Why should I get involved?
Immerse yourself in a community of 5C students and faculty working together to solve problems that affect people we know and live with. And we'll provide free food and mentorship. If that's still not enough, vie for a top prize of $1,000 cash and opportunities to network with product managers from Intuit.
We challenge you to first Define the Problem, and then Brainstorm, Design, and Propose a solution that prevents this growing social and economic rift.
The Challenge:
Automation, Job Displacement, and Re-education.
The set of dependable jobs available to non-college educated workers without specialized skills is diminishing.
During the Industrial Revolution, while technology adoption and its short-term job loss certainly transformed historical economies, that evolution of work didn’t lead to mass unemployment: it led to a transformation of the work being done.
Like manufacturing, immigration, and trade, automation is now feared and blamed for job-loss. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 5 million manufacturing jobs have been lost due to automation since 2000. But technology is also a major driver in keeping companies competitive, so to shy away from innovation would surely only result in greater domestic job loss.
In order to move forward, we need to embrace technology both as a means of production and a method for producing new roles. This will require massive investments in education by both corporations and the education system.
Your Challenge: On the day of the event, you will design a solution to the problem of job automation and displacement. The specifics of the prompt will be released 12:30 on the day of Sparkathon!
Mentors
Sparkathon wouldn't be possible without the invaluable guidance and support of our mentors.
Team
Camilla Guo Freshman
Madeline Guyette
Senior
Fabian Fernandez-Han
Sophomore
Timothy Moore
Learning Experience Designer
Fred Leichter
Director of The Hive
@Claremont Colleges
