Events

The Open Data Challenge is made up of a few key events: workshops, an ideation session, and a Data Jam. Each of these events is free to participate in and open to the public. You can participate in as many of the Open Data Challenge Events as you’d like – whether that is just one event or all of them. More information about each event is provided below.

 

Past Events

Workshop: Visualizing Data

When: Saturday February 10, 2018 from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Where: Brandywine Hundred Library

Python is increasingly being used for data science, but it’s still easiest to share results on the web. Luckily the Plotly team has written libraries for both Python and Javascript, and you can migrate from one to another by simply sharing the JSON used to build the chart. In this workshop we’ll be using the Python Pandas library in a Jupyter Notebook to do some basic data analysis. Then we’ll create some data visualizations with Plotly, and then transfer our final visualization to Javascript.

Check out the Recap!

 

Ideation Session

When: Sunday February 25, 2018 from 1:00 – 5:00 pm
Where: Horn Program in Entrepreneurship’s Venture Development Center

Work collaboratively to come up with the key issues that need to be solved to make Delaware the most accessible state in the country. You’ll have the chance to talk with experts, share your experiences, and learn from other community members. You don’t need any particular skill to join – just a desire to help your community and a willingness to participate. The ideas and challenges generated from this 4 hour event will be used as part of the Data Jam.

Recap Coming Soon!

 

Workshop: Mapping Your Data

When: Thursday March 1, 2018 from 6:00 – 8:00 pm
Where: To be determined

One of the most powerful ways to visualize information is by putting it on to a map. Stephen Hess will discuss some basic and intermediate techniques for mapping data using open source tools in this two hour workshop.

Recap Coming Soon!

 

Workshop: Building a Website

When: Thursday March 15, 2018 from 6:00 – 8:00 pm
Where: The Coin Loft

In this interactive workshop, we’ll cover how to put up a simple website to show off the work that you’ve done for the Open Data Challenge! We’ll teach you how to register a domain name, set up hosting, install WordPress, and set you up with a suite of tools that will make it easy to build your first website and share it with the world. This is a hands-on workshop so if you’re interested in following along, please bring your laptop.

Recap Coming Soon!

 

Data Jam Kick Off

When: April 7, 2018
Where: Evans Hall at the University of Delaware

The Data Jam is a month-long hackathon, kicking off in April and wrapping up in May. We’ll be tackling accessibility challenges in the First State. To solve the challenges, you’ll have the opportunity to work in teams of up to 5 people. There are up to $35,000 in grant prizes available for teams that build the best prototype solutions.

Recap Coming Soon!

Workshop: Telling Your Story

When: Saturday April 28, 2018 from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Where: Brandywine Hundred Library

Sometimes building a website isn’t good enough for telling the world about what you’ve made. Sometimes, you need to tell the story in person. This two hour storytelling workshop will focus on how to successfully demonstrate the value of a product you’ve built to an audience.

Recap Coming Soon!

 

Data Jam Closing

When: Tuesday May 8, 2018 from 6:00 – 8:00 pm
Where: Theatre N, 1007 N. Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801

After a full month of work, teams from the Data Jam will present what they’ve built. Each team will have the opportunity to show off their work to a panel of judges. There is up to $35,000 on the line for winning teams.

Join us to see what each team was able to build over the course of the month!