Hackathon: Space for Green, Sustainable and Secure Europe

Over the last few years, RST-TTO as an organisation that supports the development of innovations and space technology transfer in sectors such as monitoring and prevention of natural disasters, defence and security, has organised and conducted five international hackathons and two competitions for innovative ideas. The active participation in the last two hackathons – DefInSpace (HEMUS 2022) and CASSINI (Space for Defence and Security – Sofia, 2023), encouraged us to join the efforts of the Center for National Security and Defence Research – Bulgarian Academy of Science (CNSDR-BAS), Bulgarian Defence Institute (Ministry of Defence) and the Foundation "Hemus-95" to organize the next hackathon:


HEMUS Innovation Hackathon -“Space for Green, Sustainable and Secure Europe”.


The hackathon will be held on 7-8 June 2024 in Plovdiv, Bulgaria as part of the Research and Innovation for Security, Defence and Space Week . The Research and Innovation Week is organized under the auspices of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU in the period 6-8 June 2024, within the framework of the International Exhibition for Defence Equipment and Services "HEMUS 2024" in Plovdiv. The Research and Innovation Week will mark the 155th anniversary of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and 15-th anniversary of the Bulgarian Defence Institute.


The competition will provide an opportunity for young people to immerse themselves in the applied field of space technologies. The teams will have to find solutions and new ideas to current problems for a more sustainable, safer and greener future for Europe, using digital technologies and Earth Observation data.


Hackathons are innovation competitions that play an important and integral role in Bulgaria's innovation process. They stimulate the development of the national ecosystem in space research, technologies for defence and security, and the practical implementation of the newly adopted Law on the Promotion of Scientific Research and Innovation.


INFORMATION DAYS - WORKSHOPS


Taking into account our experience from previous Hackathons and the short deadline for participants’ preparation, the Organising Committee of the event decided to combine the information days with the following tailor-made workshops:


  • "Satellite-based Services for Disaster Risk Management" – 6 June 2024;
  • “Space for sustainable future“ – 7 June 2024;

Speakers will be leading experts that will present the latest achievements in space research and technologies related to defence and security. Consultations will be held for the hackathon participants during the breaks or, if possible, in additional sessions. To ensure access to the most up-to-date information on the hackathon topics, hackathon participants have to register for both workshops.


WHO CAN PARTICIPATE


The hackathon is open to participants over the age of 18, students and young employees of companies who are willing to address the challenges related to the themes: “Space for Green Deal”, “Space for Defense” and “Space for Security”. The challenges of the hackathon are suitable for students from military schools/universities, as well as representatives of scientific and business organizations working in the field of space technologies for security and defence.


Programme for the workshops


At the indicated contacts, you will be able to reach out to the mentors of the Hackathon - leading Bulgarian experts from the Bulgarian Defence Institute and the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, as well as representatives of the industry.


