Noticia
The Provincial Council of Bizkaia the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) and the Bilbao City Council collaborate in the Bilbao Bizkaia Open Data Classroom an initiative that aims to develop the use of open data from the two Biscayan institutions (Provincial Council and City Council) for use in university projects. The ultimate goal is that, thanks to this re-use, public services can be improved and new knowledge can be generated to contribute to the resolution of social problems.
The initiative, aimed at university students as well as teaching and research staff, was born as a way to research staff, was born as a a collaboration agreement between the three administrations (Provincial Council of Bizkaia, Bilbao City Council and UPV/EHU). For this purpose, other agreements made with the Bilbao School of Engineering for the creation of Business Classrooms were taken as a reference, but in this case it will be an open data classroom, which will promote the opening of data generated and the reuse of public information.
The Bilbao Bizkaia Open Data Classroom has been in operation since 2022 and its operation is similar to that of the twelve Business Classrooms that were already in operation at the Bilbao School of Engineering. These company classrooms are laboratory-classrooms within the school, created and financed by companies and institutions to promote their innovation activities. In this sense, as the organisers of the Aula state, "they are an effective instrument of collaboration between the Departments of the Bilbao School of Engineering and the business world, both in activities related to research, technological development and innovation and in everything related to training".
Open data for innovation in the classroom
In addition to developing projects based on the reuse of open data that improve the services provided by the regional and municipal authorities, the Aula also creates data visualisations based on open information processing initiatives proposed by the university community with the aim of improving the welfare of citizens. Another of its areas of work is the implementation of training activities that contribute to the improvement of the digital skills of the university community.
During the first edition of the Bilbao-Bizkaia Open Data Classroom, in the 2022-2023 academic year, the students developed projects on the reuse of data on recycling or outdoor activities, among others. All of them were created using regional data. You can consult the projects here: https://sites.google.com/view/opendatabilbaobizkaia/home?authuser=0.
How can I join Aula Open Data Bilbao-Bizkaia?
The Aula Open data Bilbao Bizkaia has its own space in the headquarters of the Bilbao School of Engineering, in San Mamés. This space has been fitted out thanks to a grant awarded by the Provincial Council of Bizkaia and the City Council of Bilbao, which also collaborate by financing the management costs of the classroom.
The programme is aimed at engineering bachelor's and master's degree students carrying out their bachelor's and master's degree final projects, respectively. However, it is not necessary to be in the final year of a Bachelor's or Master's degree to participate in the Aula. The initiative is open to anyone with an interest in data.
Training in Power BI and data analysis toolsis provided at the beginning of the course.
The programme is free of charge, and students working under the agreement are paid. The selection process is by CV.
In the following link you can find all the information about the Classroom.
Evento
Do you accept the challenge of transforming Bizkaia from its open data? This is the "Datathon Open Data Bizkaia", a collaborative development competition organised by Lantik and the Provincial Council of Bizkaia.
Participants will have to create the mockup of an application that helps to solve problems affecting the citizens of Bizkaia. To do so, they will have to use at least one dataset from among all those available on the Open Data Bizkaia portal. These datasets may be combined with data from other sources.
How does the competition unfold?
The competition will be held in two phases:
- First phase. Participating teams must submit a proposal document in PDF format. Among other information, the proposal shall include a brief description of the solution, its functionalities and the datasets used.
- Second phase. A jury will evaluate all applications received and that are valid in time and form. Seven finalist proposals will then be selected. The shortlisted teams will have to produce a mockup and a promotional video of maximum 2 minutes, presenting the team members and describing the most outstanding features of the solution.
These phases will be carried out according to the following timetable:
- From 19 September to 19 October. Registration period open to submit proposals in pdf format.
- 26 October. Announcement of shortlisted teams.
- 14th November. Deadline for submitting the mockup and video.
- 18th November. The final will be held in Bilbao, although it will also be possible to attend, optionally, online. The videos will be presented and the winning teams will be selected.
