Inspiring bright young minds

At the Hackathon, teams of students from six high schools were presented with challenges related to the City’s rapid growth including employment, technology, innovation, population, business support as well as costs of living and housing.

City of Wanneroo Mayor Tracey Roberts said the students displayed excellent resourcefulness.

“The teams were well prepared to confront the challenges presented to them and developed brilliant concepts to solve a range of problems, pitching their ideas to the audience with confidence and conviction,” Mayor Roberts said.

“Hackathon participants were supported by mentors who work in the innovation, sustainability, technology and growth sectors, and who encouraged entrepreneurial thinking and enabled the students to think outside the square.

“These students are our future business leaders, start-ups and creatives and I was incredibly impressed by the depth of their ideas.”

The teams were made up of a mix of students from different schools to encourage collaboration and bring out new ideas which helps develop problem solving skills.

The Hackathon was proudly supported by the City of Wanneroo and facilitated by Just Start It, an organisation which runs ignition and entrepreneurship programs for high school students across the state.

Lainey Weiser from Just Start It said the event gives students the opportunity to engage in critical thinking.

“The jobs of the future are uncertain because technology and innovation are moving ahead at such a rapid pace – industry disruption is common and that presents challenges for students trying to find jobs in the future,” Ms Weiser said.

The competing schools were:

• Ashdale Secondary College
• Butler College
• Irene McCormack Catholic College
• Joseph Banks Secondary College
• Peter Moyes Anglican Community School
• Wanneroo Secondary College

First prize winners were from a joint Butler College/Peter Moyes Anglican Community School team that pitched the idea of large 3D interactive art on walls, that people could ‘step into’, take photos of themselves ‘in’ and track locations using a phone app and map.

Other ideas included a beach amphitheatre made up of multicultural stalls to encourage tourism and celebrate the City’s culturally and linguistically diverse community, a share housing phone app, a discount food app to help overcome food waste and a giant interactive games wall.