Purdue team places in international multi-university hackathon
LASER PULSE (Long-term Assistance and Services for Research; and Partners for University-Led Solutions Engine) and the Center for Global Data Visualization (CGDV) collaborated with the QED Group, Data Elevates, Tableau, and the USAID Mission in Colombia, to hold an online Data Visualization Hackathon February 13 - March 6, 2020. This event brought together teams of participants from Colombia and Indiana to demonstrate the power of open data for benefiting public knowledge and policy. Teams assessed, analyzed and visualized data and presented to an audience to communicate a recommendation, story, or new idea through data visualization. The results will allow better decision-making and more varied solutions to problems that span a wide range of global development challenges, such as the Venezuelan Migration Issue facing Colombia.
3rd Place
The third place team is Purdue University's Scope Consulting with a data visualization entitled "Visualizing the Venezuelan Migration Crisis in Colombia". Team members: Alexandre Vives and Jose Berrizbeitia, both of the Purdue University School of Industrial Engineering.
"This project meant quite a lot to Alex and me, given the extenuating circumstances that Venezuela is facing," said Berrizbeitia, who is from Venezuela.
2nd Place
In second place is Colombian Universidad del Norte's Grupo Migración y Salud de la Universidad del Norte with a data visualization entitled "La migración, ¿me quedo o me voy? ("Migration, do I stay or go?)". The proposal analyzes the situation of Venezuelan migrants from the standpoint of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), based on the available information systems and carrying out exercises display of updated data. Team members: Melissa Aguirre and Laura Bonilla
1st Place
The winning team is University of Notre Dame's Why Women Code, with an outstanding data visualization entitled "A Staggering Exodus into Colombia". It analyzes where the majority of Venezuelan refugees and asylum seekers are globally, and how the influx of Venezuelan refugees has impacted Colombia's economy and societal development. Team members: Yun Yan, Yunqi He, Weiyi Zhao, and Zhijing Zhao
The USAID Mission in Colombia selected the top three winners, who will receive a cash prize to share among team members.
The organizers thank all who participated in the event. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the awards will not be presented at a live event as originally planned.
For information about future events, visit the LASER PULSE and CGDV websites to check for upcoming hackathons.