COVID-19 has revealed limits of the systems we take for granted, compromising our health, our planet, and our survival. We’ve expanded the 2020 Call for Code Global Challenge to take on COVID-19. Developers and problem solvers: join us to build open source solutions to make an immediate and lasting impact.
Why focus on COVID-19?
The COVID-19 pandemic poses not only a huge health concern to people - particularly the immunocompromised and elderly - but it also has had huge effects in uprooting societies and disrupting supply chains globally. We’re asking the world's developers and subject matter experts to help tackle this pandemic by increasing awareness through communications. CallforCode and IBM are seeking coding solutions that can provide:
Call for Code asks innovators to create practical, effective, and high-quality applications based on one or more IBM Cloud™ services (for example, web, mobile, data, analytics, AI, IoT, or weather) that can have an immediate and lasting impact on humanitarian issues. Teams of developers, data scientists, designers, business analysts, subject matter experts and more are challenged to build solutions to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 and climate change.
This year the competition will have two tracks. One track is for solutions that help halt and reverse the impact of climate change. The second track is for solutions to mitigate the impact of global pandemics like COVID-19 on communities around the world. Winning solutions are deployed in communities that need the most help.
What's the problem?
When a new disease such as COVID-19 emerges, communications systems are one of the first systems to become overwhelmed. From questions around disease transmission, to how to best protect your health and others around you, to the severity of the disease itself.
How can technology help?
Crisis communication, whether through a chatbot, SMS, or a website, can alleviate panic in communities and provide guidance on the best ways to protect yourself and your loved ones. From guidance on good hygiene to how to properly detect symptoms or key contact information, technology like chatbots or messaging platforms can help deliver information quickly and precisely. This can save people hours compared to waiting to get through to a call center, and free up customer service representatives to focus on higher level issues.
For Example...
Create a machine learning powered web app to answer questions
What's the problem?
Part of the World Health Organization's guidance on limiting further spread of COVID-19 is to practice social distancing. As a result, schools in most affected areas are taking precautionary measures by closing their facilities. With school-aged children at home for an indeterminate amount of time, keeping them engaged, entertained, and on top of their education is important.
How can technology help?
Schools and teachers can continue to engage with their students through virtual classrooms, and even create interactive spaces for classes. As parents face a new situation where they may need to homeschool their children, finding appropriate online resources is important as well.
For example...
Building successful mobile apps
The future of responsive design
What's the problem?
Your local community must stand united, operate efficiently and be there for its constituents more than ever before. Understanding not only what is happening in your neighborhood, but also how you can help others, or how others can help you, is vital to remaining hopeful in uncertain times.
How can technology help?
Consider how you can incorporate everything from weather data to local food and medical supply information to help your local community better deal with a crisis -- especially those who need it most.
For example...
Gain insight into your supply chain
Technical Content Library: Dig into our best technical content across four key technology areas and start building your idea quickly and easily.
The Grand Prize winners of the inaugural 2018 Call for Code Global Challenge designed solar-powered mesh network devices that build connectivity where there is none. The team brought their devices in a field test to parts of Puerto Rico hit hardest by Hurricane Maria.
The Grand Prize winners of the 2019 Call for Code Global Challenge beat out nearly 180,000 participants with their solution. The Barcelona-based team, which includes first responders, developed a Watson-based AI solution designed to monitor health and safety in firefighters, both long term and in real-time.
Submissions will be judged equally across 4 primary criteria which evaluate whether the solution solves a real-world problem and uses technology effectively.
To enter your team’s code, its documentation, and team member information into the 2020 Call for Code competition, one member of your team will require the following information for the submission form.
Additional details-
The team leader who submitted the solution will receive an email confirming the submission details. If you need to update or replace your submission, please create a new submission. The latest submission from the submitter email address before the July 31, 2020 deadline will be considered the final entry.
