It is 7:30 AM Saturday morning in Hong Kong, but 7:30 PM Friday evening in Maryland, USA. Students in PolyU and University of Maryland are in a “global” classroom via video-conference.
They are preparing for a 24-hour Hackathon that will take place in the next weekend. They have formed a number of teams, each with students from Maryland and PolyU. Each team has selected a community affected by Covid-19 in some way: university students studying through e-learning, children stuck at home without the necessary networking support to study online, the elderly cut off from family, … At the Hackathon they will design and prototype a solution for a specific community with a specific need.
Starting a couple of weeks ago, the students are using design thinking methods to study the needs of the communities through their words, feelings, thoughts and actions. They are using this week to focus on a specific need and prepare for the Hackathon.
At the Hackathon, they will be joined by several other teams, some with students from South Africa and Cambodia. Many of the teams are mixed teams with members from different countries. It is going to be fun, and we are all looking forward to it.
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