“Hack:bit 2020” aims to bring ideas of school and university students to life

Hack:bit 2020, a virtual national hackathon for school and university students in Sri Lanka organized by STEMUp Educational Foundation, is all set to bring the creative ideas of young Sri Lankans to life.

University students below the age of 28 as well as school students below the age of 19 are eligible to enter Hack:bit 2020. Hack:bit 2020 is currently accepting innovations under several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including Good Health and Well Being, Life on Lands, Sustainable Cities and Communities, Climate Actions, Quality Education and Decent Work as well as Economic Growth. The acceptance of submissions, which commenced on July 1, will close on August 15. The Semi Finals are to take place on September 20 with the Grand Final and Awards Ceremony to be held on September 30 where the winners will be announced, the organisers said in a media release. 

All Hack:bit participants are given the freedom to use any preferred tools and programming languages to develop their innovative product. Contestants should form a team with 2 or 3 team members from the same school or university in order to participate. An expert panel of judges will evaluate all entries. Judging criteria will take into account a number of key factors including uniqueness, innovativeness, implementation, business value and sustainability. One of the key highlights is that all participants will have the opportunity to work closely with industry experts in order to obtain their valuable insights and further improve on their ideas. From the initial contestants, a shortlisted list of 5 school teams and 5 university teams will be invited to the Final Round and Award Ceremony. 

Expressing his views, Prabhath Mannapperuma - Director of STEMUP Educational Foundation commented, “We are excited to put together Hack:bit 2020 following the success of Hack:bit 2018. This is the second time we are organising this highly-anticipated national level hackathon for school students and university undergraduates. It provides a platform for them to showcase their creativity and innovations through a disruptive product. It has a lot to do with exploration and experimentation for the participants who will brainstorm to develop an idea into a successful real-world product. They will gain immensely from the whole experience as they compete with each other to come out on top. Insights from industry experts will educate them on how and why they need to keep on asking the right questions and pushing the boundaries in order to succeed.”

The STEMUp Foundation is a non-governmental organisation whose mission is to inspire and engage students to become interested in pursuing Scientific, Technological, Engineering, and Mathematical (STEM) degrees and careers.