UNESCO Youth Hackathon 2025
The Youth Hackathon is a flagship initiative of UNESCO’s Global Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Week, empowering young people worldwide to tackle urgent challenges in today’s digital information landscape.
These include the rise of AI, the spread of mis- and disinformation, online hate speech, platform dominance, and threats to information integrity.
Following the success of the 2024 edition – which brought together 202 teams from 68 countries – UNESCO is gearing up for an even more impactful 2025 edition.
Under this year’s theme, Youth Leading the Way: Building MIL solutions for Impact, UNESCO calls for youth aged 18 to 30 to collaborate, innovate, and lead with their ideas.
All participants will benefit from free online mentoring by international experts before the final submission.
Winning teams will be invited to present their projects at the Global MIL Week Conference on 23-24 October 2025 in Cartagena, Colombia – with flight and accommodation covered by UNESCO.
Focus Areas of the UNESCO Youth Hackathon 2025
- AI and MIL:Â Innovative solutions addressing challenges posed by AI through MIL
- MIL Education:Â Creative approaches to MIL learning in the digital age
- Community Impact:Â MIL-based interventions that empower communities
- Youth Engagement:Â Strategies to position youth organizations as MIL change agents
- Open Track: Other MIL-related ideas aligned with this year’s theme.
The Kind of Ideas They Are Looking For
Your proposal can be one of the following categories:
- Games
- Applications/Websites
- Radio programmes/Podcasts
- Artistic work such as comics, short videos, documentaries, etc.
- Educational toolkits
- Youth organization campaigns
- Community-based interventions
- Other creative modalities for innovative interventions.
Summary of the UNESCO Youth Hackathon 2025
- Type: Contest
- Location: Cartagena, Colombia
- Program Theme:Â Youth Leading the Way: Building MIL Solutions for Impact.
- Duration: 2 Days
- Benefits: Round Airfare Tickets, Accommodation, No prior experience required
- Deadline: 15th August, 2025
Structure of the Program
- Selected Participants will receive free online mentoring before submitting their idea.
- Applicants will submit projects and Proposals via the UNESCO Website.
- Winning Teams will be invited to Colombia to present their Projects at the Global MIL Week Conference.
Eligibility Criterias for the UNESCO Youth Hackathon 2025
- Candidates from all countries are eligible.
- Team Size:Â 3 to 6 members per team (can be national, regional, or international).
- Age Requirement:Â All team members must be between 18 and 30 years old.
- Diversity Encouraged:Â Gender balance and inclusivity are highly encouraged within teams.
- Experience Not Required: Your passion and motivation are all you need – no prior experience is necessary.
Deadline: August 15, 2025
