A 48-hour collaborative hackathon at the University of Leicester bringing together coders, researchers, scientists, designers and problem-solvers to develop solutions for food security and resilience using Copernicus Earth observation data.

Food Security and Resilience Copernicus Hackathon

Feed the World, Invent the Future

The Food Security and Resilience Copernicus Hackathon was a two-day collaborative innovation event held at the University of Leicester on 19–20 September 2019.

Bringing together coders, researchers, scientists, designers, storytellers, entrepreneurs and problem-solvers, the hackathon challenged participants to use Copernicus Earth observation data and services to develop practical solutions to challenges surrounding food security, water security and resilience in a changing climate.

Over an intensive 48 hours, multidisciplinary teams developed prototypes, explored new applications for satellite data and investigated opportunities for collaboration between academia, industry and the wider community.

About the Hackathon

The event was built around a simple challenge:

Feed the World, Invent the Future

Food security requires people to have access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food while ensuring that food systems remain sustainable into the future.

Achieving this requires better understanding of the environmental, economic and societal pressures affecting food production and consumption.

The hackathon provided a practical environment in which participants could explore how Earth observation and space-enabled technologies could contribute to addressing these challenges.

Objectives

The hackathon was designed around several interconnected objectives.

Developing Solutions

Develop new solutions addressing local and global food and water security challenges, with a particular emphasis on resilience and sustainability.

Raising Awareness

Increase awareness of the University of Leicester’s work supporting:

UK and European space programmes
Environmental monitoring
Security and resilience
Earth observation
Food and drink industries
Space-enabled innovation

Connecting Students and Industry

Give students and early-career participants the opportunity to work on real-world challenges while connecting them with businesses, researchers and wider professional networks.

Building Collaboration

Use the Copernicus Hackathon as a mechanism for creating new collaborations between:

Academia
Industry
Government
Students
Researchers
Entrepreneurs
Technology developers
End users

Copernicus and Earth Observation

The hackathon centred on the Copernicus programme, the European Union’s Earth observation programme.

Copernicus provides access to extensive environmental data and services derived from satellites, in-situ observations and other sources.

Participants were encouraged to explore how this open data could be transformed into useful applications and services.

Potential applications included:

Agriculture
Food production
Water security
Environmental monitoring
Climate resilience
Logistics
Supply chains
Resource mapping
Risk assessment
Insurance
Smart cities
Decision support

The emphasis was not simply on analysing satellite data, but on turning Earth observation into practical solutions.

Challenge Themes

Participants could select their own challenge within the broad theme of food and water security and resilience.

Suggested areas included:

Smart Agriculture

Using Earth observation and other technologies to improve agricultural decision-making, productivity and resilience.

Logistics and Supply Chains

Exploring how satellite data, logistics technologies and emerging digital infrastructure could improve food supply chains.

Blockchain and Food Security

Investigating potential applications of distributed technologies in food and water supply chains, provenance and resilience.

Smart Insurance

Developing new services that could use Earth observation data to understand environmental risks and support innovative insurance products.

Resource Mapping

Using satellite observations to map, monitor and understand environmental and agricultural resources.

Societal and Technical Challenges

Participants were also encouraged to identify their own challenges relevant to food security, water security and resilience.

The 48-Hour Challenge

The core hackathon took place over 19 and 20 September 2019.

Teams worked intensively over two days to move from an initial problem or idea towards a practical prototype.

The process encouraged rapid experimentation and multidisciplinary collaboration.

Participants combined:

Copernicus data
Coding
Data analysis
Design
Research
Business modelling
Storytelling
Domain expertise

The objective was to produce something tangible rather than simply discuss potential applications.

Rapid MVP Development

Participants received preparatory training before the main event.

A training session on 12 September 2019 introduced selected teams and other participants to:

Agile development
Rapid MVP development
Copernicus data access
Relevant coding libraries
Rapid prototyping approaches

This provided teams with a common foundation before the 48-hour event.

The focus on minimum viable products (MVPs) helped participants move rapidly from ideas towards demonstrable concepts.

Knowledge Exchange

The hackathon was designed as a knowledge-exchange activity rather than a conventional coding competition.

It brought together people with different skills and perspectives, allowing technical expertise to be combined with knowledge of food systems, Earth observation, business and societal challenges.

This multidisciplinary approach was central to the event.

A successful solution could require expertise from several different domains, for example:

Satellite data + agriculture + software + business + user needs

rather than technology development in isolation.

University of Leicester

The hackathon took place at the University of Leicester, drawing on the University’s established expertise in space science, Earth observation and environmental research.

The venue was:

David Wilson Library
University Road
Leicester
LE1 7RH
United Kingdom

The event also formed part of Leicester’s wider development as a centre for space-enabled innovation.

Organisers and Sponsors

The hackathon was supported by a network of organisations from the space, Earth observation, food, research and innovation communities.

Sobloo

Sobloo supported the Copernicus programme by providing access to Copernicus data through cloud computing infrastructure.

SPRINT

SPRINT connects businesses with expertise and facilities at leading UK space universities, helping organisations develop products and services based on space data and technologies.