Who can participate?
The competition is open to anyone over 16 years of age, regardless of nationality, as long as they have a valid DNI/NIF/NIE, passport or other public document that proves the identity and age of the participant.
You can participate as an individual or in teams of a maximum of six people.
What do the prizes consist of?
Two winners will be chosen from the 7 finalists, who will receive the following prize money:
- First prize: €2,500.
- Second prize: €1,500.
In addition, the other finalist teams will receive €500.
Para llevar a cabo la valoración, el jurado tomará como referencia una serie de criterios detallados en las bases de la competición: relevancia, reutilización de datos abiertos y aptitud para el propósito.
In order to carry out the assessment, the jury will take as a reference a series of criteria detailed in the competition rules: relevance, reuse of open data and fitness for purpose.
How can I participate?
Participants must upload their proposal to a sharepoint enabled for this purpose. A model document that can be used as a reference can be found on the website.
Beforehand, it is necessary to register using the form on the website. After registration, the team will receive an e-mail with instructions on how to submit the proposal.
The proposal must be submitted before 19 October 2022 at 12h.
Find out more about Open Data Bizkaia
Open Data Bizkaia provides citizens and reusing agents with access to the public information managed by the Provincial Council of Bizkaia. There are currently more than 900 datasets available.
Its website also offers resources for reusers, an API, good practices and examples of applications created with datasets from the portal that can serve to inspire the participants in this competition.
Find out more about Bizkaia's Open Data strategy in this article.
Evento
The BiscayTIK Foundation and the Biscay Provincial Council are organising the BiscayAPP challenge, whose the main aim is to reward the best proposals for web or mobile applications that provide some kind of service for organisations and citizens through the use of open data. The additional purpose of this challenge is to disseminate the resources of the Council as vectors for the attraction and promotion of Biscay.
What requirements must be met?
Any natural or legal person may submit one or more proposals, regardless of their residence.
The main requirement for is to use at least one dataset offered by the Provincial Council of Biscay and/or the local councils of Biscay. This dataset may be combined with datasets from other institutions.
If you wish to participate using a dataset that is not yet offered in open format, you can request its opening. The only requirement is that it must comply with the powers of the Provincial Council of Bizkaia or the local councils.
What are the registration deadlines?
As described in the rules, the deadline for submitting your concept project is October 31st, as described in the rules.
Those who have registered before 30 September will have the opportunity to participate in possible events taking place in October, which will be determined by the circumstances.
What are the stages of the challenge?
- Registration phase for natural or legal persons interested in participating: between 18 September and 30 September 2020, those registered will be informed of possible events taking place during October, which will be determined according to the circumstances.
- Project registration phase using the form available on the website: between 1 and 31 October 2020, participants who have not registered for the registration phase (18 to 30 September) may register at the same time as they present their project in this phase.
- Jury's selection of the ten best applications: this selection will involve the positive or negative communication of each application and, if selected, an invitation to the presentation day. The communication will be made through the email address indicated in the registration no later than November 15th.
- Presentation to the jury and award ceremony: at an event organised for this purpose, the authors of the selected projects will be able to present them and answer questions from the members of the jury. At the same event, the jury will choose the winners and award the prizes. Participants must attend the jury presentation in person or through a person expressly authorised to do so. These authorisations will be processed via the organisation's e-mail address. During this event, each participant may provide an explanatory dossier and an explanation of the potential application or website in the municipalities of Bizkaia.
What prizes can you win?
The winning entries will receive a cash prize and support from the BiscayTIK Foundation to present their projects in the local area of Biscay, in addition to the commitment to open the datasets associated with the project whenever possible. These are the prizes assigned:
- First prize: 6,000 euros
- Second prize: 3,000
- Third prize: 1,500
Finally, it should be noted that all finalist entries will receive a diploma certifying that they have reached the final.