IWD Edmonton 2025: Redefine Possible Hackathon

GDG Cloud Edmonton, Aleo, Edmonton Unlimited and LeetCode Night present IWD 2025: Redefine Possible Edmonton

Hack the Bias: Develop tech solutions that shatter gender stereotypes and empower young women to pursue any career they choose.
Develop AI solution or interactive platforms that challenge gender stereotypes and promote gender equality from a young age.

If you are an entry/intermediate developer with pronouns She/Her or They/Them, this is your chance to shine! ✨ Demonstrate your incredible skills to bring your most innovative and creative ideas to the table to challenge gender stereotypes and empower young women (from 12 - 19 year old) in their career journeys. Develop cutting-edge tech solutions that disrupt the status quo and create new pathways to opportunity. Think outside the box, push the boundaries of technology, and inspire the next generation of female trailblazers. 

Build your squad of max of 4 👭👭. In case you don't have a team, we can assign you with other solo participants and collaborate 🪄

To know more more details about the project requirements, rules and agenda join the online Kickoff Conference on March 24th. 

Get your hackathon superpowers! Workshops incoming our training workshops about AI, ML, WebDev and Public Speaking (to be announced soon)

Based on an Analysis elaborated by the Province of Quebec. Women are more likely to be restricted to a limited range of trades and occupations than men. The choices that young people make are also explained by various factors: education, tradition, personal ability, occupational role models in their families and among their friends and, especially, very persistent gender stereotypes. Children unwittingly assimilate the gender stereotypes passed on by the people around them and through books and toys. Children's books and films, as well as toys, are still disseminating stereotypical ideas about men and women in the labour market. This exposure to a limited range of models influences young people's opinions about the areas in which they envision themselves working, and this ultimately influences their study and career choices. 

Requirements

Female, Non-Binary or Two-Spirit developer or tech enthusiast.
Located in Edmonton and the Metro Area. 

What to Build
Develop AI solution or interactive platforms that challenge gender stereotypes and promote gender equality from a young age.

 What to Submit

Provide a URL to your code repository for judging and testing.

Indicate which technology you use to develop your solution:

Google Gemini, Gemma  or other Google Technologies

Show how you used Google Gemini, Gemma or other Google technology was used in your project. If it was included, please provide how it was used. 

Provide a text description of the project, including how this would contribute towards empowering young girls to pursue the career of their dreams free of judgment and stereotypes.

Indicate which technology you use to develop your solution:

Privacy Track with Aleo:

10 Hackathon Ideas with Aleo:

Private Login – Secure authentication without revealing user identity.

ZK Voting – Anonymous and verifiable elections.

Confidential Transactions – Private peer-to-peer payments.
Reputation System – Users prove credibility without exposing full history.
Anonymous DAO Governance – Vote without revealing choices.
ZK File Sharing – Verify access rights without exposing file contents.
Private NFT Ownership – Prove NFT ownership without revealing wallet details.
Secure Auctions – Bidders submit private bids without leaking data.
Age/ID Verification – Prove identity attributes (e.g., 18+) without sharing full ID.
Private Smart Contracts – Build Apps where transactions remain confidential.

All submissions must be original work; PLAGIARISM of any kind will result in disqualification.

PRIZE
We are delighted to announce a bounty prize of $1500 CAD, generously sponsored by Aleo, which will be distributed between the best 2 performant projects! And a “Privacy Award" 🚀 of 600 $Aleo credits and be featured on Aleo's socials. 💡🔒 This is a fantastic opportunity to not only make a positive impact but also be rewarded for your innovative work, thanks to Aleo's commitment to supporting diversity and inclusion within Edmonton's tech industry. 