Our experience


Programme

HACKATHON „SPACE FOR GREEN, SUSTAINABLE AND SECURE EUROPE “

6–8 June 2024, Plovdiv, International Exhibition „HEMUS 2024“

HEMUS 2024 - RESEARCH AND INNOVATION FOR SECURITY, DEFENCE AND SPACE 6-8 JUNE 2024, International Fair Plovdiv, PLOVDIV, BULGARIA
5 June 2024
10:00 – 22:00 Official Opening of HEMUS 2024.
6th June 2024
“SPACE FOR SECURITY and DEFENCE” | Congress Centre, “Bulgaria” Hall
09:30 Registration
10:30 Opening: Col. Assoc. Prof. Dsc Borislav Genov, Director of the Defence Institute.
10:40 Keynote addresses:
Mr. Atanas Zaprianov (Ret.G), Minister of Defence of the Republic of Bulgaria.
H.E. Mr. Frédéric Meurice, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium to Bulgaria.
Hon. Senator, Dominique Tilmans, President of EURISY.
Cor. Member Stefan Hadjitodorov, Vice President of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.
11:15 Group Photo and coffee break.
11:30 – 13:00 Plenary Session: Enhancing the use of space for security and defence .
Chairman: Tomas Dimitrov, Director for Defence, Space and Aviation Logos Public Affairs, MCI Group.
Mr. Rodrigo da Costa, Executive Director, EUSPA
Mr. Hristo Gadzhev, Chairperson of the Committee on Defence, National Assembly of the R. Bulgaria
Mr. Krastio Preslavsky, Deputy Head of Unit EDF Implementation, DG DEFIS, EC
Ms. Dinka Dinkova, Deputy Head of Unit Innovation and New Space – Space Defence, DG DEFIS, EC.
Q&A.
Keynote: Mr. Mathieu Bataille, Research Fellow, ESPI, EU Space and Defence Policy Framework.
13:00 Lunch.
WORKSHOP: SATELLITE BASED APPLICATIONS FOR DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT
Congress Centre, “Plovdiv” Hall.
14:00 – 15:45 European Space Programme capabilities for Disaster risk Management.
14:00 Mr. Gabriel Lazazzara, Senior Consultant, EU Space Support Office on CEMS.
14:20 Ms. Christina Giannopapa, Head of the Office of the Executive Director, EUSPA, EUSPA Galileo High Accuracy Service, and GOVSATCOM.
14:40 Mrs. Dinka Dinkova, Deputy Head of Unit, DG DEFIS, CASSINI Programme.
15:00 Q&A.
15:45 Coffee break.
16:00 – 17:00 Users Panel.
16:00 Petya Piperkova, Ministry of Innovation and Growth.
16:10 DG “Fire Safety and Civil Protection”, MoI, BG.
16:20 Dr. Slaveya Petrova, “Paisii Hilendarski” University of Plovdiv.
16:30 Ivan Cristof, Special Operations Services.
16:40 Prof. Miroslav Tsvetkov, Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy.
16:50 Q&A.
17:00 – 18:00 National space capabilities for disaster risk management.
17:00 Ventsislav Polimenov, TAKT-IKI.
17:10 Mihail Mihailov, Kontrax.
17:20 Toshko Punchev, Bianor.
17:30 Dimitar Dimitrov, Digital Lights.
17:40 Florin Serban, TerraSigna.
17:50 Q&A.
18:00 Closing Remarks.
18:30 Cocktail.
7 June 2024 - “SPACE FOR SUSTAINABLE FUTURE” / Congress Centre, “Plovdiv” Hall
08:30 Registration
09:00 Keynote addresses:
Mayor of Plovdiv Municipality (tbc).
09:30 – 10:30 Plenary Session: Space as a key enabler for climate adaptation
Chairman: Annalisa Donati, Secretary General, EURISY.
Mrs. Tania Hristova, Mayor of Gabrovo Municipality.
Dr. Christopher Topping, ESA.
Mrs. Dinka Dinkova, DG DEFIS.
Hon. Senator, Dominique Tilmans, President of EURISY.
Q&A.
10:30 Coffee break.
10:45 – 11:45 Session 1: Civil Security from Space
Chairman: Kamen Iliev, Director, CNSDR-Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.
10:45 DG “National Border Police”, MoIA, BG (tbc).
10:55 Dr. Christopher Topping, ESA.
11:05 Mrs. Christina Giannopapa, Head of the Office of the Executive Director, ЕUSPA.
11:15 Mr. Martin Taslakov, EIC.
11:25 Q&A.
11:45 – 13:00 Session 2: Space for a Green Future.
Chairman: Dr. Slaveya Petrova, “Paisii Hilendarski” University of Plovdiv.
11:45 Prof. Ekaterina Bachvarova, Director of the Climate, Atmosphere and Water Research Institute, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.
11:55 Mrs. Bogdana Tsonevska, ESA.
12:05 Mr. Thanh-Tam Le, Climate-KIC.
12:15 Ms. Mihaela Ivanova, Gabrovo Municipality.
12:30 Katya Dimitrova, RST-TTO, BAS.
12:45 Q&A.Closing remarks.
INTERNATIONAL HACKATHON „SPACE FOR GREEN, SUSTAINABLE AND SECURE EUROPE (S4GSS)“
13:30 Opening of the Hackathon.Congress Centre, “Plovdiv” Hall.
14:00 – 22:00 1st day of the Hackathon Teams work on their ideas / Hall 6.
8h June 2024 Hackathon 2-nd day
09:00 2nd day of the Hackathon teams work on their ideas / Hall 6.
12:00 Hackathon Pitch Session.
14:00 Awarding of the Winners.
14:30 End of Hackathon.
Download programme
The events will be held in the frame of the INTERNATIONAL DEFENCE EQUIPMENT AND SERVICES EXHIBITION „HEMUS 2024” in the area of the International Fair - Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

Lectors


Rodrigo da Costa

European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)
On 16 October 2020, Rodrigo da Costa took up his duties as Executive Director of the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), formerly the European GNSS Agency (GSA). Prior to this, he was the Galileo Services Programme Manager from March 2017. Before joining the GSA, Rodrigo da Costa held several senior project management, business development, and institutional key account management positions in the space industry, in the areas of human space flight, exploration, launchers and R&D. Rodrigo da Costa holds a degree in Aerospace Engineering from the “Instituto Superior Tecnico” in Lisbon, a Master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Delft, and an MBA from the EuroMBA consortium of Business Schools.

