This Thursday, November 25th, we will be hosting the Zero Waste Valley Climate Hackathon. From 4:00-6:00pm, community members are invited to attend the final pitch event where teams will present their business ideas and zero-waste solutions to a panel of judges who will have the difficult decision of picking the day’s winning idea. Local entrepreneur and Indigenous storyteller, Greg Hopf, will take to the virtual stage to share lessons about our connection to nature.
Through-out the day, teams participating in the Climate Hackathon will be ideating and rapidly testing business models that work to eliminate waste from the Okanagan valley by 2030. A vision that the Okanagan Sustainable Leadership Council is currently working on to bring to fruition through it’s Zero Waste Valley initiative.
“Climate change has proven to be an unpredictable disruptor to both individuals and businesses alike. That’s why we need to have critical conversations and take action for the health of our climate,” says Thuy Tran, Acting CEO of Accelerate Okanagan. “The hackathon model is a unique way of bringing diverse community members together to collaborate around a complex problem”.
The world has never needed as much creativity and innovation as it does now — nor as much collaboration across industry, academia, and all levels of government. Speaking at the event will be Greg Hopf, owner of Moccasin Trails, an award-winning educational tourism business that is deeply rooted in sharing Indigenous cultures. Greg will be discussing how our connection and relationship to mother earth is dictated by the values we hold and the morale compass we set.
Greg has presented at many conferences on Indigenous issues around the world, as well as inspirational topics around Indigenous business development, partnerships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous organizations, youth empowerment, revitalization of Indigenous cultures, and much more.
The Climate Hackathon is being facilitated by NoW of Work’s Rocky Ozaki and supported by many local organizations including Okanagan College, CapriCMW and Valley First. The pitch event will be hosted virtually on Remo, a virtual events platform where participants can connect and network with other attendees. This is the third hackathon we’ve hosted in collaboration with NoW of Work, with previous events focusing on cancer prevention and talent acquisition.
Community members interested in attending the virtual event can register on eventbrite.
