TBS Amazonian Forest Hackathon

February 24th-28th, 2020 – TBS Bosco Building

From February 24th to 28th, 2020, TBS students participate in a high-profile Amazonian Forest Hackathon to help increase sustainability in the Amazon region. The project unites TBS students with world-renowned technological key players and sustainability experts.

Technology & know-how to increase sustainability

Here at TBS, we believe the combination of technology and business processes is key to solving many of today’s issues. Last October, a worldwide call was launched to scientists, practitioners, technologists and indigenous people from the Amazonia region to collaborate in order to find sustainable solutions to reverse the ecological situaton in the Amazon, including the formal trading platform of indigenous assets as an official “New Class of Asset.”

A high-profile international project

The Amazonian Forest Hackathon was initiated by TBS lecturer and founder of UWINcorp, Julius Akinyemi, the entrepreneur in residence at the MIT Media Lab. The project was designed in collaboration with Amazonia 4IR, which is founded by world-renowned climate expert Dr. Carlos Nobre.

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During the Hackathon, the software and development platform will be supplied by software giant SAP, under the guidance of Didier Petitjean, their University Alliances Manager. In addition, Michael Cantineau from French global network operator Sigfox will provide the company’s smart sensor technology. Moreover, TBS students will be coached using a Capgemini case study by Adrien Calvayrac and receive a crash course in design thinking from d.school Paris.

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The challenge for TBS students

Mission: monitor the Amazon to increase sustainability

The Hackathon project involves TBS Master of Science students from the Marketing, Management & Communication and the Big Data, Marketing and Management programs, who will receive their brief directly from Dr. Nobre via skype.

A first-step mobile application

The Amazonian Forest Hackathon challenges the collective intelligence of students and faculty to develop a first step mobile application that will collect data for predictive modeling to better monitor the devastated region. The data will essentially be based on the biodiversity of the Amazonian forest and its assets:

• indigenous plants in the public space (phytochemical properties and DNA signature to complete the genomics profile)
• forest noise
• object movements
• environmental gages
• geolocation

The ultimate goal of the project is to create a database that will limit illegal logging practices and allow indigenous people to trade their assets in a fair and equitable way with Western cosmetic and pharmaceutical companies.

The Amazonian Forest Hackathon Initiators

MIT Media Lab‘s Julius Akinyemi, who is also the CEO and founder of UWINCorp and a lecturer at TBS, is the driving force behind the Amazonia Forest Hackathon. Julius’ mission at the MIT Media Lab consists in marketing technological innovation that continuously leverages existing and future MIT technologies. Julius designed the project in collaboration with his MIT and UWINCorp colleague, Aline Oliveira Pezente, who is also the co-founder of TrAive and Cargill Digital Economy Strategy Lead.

Another important initiator is the 4th Industrial Revolution Initiative, Amazonia 4.IR, founded by world-renowned Dr Carlos Nobre. Dr Nobre is a Brazilian scientist with a PhD in Meteorology from MIT. He is a member of the UN Scientific Advisory Board for Global Sustainibility and a foreign member of the US National Academy of Sciences. Dr Nobre dedicated his scientific career to the Amazon and created the Amazon Third Way Initiative in 2016.