The Richmond Civic Hackathon brings together technologists, designers, artists, students, and community leaders to build solutions for real challenges facing the City of Richmond.

This community-first event connects hackers with city leaders, nonprofits, and industry mentors to prototype tools that support the Mayor’s vision for a Thriving Richmond. The hackathon is organized around seven challenge tracks aligned with the Mayor’s Action Plan, which focuses on building thriving neighborhoods, families, economic opportunity, and sustainable infrastructure across the city.

Unlike many hackathons, this event is designed to produce ideas that can continue beyond the weekend. Participants will work on real civic challenges, collaborate with domain experts, and present solutions that could inform future city initiatives.

Projects should align with one of the following tracks:

1. Thriving City Hall
Improve how city government serves residents through better tools, data transparency, and service delivery.

2. Thriving Neighborhoods
Support housing access, safer communities, and stronger neighborhood amenities.

3. Thriving Families
Build tools that support children, families, and educational opportunity.

4. Thriving Economy
Strengthen pathways to jobs, entrepreneurship, and economic mobility.

5. Thriving and Inclusive Communities
Support immigrant communities, accessibility, and equitable access to services.

6. Sustainable Built Environment
Address climate resilience, infrastructure, transit, and sustainability.

7. A City That Tells Its Stories
Use technology and creative tools to help Richmond tell its history and cultural stories.

Friday – Kickoff

• Opening remarks and challenge overview
• Track briefings and team formation
• Teams begin working on projects

Saturday – Hack Day

• Full day of building, prototyping, and collaboration
• Mentors available throughout the day
• Workshops and support sessions

Sunday – Demo Day

• Final project submissions
• Project demos and judging
• Awards and closing ceremony

The Richmond Civic Hackathon is open to anyone interested in solving real civic challenges.

Participants may include:

• Developers
• Designers
• Data scientists
• Artists and storytellers
• Students
• Entrepreneurs
• Community organizers
• Policy and civic leaders

No prior civic tech experience is required.

• Impact
  Does this meaningfully address a real Richmond challenge related to a specific pillar?
• Innovation
  Is the approach creative or unique?
• Feasibility
  Could the City or community realistically pilot this?
• Execution
  Quality of the prototype and presentation.
• Collaboration
  Did the team effectively combine skills and perspectives?