In April 2020, as the world faced an unprecedented lockdown, Estonia turned to its greatest untapped resource — its youth. The Hack the Crisis: Youth hackathon brought together students and young innovators from across the country to create solutions for challenges caused by COVID-19.
Organized in collaboration with OBJEKT Narva Creative Incubator, StartIDA team members, and national partners such as the Ministry of Education and Research, HITSA, Garage48, Startup Estonia, Swedbank, and Prototron, the event became the first online hackathon in Estonia designed specifically for young people.
Innovation from Quarantine
Held from 6–9 April 2020, Hack the Crisis: Youth invited students to collaborate entirely online — through video calls, shared workspaces, and digital tools. Participants formed teams, developed ideas, and built real prototypes addressing life during the pandemic.
The ideas ranged from tools easing distance learning to creative ways of connecting communities and supporting mental health. Over the course of four days, participants moved through research, brainstorming, design, and pitching stages — guided by international mentors and experts from Estonia’s leading innovation organizations.
A Movement of Empowerment
The event followed the example of the original Hack the Crisis initiated by Garage48 and Accelerate Estonia, which inspired similar hackathons across the world. For youth, it was a chance to be part of that global movement — to show that innovation and resilience have no age limit.
“Hack the Crisis: Youth gave young people a platform to act, not just watch,” said Alexander Bitskov, one of the co-organizers. “They proved that even during isolation, creativity and collaboration can bring real change.”
Results and Impact
- More than 200 young participants joined online from across Estonia.
- Dozens of projects were created, addressing education, wellbeing, and social inclusion.
- The winning team received a €2000 cash prize to continue developing their idea.
- Participants gained valuable experience in teamwork, entrepreneurship, and digital problem-solving.
The hackathon showed that the next generation is not only ready to face challenges — they’re eager to solve them.
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