Skills of the Future

There is an incredible tension when a need for something radically transformative is met with the learned cynicism for optimistic big ideas.

#hack4homelessness brought home the visceral, raw truth of the challenges in tackling this issue, the dogma of government and the institutionalisation of the business of homelessness.

It was an amazing shared experience of learning, understanding and empathising. It was a terrific opportunity to witness the passion of those in the industry, the brave stories people shared and witness the idealism and optimism of a technology savvy generation wanting to build a brighter future.

The event was held mid-September at Vibewire and the Sydney School for Entrepreneurship. I wanted to share it to encourage others to consider participating in future social impact hackathons.

Team Doti

Team Doti were among this diverse group who had dedicated their weekend to hacking homelessness in the desire to build a brighter future. We were joined by industry experts, frontline workers and people who were or had lived with homelessness. This shared experience of learning, empathising and problem-solving made for an emotionally-charged and unforgettable weekend.

Joining me were three brave souls from Deloitte, new to the world of hackathons. Despite being in foreign territory, our team members were willing to dive into the deep end and commit to an important cause - one in which they wanted to make a difference.

The Social Issue

Did you know that NSW has the highest rate of homelessness in Australia?

• 1/3 are caused by relationship issues or violence
• 1/3 from accommodation issues
• 44,000 young Australians are sleeping rough
• Children make up 27% of people experiencing homelessness

The hackathon started on Friday night with a number of emotion filled stories from people who have devoted their lives to helping homelessness, the often horror filled stories of those that had become homeless at one stage of their lives or were currently homeless.

After I spoke about what our team was focusing on, I was approached by a gentleman no older than myself and he shared with me that he was currently homeless. It struck home that this is an issue that can affect anyone, it could have been me - and our stereotyped views of homeless people are often way off the mark.

A Masterclass in Understanding

Rabbi Mendel Kastel speaking with the team

Late on Saturday night at Vibewire a small group of us who worked back late were fortunate enough to spend some time with Rabbi Mendel Kastel OAM of Jewish House and his team, a charity offering crisis support. We probably listened to him speak for two hours which was both a masterclass in homelessness issues and one of my personal highlights of the event, leaving us with a much more enlightened view of challenges facing our society and why it's so difficult to make progress.

The Problem We Tackled

Much of the hackathon challenges focused on helping with current operational issues - process efficiency and better access to services. However, our team felt that we should try something different - to focus on prevention - so that the pipeline to homelessness could be reduced.

Our team felt that one of the main changes in society has been the reduction in the safety net of a local community that come together to support the growth and wellbeing of an individual in their formative years. Many of us, in addition to having supportive parents, have aunties and uncles that we can turn to, that provide us with help and advice.

So how could we replicate that in modern society and bring back that safety net in a modern society that is busy, fragmented and often without a sense of community?

Our Solution: Doti

Team Doti focused on youth homelessness, devising proactive measures to rebuild social fabrics in virtual and physical ways to reduce the pipeline of youth entering into homelessness. Our solution provides a community safety net to help nurture young people and be on standby to help them make critical decisions or alert service providers in time of stress or trauma.

In essence, giving all young Australians access to the aunties and uncles some of us are lucky to have.

Our team eventually pivoted to an MVP where we provide a school program of aunties and uncles for all school children from the local community. People who could help support the parents through the growth of the child, that the child could turn to in times of need, that would regularly connect with the child to check their wellbeing.

The Results

Our solution Doti came second - but really that's not important.

This weekend... well...

It was simply food for the soul.

Our team responded to an EOI for NFP government grants with the support of Vibewire. So we'll see if there will be more to this story.