FAQ
Here are some frequently asked questions
The event will be in English. You do not need to be very fluent or a native speaker to participate in the event!
We aim to help all participants contribute to their teams in the most comfortable way possible so do reach out to us if you have any questions regarding the level of English required. We can assure you that if you can read and answer the application questions, you will be able to participate in the event!
We expect solutions that will make a real contribution to gender equality on Earth. In terms of the type of these solutions, it can be anything! You can propose a business model/case of using some space technology to solve a particular problem. You can also propose new research that should be developed on Earth from space. Alternatively, you can define a consultancy service or a new non-profit organism that would address the topic of gender equality from space.
Regardless of your idea, we expect you to provide the following elements:
- Who is the target audience or user? Define your “client/user archetype”: what is their gender, age, lifestyle, status, etc. What part of the population would your solution address?
- What concrete issue does this solution address?
- How will it be solved? What technology or know-how are you proposing to use, and how?
- Is it a novel solution? What has already been done regarding this?
- How are you planning to implement this solution? Who are your potential partners and stakeholders? How can you fund this project?
- If it is a business idea, what is the projected market share and who is your competition? If it is a non-monetizable solution, how do you expect to scale up its impact and utilisation?
No. All solutions must use either a space technology or space know-how. Regarding the space know-how, it could be related to the way space policy is made, for example. Your solution could also be based on the way that space projects and missions are managed, e.g. the V-cycle or the method of concurrent engineering design often practiced in aerospace. Therefore, the expected solutions are not restricted to scientific projects.
Main deliverable: oral presentation in the format of a business pitch, and presentation support (e.g. a PowerPoint slide deck). Each team will be allocated 10 minutes (8 minutes of presentation time + 2 minutes of questions).
Other deliverables: You are invited to submit anything that you like (photos of prototypes, models, software codes, reports, etc…) on the GitHub provided for this hackathon. Due to the potential question of the protection of intellectual property, this is not a hard requirement.
EVERYBODY welcome! You simply need to be an SGAC member. We are looking for profiles with experience in hackathons, business, management, space exploration, engineering, Earth observation, agriculture, health & sanitation, advocacy, humanitarian work, policy-making, and more… Anyone who is passionate about making a leap toward gender equality is welcome.
You can apply both independently and as part of a team. Note: everybody must send an individual application, even if you apply as a team. You simply need to mention your teammates’ names in one of the questions we ask in the application.
If you apply independently, we will find a team for you! Our hackers’ team is going through all profiles and doing some match-making in order to have diverse teams that can cover all the needed areas of expertise.
The Our Giant Leap Hackathon 2023 will be held in hybrid mode – hackers will be able to join both in-person at the venue in Montréal, Canada and online! More details will be published soon.
