Peak RE Hackathon

In late October 2024, I participated in the PeakRE sustainability hackathon alongside two friends from HKUST. Our team developed "HellNO," a project aimed at addressing the significant problem of subdivided flats in Hong Kong.

The core problem we sought to solve revolved around the living conditions for children in these subdivided flats. These accommodations are typically extremely cramped, often lack proper ventilation and natural light, and provide little to no space for play, study, or social interaction. This environment can have detrimental effects on a child's physical and mental well-being, hindering their development and limiting their opportunities.

Our project, "HellNO," proposed a solution to connect these children with accessible and comfortable environments provided by the local community. The idea was to leverage underutilized spaces within the community, such as community centers, public libraries, schools, or even suitable areas within local businesses to offer safe, clean, and conducive environments for children from subdivided flats. This would provide them with opportunities for recreation, study, and social engagement that are severely lacking in their immediate living situations.

We pitched our solution to a panel of judges including Veronique Lafon-Vinais), a Co-Director of the Sustainable and Green Finance Program at HKUST, and the business team from PeakRE including Carmen Choi and Tony Falso.

During the pitch, I presented our demo, a web-app proof of concept showcasing the platform’s core features. I was proud of it, not only because it demonstrated the idea effectively, but also because I completely built it in one night, using my skills as a CS major and also making using of many AI tools in the process. The judges liked our energetic pitch, technical expertise, and sense of humor, and by the end of the day, we were awarded 1nd runner-up, along with a prize of HKD 3,000 (~USD 380).

Receiving the first runner up team award : )