Prepr Foundation, an open education non-profit, is sponsoring the MaRS Energy Hackathon, an idea-generating event to make energy data more accessible and user-friendly. On the weekend of September 7-8, a diverse group of people including, energy experts, designers, developers and entrepreneurs, will meet in Toronto to prototype tools to help consumers better understand, access and manage their electricity use.
The challenge is to build apps and gadgets around the Green Button, an initiative to help people access and share their energy data. With 2.6 million Ontarians, or 50% of residential and commercial consumers, already using the Green Button online there is a desire to make smart energy decisions. However, the standard spreadsheet format has led to slow customer traction with an emerging need for apps and tools that can display the data visually and provide feedback. For instance, a smart phone app that pushes notifications to your phone when your energy use exceeds your neighborhood average, is of interest to customers.
The hackathon sponsorship is part of Prepr’s ongoing commitment to supporting open innovation, and providing opportunities for young entrepreneurs and innovators to apply their skills to solve real world problems. Hackathons are a natural extension of the Prepr PIE curriculum, a challenge-based educational experience that helps learners develop skills in the areas of Project Management, Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
The free event begins Saturday September 7th in Toronto and was created by MaRS Discovery District, an innovation centre that supports entrepreneurship in Ontario. An ideal place for a hackathon, MaRS is where technology and entrepreneurship converge to spark ideas.
