Enter the Esri Human Health and Climate Change App Challenge

Put your GIS prowess to work for a good cause and enter the Esri Human Health and Climate Change App Challenge. Esri invites you to showcase your expertise and build a game-changing app that will help communities visualize, understand, and reduce climate change health risks. 

Why take the time to build a custom app and enter the contest you might ask? Other than having a stellar work of art for your portfolio and potential national recognition under your belt, you’ll have a shot at winning up to $10,000 in cash prizes or the equivalent in software. Plus, you have a chance to make a positive impact on global health initiatives.

“From rising temperatures that produce more smog, to droughts and hurricanes that jeopardize safety, the effects of climate change pose real threats to people’s health around the world,” said Dr. Este Geraghty, chief medical officer at Esri. “Understanding the geography of climate change is an important step toward mitigating its impacts. And you have the skills to make a difference.”

At your disposal for creating your app are GIS tools from Esri’s ArcGIS platform, the growing pool of global open data, and Esri apps, maps, services, and APIs. To support the contest, Esri created the Health and Climate GeoPlatform, which offers an array of health and climate open data at your fingertips. This site provides access to more than 200 authoritative datasets from a variety of federal agencies.

The contest is now open and the deadline to enter is August 14, 2015.

So what sort of issues should your app help solve? Remember, there’s no one size fits all approach! Get creative for this important cause and identify a unique scenario and solution. You can draw on your personal experiences, investigate climate-related health challenges facing your community, or explore these ideas from Esri:

- Impacts of extreme heat and severe weather

- Consequences of wildfires and floods

- Effects of drought on food insecurity, malnutrition, and mental stress

- Increases in vector-borne or water-borne diseases

- Ramifications of air pollution and/or pollen on respiratory disease

- Risks to vulnerable populations and those with special needs

- Education of at-risk people about impacts of climate change on their health

Not an app developer? No problem! The app challenge is open to everyone - including developers, employees of start-ups and governmental and nongovernmental organizations, and academics. Judges will select the top three apps to be highlighted at the Esri Health and Human Services GIS Conference in September. In addition to awarding prizes, Esri will feature the winning apps on its collaborative resource portal.

The app challenge is part of Esri's comprehensive effort in support of the White House Climate Data Initiative under President Barack Obama's Climate Action Plan. Esri hosted a similar contest last year – the Climate Resilience App Challenge. The top three 2014 winners built apps that helped users identify the optimal location for solar panel installations, get flood alerts, and learn about the benefits of saving rain water. 

Explore the 2014 winners’ gallery here for inspiration. For more information on the Human Health and Climate Change App Challenge, visit the link provided below.