Global Innovation Hackathon Celebrates Another Successful Year

HLOs:

Humber Polytechnic celebrated Global Entrepreneurship Week with the launch of the second annual Global Innovation Hackathon on November 17th, delivered through its COIL (Collaborative Online International Learning) partnership with CBS International Business School in Cologne, the University of Salford in Manchester, and GEA College in Ljubljana. This international initiative brought together interdisciplinary student teams from four institutions to explore a shared challenge: What is the future of AI in higher education?

At the kickoff on the 17th, students received their mystery challenge. They participated in a keynote session led by Dr. Carmel Tse, DBA, MSc, an expert in AI whose doctoral research focuses on its impact on post-secondary education. Dr. Tse provided students with an insightful overview of the current AI landscape and offered guiding perspectives to support their five-day visioning exercise.

Throughout the week, the Humber team: Batin Koc, Karina Kutyrieva, Simran Sharma, Keshmin Vyas, Barakat Damilola Adediji, Alyssa Mackenzie, and Emilia Schultz, comprised of Marketing Management graduate certificate students from first semester, second semester, and the online delivery mode, worked collaboratively with students from the University of Salford. Together, they investigated and benchmarked current AI practices at Salford, examined Humber Polytechnic’s own evolving AI approaches, and identified opportunities for innovation. Their collective insights culminated in thoughtful, forward-looking recommendations for how AI may shape teaching and learning by 2030.

The Closing Ceremony

On Friday, November 21st, students celebrated the closing ceremony of this year’s Global Innovation Hackathon and were honoured to have Katja Kraskovic, Director at GEA College to serve as MC for the event.

The student teams from Humber Polytechnic, GEA College, The University of Salford, and CBS International Business School presented their findings, showcasing thoughtful analyses of existing AI practices and proposing meaningful, strategic recommendations for the future of AI in higher education. Their insights underscored the importance of intentional, collaborative approaches to integrating emerging technologies within academic environments.

Several special guests who joined to support the presentations and contribute to the discussion. Their engagement added tremendous value to the learning experience.

A heartfelt thank-you to Ambarin Asad, Mehran Najmaei, and Jaka Vadnjal for another year of outstanding partnership and leadership as well as a special appreciation to Dr. Anja Karlshaus, President of CBS International Business School, for her inspiring closing remarks.

This year’s hackathon once again demonstrated the power of global collaboration and the meaningful impact of COIL partnerships in preparing students for the rapidly evolving future of work and learning.

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