The second international E³UDRES² Hackathon took place under the motto "Make your Europe & Make it Work" and strongly integrated local stakeholders of all E³UDRES² regions. 110 students applied and formed 15 teams at three hubs in Portugal, Belgium and Hungary to work on the six pre-defined challenges that were once again submitted by local stakeholders. The team with the most promising solution was chosen by a jury as the winning team.
Solving challenges together
Prior to the two-day event, there was a preparatory meeting, where excited Hackathoners, Lecturers, Entrepreneurs, Experts and Mentors got together for online orientation and learning more about each other, the hubs and challenges. During the Hackathon, the teams developed solutions within 36 hours for the chosen challenge. Mentors, Experts, Expert Talks and former Bootcampers supported the participants. While they worked on their challenges, they also had time to relax with a variety of social activities, such as folk dancing, yoga in the morning, and gingerbread decorating next to wine tasting.
For showcasing their ideas and concepts, the participants had to complete a video pitch, which was streamed and watched together on the second day of the event across all the hubs. Following the selection of six finalist teams based on their videos, the finalists gave a pitch presentation to an expert jury. The jury board was comprised of one expert from each E³UDRES² university.
Plant-based food concept wins
On the final evening, the jury selected the best projects, with Team eFISHient, who proposed a new food product based on alternative proteins, winning the programme's top prize. The winning team created the concept of plant-based fish nuggets that have the same texture and smell as real fish, therefore the product is both vegan and vegetarian, but with a higher nutritional value and a ready-to-eat concept - all the consumer would have to do is warm the meal and enjoy. As here are not many vegetarian fish options with high nutritional value on the market, this product meets a consumer demand that is currently in short supply. The team was not only able to convince the jury of its competence, its members also receive direct tickets for the E³UDRES² Bootcamp 2023 with its limited slots for participation.
The E³UDRES² team would like to thank everyone who made this event possible - especially all engaged and creative students that participated!
Watch the Aftermovie of the E³UDRES² Hackathon 2022 here:
