OneAquaHealth IEEE Global Hackathon 2026 – Announces winners

The hackathon attracted significant international interest, receiving 1,370 registrations from around the world and 214 project submissions, of which 174 qualified submissions successfully passed the screening process. Participants also benefited from five expert-led educational sessions, while competing across seven innovation tracks designed to address real-world One Health and freshwater challenges. A total prize pool of $3,500 was awarded to the highest-performing teams.

The judging panel evaluated submissions based on their alignment with the OneAquaHealth mission, as well as innovation, architecture, user experience, and scalability.

Top Three Winning Projects

🥇 First Place: Stream Check-up

The winning solution transforms environmental data into actionable freshwater monitoring priorities. The project identifies data gaps, recommends field investigations, and leverages interoperability standards to support informed environmental decision-making.

🥈 Second Place: StreamSignal

StreamSignal combines weather forecasts, freshwater monitoring data, and field observations to support environmental monitoring decisions and resilience planning. Its focus on transparent, evidence-based recommendations demonstrated the potential of data-driven One Health innovation.

🥉 Third Place: SlackWater

SlackWater offers an AI-supported citizen-science approach that uses video analysis to assess stream-water movement. By combining computer vision, explainable measurements, and quality assurance processes, the solution aims to make environmental observations more accessible and reliable.

Special Mention Awards

In addition to the top three winners, two projects received Special Mention Awards for their innovative contributions to the OneAquaHealth mission.

AquaSentinel: One Health Water Intelligence was recognized for its integrated environmental intelligence platform, combining water-quality monitoring, anomaly detection, geospatial visualization, and explainable risk indicators to support proactive decision-making.

EcoStream 3D received recognition for its interactive watershed visualization platform, enabling users to explore environmental conditions, monitoring data, and resilience scenarios through immersive 3D technologies.

Recognition for Participants

All individuals associated with the 174 valid submissions will be eligible to receive participation letters recognizing their contributions to the OneAquaHealth IEEE Global Hackathon 2026. The winning and Special Mention teams will additionally receive award certificates and monetary prizes from the hackathon’s $3,500 prize pool.

The organizing team stated that certificate preparation, participant verification, and prize distribution are expected to take approximately two to three months, with further instructions to be communicated directly to the recognized teams.

Advancing Innovation for Freshwater and One Health

Beyond the competition itself, the hackathon highlighted the growing role of artificial intelligence, data analytics, citizen science, digital health standards, and emerging technologies in addressing freshwater ecosystem challenges and supporting healthier communities. Organizers emphasized that every participant contributed to a broader effort to advance environmental resilience and sustainable innovation.

The OneAquaHealth IEEE Global Hackathon Organizing Team thanked participants, speakers, judges, mentors, partners, and collaborators worldwide for making the initiative a success and reaffirmed its commitment to fostering innovation at the intersection of environmental and human health.