Agenda

11:00 AM: Arrival

Checkin Participants

11:30 AM: Welcome

Edmonton's Unlimited Remarks , Welcome from GDG Cloud Edmonton

11:45 AM: Demos & Elevation Pitches 🎤

Prepare your best selling strategies and present your work

1:00 PM: Lunch break 🥪☕

Enjoy our meal and treats

1:30 PM: Judge Evaluation

Judges will compute scores

2:30 PM: Winners Announcement and Awards 🥇🥈

and Farewell

3:00 PM: Picture Taking 📸

SMILE

3:30 PM: Mingling

Celebrate your achievements 🎉

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Judges

Sherry Yang - Venue.sh, The Adaptavist Group (Engineering Manager)

Sherry Yang is an Engineering Manager at The Adaptavist Group; she has over a decade of experience working on software solutions, web technologies, and career growth in tech. She is an expert in engineering management, project engagement, and digital skills advocacy. As a Women Techmakers Ambassador with Google and Google Developers Group Organizer, Sherry actively connects intersectionality i…

Baljeet Kaur - NAIT (AI & Data Science Educator)

Baljeet Kaur is an innovative educator and AI specialist with a Ph.D. in Computer Applications and over a decade of experience in applied AI, data analytics, and curriculum development. She is currently a Visiting Faculty at Concordia University of Edmonton and NAIT, where she teaches courses in Big Data Technologies, Project Management, and Business Intelligence. With expertise spanning AI to…

Leah Elzinga - Workleap (Product Manager - Platform Integrations)

Leah Elzinga is a Product Leader in the software development industry, recognized with Edify Magazine’s “40 Under 40” award for her work empowering women and girls in technology. She has worked at everything from nimble startups to multinational corporations, leading cross-functional teams with a focus on user-centric design, empathetic problem-solving, and accessibility advocacy. Always curio…

Shalon McFarlane - Edmonton Unlimited (Manager, Research)

Shalon is the Intellectual Property Specialist for the Innovation on Campus team at Edmonton Unlimited. She has over 10 years of experience in technology commercialization and innovation, working with researchers, entrepreneurs, and SMEs in the greater Edmonton region. Her expertise includes evaluating technologies for patentability and commercial potential, developing IP and commercialization…

Annee Ngo - Aleo (Head of Ecosystem)

Hosted By

Xinli Cai, GDG Organizer

I am a Geospatial Cloud Developer at the Federal Geospatial Platform, Canadian Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation. I work with Earth Observation datasets and have a data science background.

Rohan Saha, Event & Technical

Vannia Hnatiuk, GDG Organizer

Devipriya Raju, Co-organiser

Ndidi Obinwanne, Co - Organizer

Experienced Project, Product and Client Success manager, with a Master's degree in Computing Science. I am passionate about Machine Learning, Data Science and Full Stack Development. I aim to take an idea from concept to completion; improving utility and impact, enabling accessibility, and enhancing algorithms.

Temitope Ajiboye, Senior Flutter Developer

Flutter developer and open-source contributor.

Kiley Carson, Fullstack Developer

Versatile Computer Science Major with +4 years of experience in Java programming and +8 years of work experience in multiple industries. Self-directed leader with expertise in planning and executing technical and non-technical events. Experienced cultivating collaborative and supportive environments for learning and teamwork throughout many positions.

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Partners

Aleo (https://aleo.org/)
The Aleo network is devoted to educating the public on the potential of applied cryptography and specifically zero-knowledge proofs in the context of decentralized technologies like the internet.

Its mission is to encourage an educational sandbox in which to explore this new but important design space, and to inspire and educate a diverse generation of developers (and aspiring developers) to explore the promise and potential of these technologies for promoting the public good.

Edmonton Unlimited (https://edmontonunlimited.com)
We are a city of innovators with solutions to the world’s toughest challenges. Whether you launch here, land here, or pivot here, at Edmonton Unlimited, we are here for you. We provide free programming and resources that Edmonton’s innovators, big thinkers and problem solvers need to turn their ideas into solutions.

LeetNight (https://www.leetnight.com/)
Sharpen your coding skills and tackle Leetcode challenges together in a fun, collaborative meetup!

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Complete your event RSVP here: https://gdg.community.dev/events/details/google-gdg-cloud-edmonton-presents-iwd-edmonton-2025-redefine-possible-hackathon/.