With growing humanitarian needs and limited funding, innovative solutions are vital to assist the most vulnerable groups in new and efficient ways. The Warren Centre, in conjunction with PTC, are pleased to bring you the second annual Professor Ron Johnston Humanitarian Innovation Awards in 2020, including the highly anticipated Humanitarian Innovation (Digital) Hackathon.

How can innovation solve the world’s most pressing humanitarian issues? In the Humanitarian Innovation (Digital) Hackathon, university students collaborate to create cutting-edge solutions that could save lives and make a positive impact on people around the world. The 2019 hackathon examined the Cox’s Bazar camp in Bangladesh.  This year’s 2020 event will focus on Pacific Islands challenges.

The Humanitarian Innovation (Digital) Hackathon is a weekend long virtual program with webinar speakers, team interaction, facilitated mentoring, and exciting diversions that mix up the digital competition with social engagement to fire up team creativity! This unique event welcomes participation from undergraduate competitors studying at Australian universities. Students will work collaboratively in cross-discipline teams to create technology-driven solutions for pressing humanitarian challenges. Participants will be asked to identify practical solutions for real and current problems from a current international humanitarian response context.

Prizes include: The RedR Johnston Rapid Response Prize, a $5,000 group cash prize, plus recognition in publications and the media. Special prizes sponsored by PTC will be awarded for digital technology solutions. The winners will be invited to collaborate further with a group of experts, possibly to build the next phase of the multi-generation plan, to develop a sustainable social entrepreneurship, or to deliver commercial solutions.

For more information, download our information kit! bit.ly/HIA-20