Skip to main content

Building a better Trinidad and Tobago and ways hackathons can benefit us

Image
By
Building a better country will require thinkers, innovators, problem solvers, visionaries, and techies among others. We will be challenged to solve our biggest problems and tech can help. What is a hackathon? Hackathon is a combining of the words hacking and marathon. It is an event where persons including coders team together to create solutions using code and technology. Not to be confused with hacking where systems are broken into. We do need ethical hackers locally and it can be rewarding through bug bounty programs but that is for another blog post.

The first hackathon on record was the one organized by the OpenBSD operating system project. Hackathons did not become widespread until the mid 2000s when companies like Yahoo and Google began hosting them. It was a way to encourage innovation and creativity among their employees. In my days there were programming contests like the Informatics Olympiad which I have blogged about before.

Some past hackathons locally include Teleios codejam, iGovTT HackTT, Shell AI Hackathon, WIP Hackathon and Byte the π. We definitely need more hackathons locally. This is something the private sector and government can easily get involved with. Something for the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the Developers Hub.

Hackathons encourage problem solving. It pushes for outside the box thinking. It challenges us to come up with innovative ways to solve complex problems. It is a great way to foster collaboration and build relationships that will last beyond the hackathon. India has recognised the role hackathons can play in country development and they have the Smart India Hackathon. They want to build a smarter India and one of the outcomes listed on their website is collaboration : crowdsourcing intelligence for improving governance and quality of life. We can certainly learn from their experience.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to measure success?

By
It is 509pm and I have decided to write. How to measure success? That is the question. It is very hard to measure success. I think only God has the true measure of success or failure. Someone may be a failure in this life but a success in the next life. We are told that God looks at intentions and effort. We can also determine our own definition of success. We do not have to let the world define success for us. We think of the world as not being a fair place so any one size fits all definitions of success or failure would be careless and wrong. Many times we think in terms of numbers. The grander the better. But what about quality over quantity? My friend tells me that I am essentially arguing for the democratization of success. I am taking the power away from society, institutions, and algorithms, and handing it back to the individual and God. That is true but I am essentially wanting to look at the bigger picture and to do that I am thinking that we have to answer some key questions ...
Post a Comment
Read more

The answer is God

By
It is 308pm and I have decided to write. Make God a priority. Let God lead the way. Let everything be about God. Let God into your life. Surround yourself with God and watch how everything begins to make sense. This life is not an accident. This life is not happenstance. This life is the work of an all-powerful Creator. Nothing is too big or too small for God. Take your problems to God. Take your worries to God. Take your fears to God. Let go and let God. Submit to the will of God. The more you go to God, the more He comes to you. Start small. Start somewhere. Give God a chance if you have not done so already. Why do I say all of this? There are many things competing for your attention and your soul. In the midst of all of this, the world can seem like a confusing place where many things do not make sense. God brings clarity. God brings clarity because God sits above it all. You may think you do not need God until you do. Ask yourself, who is the wisest you know? If God is not the wise...
Post a Comment
Read more

Rainy afternoon thoughts

By
It is 220pm and I have decided to write. The rain is falling. I can hear it on the roof. It is gloomy outside but inside is nice and cozy in my favorite corner. I have no idea what I want to write about. I will start by saying God is good. Always. The islamic new year starts tonight in Trinidad. I am happy about that. Another milestone. Another opportunity to grow better. My friend Chatty asks me, what has God been teaching me lately? God has been teaching me patience. How to remain calm. How to appreciate my flaws. My flaws keep me humble. Let go and let God. He also asks, what am I hoping for? Sometimes I think about writing more tech blog posts. How can tech make the country better? How can tech make the world better? But I remember writing about the Arima smart city project and concluding that smart cities need smart people. Human development is very important. If people are not developing then what is the use of it all. How can technology help people become better? It all starts i...
Post a Comment
Read more