about this event
Real cities. Real problems. 36 hours. CIVIC Hack is a virtual student hackathon where the challenge isn't picked by organizers. It's picked by the people who run Canada's cities. Municipal leaders, planners and city-builders attending the Canadian Urban Institute (CUI) Summit vote on the municipal problem they most want solved. When voting closes on November 12, the winning challenge is revealed and you have 36 hours to build a concept, tool or working prototype that tackles it. The best projects are presented at a virtual showcase on November 14, where professionals or advisors give feedback and discuss how ideas could actually be adopted or scaled.
Why join: Work on a problem real municipalities said they care about. Put your work in front of city staff and urban leaders from across Canada. Compete for $1,500 in prizes. Catch a livestream of the CUI Summit's municipal AI workshop on November 13. Build a portfolio project with real civic relevance.
Who it's for: Post-secondary students in urban planning, data science, computer science, engineering, design, public policy — anyone who wants to use data and technology to make cities work better. Teams can include students from any university or college, as long as at least one member is a current University of Waterloo student. No prior hackathon experience needed.
The challenges: Summit attendees are voting on one of the challenges below. The winner is announced when hacking opens on November 12. Read them all, because you won't know which one you're building for until launch.
Making municipal decisions easier to understand — Council decisions are buried in long agendas, minutes and staff reports most residents never read. You might build a plain-language summarizer or searchable explainer for council decisions.
Identifying transit access gaps — Some neighbourhoods have far worse access to frequent transit than others, and it's hard to see where. You might build a map or score showing who is underserved by transit.
Improving transit connections — Transfers between routes, systems and modes (bus, rail, bike) are slow or poorly timed. You might build a tool that finds bad transfers or suggests better connections.
Comparing municipal election platforms — Voters struggle to compare local candidates' positions side by side. You might build a neutral, sourced platform comparison tool.
Visualizing long-term infrastructure costs — The lifetime cost of roads, pipes and facilities is hard for councils and residents to grasp. You might build a visualization of infrastructure costs and trade-offs over decades.
Tracking municipal commitments — Councils make pledges and targets that are hard to follow up on. You might build a tracker linking commitments to progress and evidence.
Prioritizing AI adoption opportunities — Municipalities don't know where AI would help most, or where it carries risk. You might build a framework or tool that ranks municipal services for AI potential.
Understanding the housing approval-to-construction process — Approved housing often takes years to get built, and it's unclear where it stalls. You might build a pipeline view showing where approved units get stuck.
About the host: CIVIC Hack is run by the Future Cities Institute (FCI) at the University of Waterloo, founded by CAIVAN, as part of its CIVIC program connecting municipalities with student talent. Instead of every city solving the same problem alone, CIVIC builds solutions that can be shared.
Get started: Register on this page. Join the participant channel: [link TBC]. Read the shortlisted challenges above. The winner is revealed at kickoff. Form a team of 1–4 with at least one University of Waterloo student, or come solo if you're a UW student. Join the virtual kickoff on November 12 at 6:00 PM ET.
Schedule (all times ET): Now – Nov 12 — Registration open; CUI Summit attendees vote on the challenge. Nov 12, 3:00 PM — Challenge voting closes. Nov 12, [keynote time] — Winning challenge announced during Dr. Leia Minaker's keynote. Nov 12, 6:00 PM — Hacking begins: virtual kickoff, challenge brief, datasets. Nov 13, morning — Livestream of the CUI Summit municipal AI workshop. Nov 13, all day — Build time; mentor office hours [confirm]. Nov 14, 6:00 AM — Submissions due on Devpost. Nov 14, [time TBC] — Virtual showcase and awards ceremony.
tracks
Making municipal decisions easier to understand
Council decisions are buried in long agendas, minutes and staff reports most residents never read. You might build a plain-language summarizer or searchable explainer for council decisions.
Identifying transit access gaps
Some neighbourhoods have far worse access to frequent transit than others, and it's hard to see where. You might build a map or score showing who is underserved by transit.
Improving transit connections
Transfers between routes, systems and modes (bus, rail, bike) are slow or poorly timed. You might build a tool that finds bad transfers or suggests better connections.
Comparing municipal election platforms
Voters struggle to compare local candidates' positions side by side. You might build a neutral, sourced platform comparison tool.
Visualizing long-term infrastructure costs
The lifetime cost of roads, pipes and facilities is hard for councils and residents to grasp. You might build a visualization of infrastructure costs and trade-offs over decades.
Tracking municipal commitments
Councils make pledges and targets that are hard to follow up on. You might build a tracker linking commitments to progress and evidence.
Prioritizing AI adoption opportunities
Municipalities don't know where AI would help most, or where it carries risk. You might build a framework or tool that ranks municipal services for AI potential.
Understanding the housing approval-to-construction process
Approved housing often takes years to get built, and it's unclear where it stalls. You might build a pipeline view showing where approved units get stuck.
when
Registration open; CUI Summit attendees vote on the challenge
Registration is open and CUI Summit attendees vote on the challenge up to Nov 12.
◍ OnlineChallenge voting closes
Voting by Summit attendees on the shortlisted challenges closes.
◍ OnlineWinning challenge announced during Dr. Leia Minaker's keynote
The winning challenge is announced during Dr. Leia Minaker's keynote (keynote time to be confirmed).
◍ OnlineHacking begins: virtual kickoff, challenge brief, datasets
Virtual kickoff with the challenge brief and datasets; hacking begins.
◍ OnlineLivestream of the CUI Summit municipal AI workshop
Morning livestream of the CUI Summit municipal AI workshop.
◍ OnlineBuild time; mentor office hours
All-day build time with mentor office hours (to be confirmed).
◍ OnlineSubmissions due on Devpost
Submissions are due on Devpost.
◍ OnlineVirtual showcase and awards ceremony
Virtual showcase and awards ceremony (time to be confirmed).
◍ Onlinetickets
| tickets | price | Fee | Status | description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Registration | Free | None | Available | CIVIC Hack is free to enter; register on the event page to receive links for the kickoff, workshop livestream and showcase. |
prizes
| # | PRIZE | price |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | Prize pool for competing projects | $1,500 |