Hackathon for Disabled

04 April 2018 - Published by Herma Otter

As a spin-off from the Hackathon for Elderly held in Aalborg in the autumn 2017, the Department for People With Disabilities in this city decided to put the experience of working with special target groups in this innovative way to even more use. With an open approach as basis, the idea for a hackathon with disabled people was born. Through this project, Aalborg wants to get a clearer view on the needs of this target group and strengthen the collaborative processes with them.

Target group

This hackathon wants to involve citizens with mental disabilities

Autism
ADHD
Specialized care
Life vitality
(Acquired) Brain injury
Social psychiatric problems.

Through this hackathon an opportunity is created to find digital solutions for everyday problems the participants experience.

Co-production process

The idea is to use a co-production process as a driver for public innovation and involvement.

1) Identify the everyday challenges in the lives of people with disabilities. A special approach has been developed to create safe surroundings for these special participants to open up. Through meetings, playing, cooking and/or drawing the required band of trust can been established. Depending on the target group this step can be time consuming.

2) Get some of these citizens to volunteer for an “expert” group. This group will have influence on the hackathon workshop regarding methods, breaks, presentation etc.

3) Facilitate the hackathon and present chosen challenges. Social Digital - a nonprofit organization - will present digital research based on the designated challenges.

The hackathon will be held on September 26^th 2018.

Furthermore, to amplify the transnational aspect of project Like!, a similar initiative is developing in cooperation with Aalborg Municipality and Rotterdam (NL).