This year, the Start Me Up business idea competition received 168 accepted proposals, with the aim of discovering and supporting new growth entrepreneurs and startups. After the initial screening by...
On November 24-25, 2023, a hackathon event Hack Me Up Ideation Competition took place at Joensuu Science Park, hosted in the premises of Joensuu upper secondary school. Ten student teams participated in the competition, dedicating two days to developing creative solutions for promoting positive climate actions in businesses, communities, educational institutions, and households.
The Hack Me Up Aftermovie:
The students' task was to brainstorm solutions for the sustainability challenges posed by the partners, which were:
- Climate-smart e-commerce - atFlow Oy
- Reducing food waste in student dining - Joensuu upper secondary school
- Improve public transportation in the Joensuu region to meet the leisure needs of student - Joensuu Regional Public Transport (Jojo)
- Enhancing sorting and recycling in households - North Karelia Marthas'
- Smart and climate-friendly district heating - Savon Voima Oyj.
On Saturday, the teams delved into their chosen challenge, and after the jury's evaluation, the winners were awarded.
Hack Me Up 2023 Winners
1st place, €1000: Return sale solution for the Climate-smart e-commerce challenge by Iida Hackselius and Konsta Hentunen (Karelia University of Applied Sciences).
2nd place, €500: "Roskavex" solution for optimizing sorting and recycling in households by Elsa Latvala, Laura Andersson, Heidi Linnanmäki, and Jenni Halonen (University of Eastern Finland).
Additionally, the winning team from the Speedhack phase on Friday, which proposed the School Food App solution to enhance sorting and recycling in households, was awarded €500. The team consisted of Heini Lehivuo (University of Helsinki) and Jenni Könönen (Karelia University of Applied Sciences).
Congratulations to the winners and a big thank you to all students, partners, judges, and organizers! We look forward to the Hack Me Up 2024 ideation competition with you!
This collaborative ideation competition, fostering learning and creativity, was made possible through the cooperation of Climate City Joensuu 2025 and Innocities Joensuu projects, along with partner companies.
How did the students experience Hack Me Up?
Read more about the winning team's experience in the Joensuu City press release (in Finnish).
Material for the Hack Me Up 2023 Ideation Competition has been produced as a part of the Climate Joensuu 2025 project and the activities of the Joensuu City's Innovation Ecosystem Agreement (EAKR). The Climate Joensuu project is funded by the European Regional Development Fund and the City of Joensuu. The Innocities Joensuu project is co-financed by the European Union and the City of Joensuu.