Dominique Tilmans

EURISY President
Dominique holds the title of Honorary Senator in Belgium. She has a Master’s Degree in Political Science, „International Relations and Diplomatic studies“, at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (1975). During her electing mandates in the Belgian parliament, which spanned 27 years, she invested a lot of energy in space matters. She held the position of Chair of the „Belgian Senate Space Group“ and she also presided over the „European Interparliamentary Space conference“. In 2016, she was elected President of EURISY, a Paris-based non-profit Association of space Agencies aiming to bridge space and Society. She is also a Member of the Advisory Council of the European Space Policy Institute and, a Member of the Board of Vitrociset Belgium. Concerned by the difficulties of the space industry to recruit young professionals, she launched YouSpace in 2014, and soon after “Switch to Space” an event with 50 speaker’s representing experts in space and an average of more than 500 students who discovered the great diversity of the sector. Following the success of this event, “Switch to space “is planned to repeat every two years. Through the combination of her long political expertise and her knowledge of civil society, she is really persuaded that Space must also focus on the world of end-users and public decision makers.

Annalisa Donati

Secretary General of EURISY
Annalisa Donati is currently holding the position of Secretary General of Eurisy, the European association of space agencies striving to bridge the gap between space and society. As Research Fellow at the European Space Policy Institute she was responsible for the studies on space economy, finance and innovation’s domains as well as the monthly sector watch. Before joining ESPI she was a Young Graduate Trainee within the Industrial Policy and SMEs Division of the European Space Agency (ESA) where she worked on the design, development, and implementation of innovation programmes to boost European space entrepreneurial ecosystem. Previously she contributed to the activities carried out within the office of the director at the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA). Annalisa holds a M.S. in Diplomatic Studies from the SIOI and in Multilateral Security from the University of Perugia.

Dinka Dinkova

Deputy Head of Unit Innovation and New Space – Space Defence

Directorate-General “Defence, Industry and Space”, European Commission
Ms. Dinka Dinkova is the Deputy Head of Unit - Innovation and New Space – Space Defence at the Directorate-General "Defence Industry and Space"(DG DEFIS) of the European Commission. For more than ten years, she has worked on different topics of the EU space policy, including the uptake of space data for societal challenges and growth, the evolution of Copernicus, EU-ESA cooperation, outreach and international relations. Before joining the European Commission in 2010 she worked with various organisations in Bulgaria and Southeastern Europe to promote knowledge economy and innovation policies, regional development and multilateral donor assistance coordination. Ms. Dinkova holds a Master’s degree in business administration.

Krastio Preslavsky

Deputy Head of Unit ‘European Defence Fund Implementation - Programming and SME support’

Directorate-General “Defence, Industry and Space”, European Commission
Krastio Preslavsky is the Deputy Head of Unit -‘European Defence Fund Implementation - Programming and SME support’, at the Directorate-General "Defence Industry and Space"(DG DEFIS) of the European Commission. His professional experience in the administration began at the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Bulgaria as part of the team on the accession of Bulgaria to the European Union. In the European Commission, he worked on the preparation and implementation of the framework programmes for research and innovation - the 7th framework programme, Horizon 2020, Horizon Europe, in the Directorate-General for Communication, as well as in the offices of two European Commissioners.