Partners

The wider partnership included organisations representing research, government, food systems, Earth observation and space-enabled innovation.

European Regional Development Fund

The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) supported economic, social and territorial cohesion and initiatives focused on smart, sustainable and inclusive growth.

Leicester City Council

The Smart Cities team at Leicester City Council works with businesses, universities and other partners to develop smart solutions to challenges facing the city.

National Centre for Earth Observation

The National Centre for Earth Observation (NCEO) provides UK expertise in Earth observation science, datasets, data integration and environmental modelling.

Global Food Security

Global Food Security (GFS) facilitates interdisciplinary research and collaboration addressing challenges across food systems.

CoRdiNet

CoRdiNet is an open network of Copernicus Relays supporting the promotion and development of digital and commercial applications based on Earth observation data.

Food and Drink Forum

The Food and Drink Forum Ltd supports and develops food enterprises while representing the food and drink industry at local and regional levels.

East Midlands Centre of Excellence in Satellite Applications

The East Midlands Centre of Excellence in Satellite Applications connects academic research with industry and SMEs to support the development and commercialisation of space-enabled applications.

Space Park Leicester

Space Park Leicester was established as an ambitious hub for businesses, researchers and academia working with space and space-enabled technologies.

The initiative was intended to support:

Earth observation
Space data analysis
Commercialisation
Space mission development
Research collaboration
Innovation

Satellite Applications Catapult

The Satellite Applications Catapult works to help organisations harness satellite-based services and bring new applications and products to market.

Its role includes connecting industry and academia and helping research move towards commercial application.

Mentoring

The event was supported by a multidisciplinary group of mentors drawn from industry, academia and the space sector.

Mentors included:

Ayo Akinduko
Paul Bhatia
Joseph Bray
David Cassell
Steven Hancock
Neil Humpage
Ryan Laird
David Large
Carmine Maffei
Jan Oliver Ringert
John Roberts
Maria Touri
Dr Tim Trent
Fabio Domenico Vescovi

The mentoring model gave participants access to expertise beyond their individual teams and helped bridge the gap between technical development, research and potential real-world applications.

My Role

I participated as a mentor, supporting teams during the hackathon and contributing to the wider knowledge exchange around space-enabled applications.

The role involved helping participants think through the practical application of Copernicus data and the development of solutions that could address real-world challenges.

This included supporting teams as they moved through the rapid development process and helping connect technical possibilities with user needs and wider applications.

From Data to Impact

A central theme of the hackathon was the transformation of raw Earth observation data into useful information and ultimately actionable solutions.

The process can be represented as:

Earth observation data → Information → Insight → Application → Impact

Copernicus provides the data infrastructure, but the value emerges when that data is combined with domain knowledge, software, business models and an understanding of user needs.

The hackathon provided a practical environment for exploring this transition.

Food Security and Resilience

Food security is not simply a question of producing more food.

It is influenced by a complex combination of:

Climate
Water availability
Land use
Agricultural productivity
Supply chains
Infrastructure
Markets
Environmental change
Resource availability
Human behaviour

Earth observation can provide a powerful perspective because satellites can repeatedly observe large areas of the planet.

This creates opportunities to monitor change, identify risks and support decisions across different scales.

Space-Enabled Innovation

The hackathon demonstrated the potential of space technologies to contribute to challenges far beyond the traditional space sector.

Satellite data can support applications across:

Agriculture
Food systems
Environmental management
Climate adaptation
Urban planning
Logistics
Insurance
Emergency response
Sustainability

The event therefore positioned Copernicus not simply as a source of scientific data, but as an enabling infrastructure for innovation.

Outcomes

The hackathon was designed to conclude with one or more projects developed during the event.

Potential outcomes included:

New business ideas
Collaborative research projects
Software prototypes
New Earth observation applications
Academic–industry collaborations
Follow-on innovation projects

The organising partners provided opportunities for promising concepts to receive further support after the event.

Why the Hackathon Matters

The Food Security and Resilience Copernicus Hackathon demonstrated a model for bringing together space data, multidisciplinary expertise and rapid innovation around a real-world sustainability challenge.

Rather than treating Earth observation as an end in itself, the event focused on the question:

What can we build with this data that makes a difference?

That approach remains relevant as Earth observation becomes increasingly important to climate adaptation, sustainable agriculture, resilience and environmental decision-making.

Legacy

The hackathon formed part of the development of Leicester as a centre for space-enabled innovation and Earth observation applications.

It brought together an unusually broad ecosystem spanning:

University research → Space sector → Earth observation → Food systems → Government → Industry → Students → Entrepreneurs

The event also provided an example of how relatively short, focused innovation programmes can create connections between communities that do not traditionally work together.

Event Summary

Detail	Information
Event	Food Security and Resilience Copernicus Hackathon
Dates	19–20 September 2019
Location	University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
Duration	48 hours
Focus	Food security and resilience
Technology	Copernicus Earth observation data
Format	Multidisciplinary hackathon
Approach	Agile / rapid MVP development
Role	Mentor
Client	University of Leicester