The first SECURE Himalaya Hackathon was conducted in New Delhi in December 2019 on the theme ‘Developing technology-based solutions to raise citizen awareness on illegal trade in wildlife and develop tools for citizen monitoring and reporting’. 

Six teams across two problem statements were shortlisted for the final event Jury members comprised of senior officials from Himachal Pradesh Forest Department, Invest India and UNDP Accelerator Labs.

The team from National Institute of Design, Vijayawada won the first prize under Problem Statement 1 (How can we raise awareness among children and youth on issues related to illegal trade in wildlife in Snow Leopard landscapes and the importance of these species for our survival?) for their concept of a mobile game ‘Where’s my Snow Cat?’. 

The team from Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur won the first prize under Problem Statement 2 (How can we encourage citizen participation in monitoring and reporting wildlife crime?) for proposing an integrated plan to raise awareness on illegal trade in wildlife and creating technological plan to raise awareness on illegal trade in wildlife and creating technological tools for monitoring and reporting wildlife crime.

The concept of game under problem statement 1 is under development and proposed to be released by the December 2020.