Dr. Christopher Topping

Head of Civil Security from Space Programme Office

Rapid & Resilient Crisis Response Accelerator Lead European Space Agency – ESA
: Christopher is a seasoned space systems engineer with over 25 years of experience in the satellite sector. He is currently working for ESA in the Telecommunications and Integrated Applications Directorate based in the Netherlands and is Managing the Civil Security from Space Programme, as well as leading the Rapid and Resilient Crisis Response Accelerator. Prior these responsibilities, Christopher held the positions of Head of Strategy, Programme and Transformation Office and Head of Business Development. For several years Christopher has worked in the Future Projects Division leading the build-up of numerous Private Public Partnership Projects between ESA and European Industry, fostering ambitious developments with prominent European Satellite Operators. Prior to his time at ESA he has worked in Cyprus as the CTO of a start-up Satellite Operator as well as worked as a fellow at the University of Cyprus working on European Defence Agency projects. The majority of his career had begun at Airbus Defence and Space based in the UK. There he worked for the Advanced Systems Group as the Product Line Manager for Advanced Satellite Processors. Christopher had begun his career by obtaining his PhD in Signal Processing and Communications from Imperial College London in 1998.

Martin Taslakov

Project Officer European Innovation Council
Martin Taslakov is a Project Officer with the European Innovation Council. His focus is on coordinating EIC Accelerator projects (TRL6-9) in the field of space, ICT and medical applications, where he supports innovation through EU funding of new era grants and equity investments. As a motivated believer in the power of innovation to drive progress, Martin plays a key role in managing projects with potential to create positive market-driven change in Europe and lead the Community at the forefront of cutting edge industries. He is dedicated to nurturing the development and scale-up of transformative technologies and solutions. Martin cooperates with the European Investment Bank in assisting space companies find venture capital to scale-up business initiatives.

Joana Kamenova

Commercialisation Officer

European Space Agency – ESA
Joana Kamenova is a Commercialisation Officer at the European Space Agency (ESA), where she focuses on business incubation, technology transfer, disruptive innovation, and fit-for-purpose partnership building. Joana leads on the ESA Partnership Initiative for Commercialisation (EPIC) linking up deeptech start-ups with corporates. Joana also manages ESA activities such as the ESA Business Incubation Centres (ESA BICs) ESA Technology Brokers and ESA Phi Labs in Austria and the UK. She has also managed space commercialisation activities in the Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Poland and Switzerland. Previously, Joana worked at the Satellite Applications Catapult, a UK non-for-profit organisation, where she led on engagements with UK and international governments. Joana has a cross-disciplinary background in International Relations and Political Science and she has worked in a cross-party forum, think tank, university research institute and government. Joana is originally from Bulgaria.

Tomas Dimitrov

Director for Defence, Space and Aviation Logos Public Affairs, MCI Group
With almost 10 years of experience in public affairs, policy communications and consulting, Tomas has a deep understanding of crafting and leading public affairs outreach for C-level corporate clients and international associations. Tomas has experience with EU and international policymaking in the defence, space and aviation realms. He started his consulting experience in 2015, focusing on EU Cohesion policies; after that, he worked at the European Commission, Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship, and SMEs at the Space Policy Unit. Now, Tomas is a Director for Defence, Space and Aviation at Logos Public Affairs, MCI Group, a leading consultancy based in Brussels. Simultaneously, in 2021, he established his own consultancy, Forte, based in Sofia. As a matter of educational background, Tomas graduated from King’s College London with a BA in International Politics and holds a postgraduate certificate in Law from the University of Edinburgh.

Gallery

Winners

Winner – Aurora (Technical University – Sofia)


Award:

1-st prize 4 000 BGN.

Project – TREMOR: Technologies for Rapid Earthquake Mitigation and Organized Response.

2nd place – AU Team (Agricultural University – Plovdiv)


Award:

2-nd prize 3 000 BGN.

Project – Using space data and technologies to improve decision-making in agriculture and biodiversity protection.

3-rd place – Rakovski (G. S. Rakovski Military Academy)


Award:

3-rd prize 2 000 BGN.


Project – Тhe ability to detect people injured in natural disasters and catastrophes by analyzing satellite images, drone photos or information obtained from the field.

Adventure Prize – Space Division (National Military University Vasil Levski)


Award:

Adventure Prize


Project – Stealth satellite capturing, identification and tagging module – CAT EYES.

Additional Prize – Technical University – Sofia, Plovdiv Branch


Award:

Additional Prize

Project: – Autonomous disaster management

The specific topics of the hackathon are: “Space for Green Deal”, “Space for Defence” and “Space for Security”.

Space for Green Deal

While climate change presents the greatest threat to humanity, there is an arsenal of tools that can be leveraged to fight it. The green transition must be complemented by the continued use and improvement of modern technologies, such as space technologies. Every day, constellations of satellites orbit around the Earth, capturing images of the same areas over time, enabling us to monitor changes. Earth Observation data is one of the key tools for implementing the European Green Deal.


