On Sunday, November 17, Durham Ideas Den (DID) will launch their annual, full-day hackathon challenge, where more than 100 innovative students will come together to design practical solutions for existing social problems in the community.

The hackathon will showcase the Durham Region’s best and brightest of Durham’s post-secondary students, as well as community and corporate leaders, who will guide them in the process of turning a brilliant idea into a viable social venture. 

Last year’s competition was won by a group of Durham College Paralegal students and included more than 100 submissions from 25 teams.

“It is a win-win solution for all – students hone new skills through the creation of new enterprises, increasing their networks and employability,” said Pramilla Ramdahani, executive director, Community Innovation Labs. “Municipalities and businesses benefit from a new talent pool that seeks to tackle our toughest problems with innovative tools, processes and economic models.“

At the hackathon, students will form teams and enter into the Launch Factor, a 30-day challenge to build a tribe around their vision and crowd-fund their venture. Following the Launch Factor challenge, each of the DID teams will work on building their social ventures with continued support from the Community Innovation Lab and the mentorship community, until the deadline in March 2014, when each team will present what they’ve built to community members at a grand finale celebration.