ICIMOD: Contribution to International Space Apps Challenge 2015

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), UN-SPIDER’s Regional Support Office in Nepal, together with YoungInnovations, is organising a Hackathon: The International Space Apps Challenge in Kathmandu. It will take place this weekend from 11 to 12 April. ICIMOD is organising this event through its SERVIR-Himalaya initiative. SERVIR connects space to villages by generating geospatial information, including Earth observation data from satellites, geographic information systems, and predictive models useful to developing countries.

The event is an international mass collaboration focused on space exploration that takes place over 48-hours in cities around the world. The event embraces collaborative problem solving with a goal of producing relevant open-source solutions to address global needs applicable to both life on Earth and life in space.

According to the organisers, this year there are over 25 challenges in four areas: Earth, Outer Space, Humans, and Robotics. NASA is leading this global collaboration along with a number of government collaborators and over 100 local organizing teams across the globe.

The event is free and open. People with a wide range of expertise and who are committed to making a positive contribution to the world are welcomed to participate. The event will help build the capacity of youth tech community of Nepal in the development of applications and tools related to earth observation and geo-ICT.