Following the Hack:Org:X sessions, this is a newsletter of interest for people who organize, research, and engage for hackathons in all their forms. Thanks for your support!

Our 7th meeting (full notes here) at WORKSPACE & MORE last week started with a look back at the launch of #siliconlovefield and the Swiss {ai} Weeks Hackathon that took place here in September. We chatted with host Sandro, and hackathon champions Chai, Frederic & Stefan - who also shared insights from the ClimateAction hackathon, as well as his Green AI-benchmarking project.

We were joined online by Benno, who organized the August BärnHäckt hackathon, now in its 9th year. Being a non-technical marketing director with a long IT background, he shared insightful perspectives on how to keep a series of events sustainable, focused, and results-driven.

Zoya is from the University of Zurich, and recently organized the first Hackathon on Crisis Apps, which Oleg supported too. She discussed the political forces at play with scientific detachments, the task of activating student participants, and sourcing challenges from non-profits.

Joseph joined us to dive into the outputs of Hack the Hackathon. This was a 5-day international seminar for hackathon researchers, discussing pedagogical integration, remote vs physical events, and building a shared library of scientific publications. It is a growing community with ongoing academic collaboration. Oleg shared personal impressions, and gave a brief update of the HackIntegration project.

Thanks also to Charles for joining us from the “edges” of the hackathon community, and sharing some interesting activities from hackerspaces and beyond.

Hack:Org:X insights in closing

1. Importance of transparent organization processes

2. Value of both structured and open hackathon formats

3. Potential for hacking events beyond traditional hackathons

4. Join the Zurich Climathon (November 22-23, Zurich)

5. Find and post upcoming Swiss events on HackIntegration!

You can find a complete list of participants with short bios, and notes of our discussion here: https://hackmd.io/@oleg/hackorgx-v7

❄️❄️❄️

Wishing you a nice day, or (as we say around here), ein Tag "mit Berner Schnee und nicht Zürcher Matsch" (with Bernese snow and not Zurich slush)

— Oleg

PS. Please get in touch if you would like to host our next session!

Hack:Org:X Charter

We invite our peers and colleagues, everyone who is interested in the art & science of Hackathons, Hackdays, Hacknights, and all other time-limited open collaborative experimental hands-on workshops, to join us for a convivial discussion of the past and future of the field. Our meetups are free of charge, thanks to our hosts and supporters. Our goal is to create a regular meeting series that gives us an additional sounding board as we plan and execute hackathons, while also giving us a place to share good tools and methods for a seamless experience for participants & sponsors. We believe that with the right level of continued community support, hackathons will continue to be a powerful force for unlocking talents and innovation.

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