Code: NOLA - A Civic Hackathon
February 24, 5:30-8pm: Kickoff at Capdeville 
February 25th, 9am-8pm: Hackathon at Launchpad

Calling all designers, programmers, city staff, and other
civic-minded problem-solvers looking for a challenge! 

Join us for a weekend at Launchpad to hack newly-released 
datasets from City Hall into slick civic apps.

What do you do at civic hackathon, anyway?

At a civic hackathon, people who know and love technology (software developers, designers, entrepreneurs, etc.) come together with people who know and love urban issues (city staff, local organizations, community members and leaders) to use technology and their collective skills to build solutions that matters to our city, and other cities too.

There's food, smart people, and networking opportunities. It’s an opportunity to make a difference with skills you know, hone some you’ve forgotten, and maybe even acquire some new ones. Still not sure what to expect? Check out a fellow's experience. 

How does it work?

Anyone can pitch an idea or problem, and small groups form to brainstorm solutions and start writing code. We'll present a series of project ideas we've identified from working within City Hall and talking to community leaders over the past few weeks, as well as release some new datasets to the city's open data portal, data.nola.gov, but feel free to come with your own project ideas as well! Post and discuss possible project ideas here. Use #cfaNOLA to shout out and follow ideas leading up to the event! 

What's the schedule?

DAY ONE
Friday, Feb 24th: Kickoff Happy Hour at Capdeville

• 5:30pm: Registration, meet and greet (beer provided)
• 6pm: Opening remarks
• 6:30pm: Idea formation
• 7pm: Present your ideas to the group
• 7:30pm: Form teams and mingle

DAY TWO:
Saturday, Feb 25th: Hackathon at Launchpad

• 9am: Light breakfast (provided)
• 9:30am: Get to work!
• 1:30pm: Working lunch (pizza provided)
• 5:30pm: Time's up - showcase what you've built to your peers
• 6pm: Peer judging and winners announced
• 6:30pm: Closing remarks
• 7pm: Celebrate at Capdeville

Why hold this event?

Local communities of "civic hackers" around the world are building powerful open-source applications that help city governments be more open, efficient, and connected to their citizens. We know New Orleans is home to a great number of dedicated and innovative technologists and designers that care about their community -- this is your chance to use your skills to make NOLA even better! 

I'm still not convinced. Why should I come to a CfA Hackathon?