Photos By: Nur Natasha Aqilah Mohd Syazwan

The Embassy of France in Kuala Lumpur organised the 8th edition of the Ocean Hackathon on November 17-19, 2023, at the French School of Kuala Lumpur (LFKL). Global Buddies Club (GBC) of the Centre for International Affairs and Cooperation (CIAC) was invited to participate in the competition. The competition aims to solve issues related to ocean life using digital solutions, including application development and data analysis.

GBC sent a team of 4 students undergoing Bachelor of Science (Information Technology), Nur Natasha Aqilah, Fara Ayeesha, Isac Russell Paulbert, and Ahmad Afzat, to join the competition.

Nur Natasya said that it was an incredibly insightful and beneficial competition since there were many tutoring sessions with experts from different fields throughout the competition. Some tutoring sessions included a sharing session about ocean data on the first day. There was also a sharing session on creating a good pitch by Dr Daniel Loy Hui Siang, director of the Entrepreneurship & Innovation Hub at Monash University Malaysia. The tutoring sessions were followed by a talk on business models and citizen science by Alexandra Villarroel-Parada from the National Museum of Natural History in Paris.

Throughout the hackathon, all participating teams benefited from the unwavering support of dedicated tutors who provided guidance and constructive feedback. Dr. Stella Alexandroff, the science officer at the Ocean KAN in Paris, France, was pivotal in mentoring the GBC team, offering innovative ideas and solutions to overcome challenges encountered during the competition.

Beyond the competitive arena, the Ocean Hackathon 2023 emerged as a nexus for networking and potential collaborations. Students from various universities and fields of study engaged in meaningful discussions, exploring avenues for future partnerships in ocean-related endeavours.

The spirit of teamwork and effective communication took centre stage during the 48-hour competition. Participants set aside differences to collectively tackle challenges, underscoring the hackathon's commitment to fostering collaboration in addressing pressing issues related to the world's oceans.