PALO, Leyte—Children today love technology, they understand computer very well more than they visit their textbooks.
That’s how Elaine Cedillo, co-founder of Hack the Climate, described the seven or more groups of high school students from Philippine Science High School in Eastern Visayas and young professionals participating in the 24-hour race known as Hackathon.
Cedillo simply puts it as a coding marathon to create an application within a period with the use of computer applications to arrive at a solution to address climate change.
“The participants are closed in an area, provided with internet connectivity, guided by tech-savvy experts in the field of web development, interface, every component website, and mobile app,” she told reporters in an interview after the Hackathon officially started inside the PhilSci Gymnasium last week.
The co-founder of Hack the Climate and official of Red Wizards Event said this was a form of educational tool for young people and it teaches them how to use the technology for their advantage to solve climate change.
Hackathon was designed when two student hackers from Princeton University in the United States wanted to help the Philippines after it was devastated by Super Typhoon “Yolanda” in 2013.
They raised funds for 24 hours and came up with good amount of money and donated to the country, she added.
Cedillo pointed out these Princeton hackers who came to know the Philippines because of the tragic Yolanda experience came to the country and tried to look for people staging Hackathon.
It was in June 2014, with a grant from Davies Project for Peace, when the first Hackathon was organized in the Philippines. The first Hackathon was supported by Climate Change Commission, Climate Change Reality, Greenpeace and was participated by students from St. Benilde, La Salle, and young professionals.
The first and second Hackathon were held in Manila, 3rd in Bicol, fourth in Oscar M. Lopez Center and the fifth now in Tacloban City.
She cited a group of young professionals who call themselves Instigator who joined the Hackathon where their finished product was funded by SM.
Cedillo mentioned another Hackathon product funded by Asian Development Bank, a game type of application where it helped explain people’s lifestyle and taught young people how to save the environment in a very animated way.
She mentioned the use of solar power in lighted lamp used here in Leyte after the onslaught of Yolanda which is also a product of Hackathon.
Cedillo’s group will also be distributing 25 laptops in Barugo I, Palo 2 and in Pambujan, Northern Samar through their e-library project.
“We are finding solutions by conducting a Hackathon to address the problem on climate change through their work.