Participants should create and implement new ideas for a more sustainable future for Europe, utilizing Earth Observation data. The challenges for this theme are going to be related to the European Green Deal goals such as Smart Cities, Clean Energy, Sustainable Agriculture and Biodiversity, and more.


Challanges:


  1. Using satellite and/or remote (aerial and drone) data to monitor and predict climate change and natural disasters.
  2. Using space technology and data to improve decision-making in agriculture and biodiversity protection.
  3. Proposing solutions to identify and prevent droughts and temperature rise in urban environments, as well as in industrial ecosystems, using space data.

Space for Defense

Space technologies have become an essential component of every nation’s defence strategy, interacting with and enhancing operations in every domain. Space-based assets provide critical intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities. Satellites equipped with advanced sensors enable real-time monitoring of potential threats, including missile launches, troop movements, and suspicious activities and facilitate global command and control of military forces, ensuring rapid deployment and coordination. Timely and accurate information enhances situational awareness, enabling effective decision-making and swift responses to emerging threats.


Challanges:


  1. Detection of Anti-satellite weapons (ASAT), capable of physically destroying satellites, representing another severe threat, potentially capable of escalating conflicts from Earth to space.
  2. Situational Awareness through Space. Solutions for providing targeted information for situational awareness to support management decision-making.

Space for Security

Space weather, especially solar flares and geomagnetic storms, can disrupt satellite operations, communications signals, and even cause physical damage to spacecraft. Space debris and the proliferation of satellites in Earth’s orbit pose a risk of collisions that could lead to catastrophic damage.


The development of early warning systems and the determination of high-risk areas for disasters, accidents, and catastrophes are increasingly important for ensuring national security. This includes the critical infrastructure, as well as population and ecosystems that may be affected.


Challanges:

  1. Opportunities to detect injured people in natural disasters and catastrophes through the analysis of satellite images, drone photos or information received from the area.
  2. Development of solutions for improving space security of space assets - prevention and protection.
  3. Development of solutions for detection and localisation of places with a high degree of risk of floods and fires, using space data.
  4. Development of an early warning and detection in the use of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.
  5. Solutions for space monitoring, analysis and use of national energy sources as an element of the critical infrastructure.

Registration closed on 05.06.2024

Mentors

Mentors are the people who will help you on-site with any relevant questions you might have. Mentors will provide support in the following domains: software development, GIS and EO, project and business management, and thematic expertise.


Prof. phd Todor Djamiykov

Optical electronic devices, Sensor systems

prof. Kamen Popov

GIS & Earth Observation

Assoc. Prof. Petar Petkov

Satellite and GNSS communications and applications, digital and synthetic aperture radars, jamming detection

Assoc. Prof. Dimitar Nikolov

System programming, Electronic systems, renewable energy sources, electromobility

Julieta Arnaudova

GIS, Intelligent agriculture

Assoc. Prof. Slaveya Petrova

GIS, Ekology

Dimitar Yanev

Inteligend agriculture, Ecology, Computer Sciеnce

Ivelin Ivanov

GIS, Mathematical methods, Programming

Mihaela Cvetkova

GIS, Ekology

Katya Dimitrova

Copernicus Applications, EO & GIS

Emil Kaudov

Remote Earth Sensing, GIS, Programming

Vencislav Polimenov

Image processing, Artificial intelligence, Intelligent agriculture

Col. Hristo Anastasov

director of the Directorate "Military Standardization, Quality and Certification" at the Institute of Defense "Professor Tsvetan Lazarov" and an expert in the certification and assurance of the quality and airworthiness of aircraft

deputy Dr. Dilyan Nedelchev

expert in aviation armaments and PhD in dynamics, ballistics and flight control of aircraft

col. Sergey Belkinov

colonel (or.r.) and former chief of staff of the Air Force, an expert on aircraft with many years of experience in their management and operation

MD, PhD Pavlina Nikolova

specialist in information technology and cyber security.

Awards

1 st place

4000 BGN provided by VMZ "Sopot" - Ministry of Economy and Industry.

2 place

3000 BGN provided by Digital Lights.

3 място

2000 BGN provided by CNSDR - BAS

Adventure prizes worth 1,000 BGN - PCT.

Contact

Phone: +359 2 979 2498 (2453)
Under the auspices of

With the support of

Organizers

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