AARP Community Challenge Takes Quick Action in Seattle

AARP Funds Age-Friendly Hackathon to Make Communities More Livable

[SEATTLE, WA] —AARP Washington announces the City of Seattle, in partnership with Sound Generations, has been selected to receive a grant from the AARP Community Challenge for their hackathon dubbed A City for All.


“Making Seattle the leader among Age Friendly cities is a primary goal of mine,” Councilmember Sally Bagshaw said in a statement. “This hackathon will bring together our tech savvy community, as well as those of us who are less tech savvy but willing and creative, to develop innovative Age Friendly ideas. Join us! With your help, we will make Seattle even more engaging and healthier for everyone.”

“While there are challenges to growing older, there are also opportunities that come with increased longevity,” said Doug Shadel, AARP Washington State Director. “A City for All will bring some of the best minds together to explore ways that our current older residents can stay engaged in public life, as well as an exploration of how technology might benefit future generations.”

Coinciding with the National Day for Civic Hacking, A City for All challenges data scientists, designers, urban planners and software developers to use technology-based solutions to foster a vibrant Seattle for people of all ages and abilities. Hackathon teams will have the opportunity to compete for $10,000 in prize money at the event, which is supported by AARP in partnership with Sound Generations. Projects will be evaluated in four award categories: Best Overall Innovation, Best Use of Open Data, Best Data Visualization and Best Accessibility Hack.

“This is an area of civic life that is ripe for innovation,” said Candace Faber, the City of Seattle’s civic technology advocate. “Globally, people are living longer than ever and in unprecedented circumstances. I think our community will be inspired by the speakers and mentors to create solutions that could impact millions of lives.”

All of the winning projects in this challenge will deliver on one or all of the following:

• Improve social connections through the built environment benefiting people of all ages and abilities in the community.
• Expand opportunities for all residents, such as job, volunteer, and educational/training opportunities.
• Drive inclusive community engagement and interaction across a diverse population.

For a complete list of the AARP Community Challenge winners and projects, visit aarp.org/CommunityChallenge.

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