or any other data service.

Challenge 5 - Empowering social innovation

How might we leverage EMODnet to inspire and support social innovation practices or participatory governance approaches that empower citizens to co-design and co-implement solutions to restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030?

Participants will be challenged to leverage available resources (e.g., the EU Atlas of the Seas) to develop new applications that enhance users’ capabilities to respond to Ocean challenges, including promoting Ocean literacy and citizenship and/or making data more accessible to citizens (e.g., building a bot in Twitter that feeds off the Atlas of the Seas to provide user-requested updates on any specific resource published).

Challenge 6 - Wild card: Hack the ocean!

How might we leverage EMODnet data for the change that you would like to see in our relationship with the Ocean?

What are the hackathon deliverables?

The participants will deliver a “proof of concept” (POC) for innovative solutions that should be developed by leveraging the use of the EMODnet Central Portal.

The POC must contain the following deliverables:

DELIVERABLE 1: A 1-page summary description of the solution

DELIVERABLE 2: A slide presentation (maximum 7 slides excluding the cover)

DELIVERABLE 3 - OPTIONAL: The solution
DELIVERABLE 4: A 90 seconds video pitch describing the solution.

Hackathon Sponsors

Prizes

$15,000 in prizes

European Maritime Day: May 2023 (3)

Up to 3 members of each Winner Team will be invited to travel to Brest (France) in May 2023 to take part in an enticing program of activities at the European Maritime Day 2023

The EMODnet OSL 3.0 Winners will enjoy pitching and exhibition opportunities to showcase their talent and solutions, as well as networking opportunities to interact with an international audience of policy, business, and civil society representatives. EMD is the leading annual meeting point for Europe’s maritime community to network, discuss and forge joint action across maritime affairs.