Google’s second Interactivism event was held in London on 17th and 18th February 2012. Google and FutureGov joined forces with the RSA and Livity to deliver Interactivism: Young People’s Hack Weekend. This time, teams were challenged to come up with innovative ways of using the web to help young people get into the job they want, or onto the training or education that will help them get there in the future.
For those of you unfamiliar with the term, for us, a hack is an event where computer developers, designers and people with ideas come together to build real, working prototypes (or models) of their ideas in a short amount of time.
Before the hack weekend, the RSA hosted a roundtable discussion with young people and policy influencers to help frame the challenge. This informed a framework document that you can read here. Ideas were submitted here on Simpl and a short list of 10 ideas (click here to see which ten) were selected to be developed during the two day event. The event was held in Ravensbourne, a digital media and design university sector college, and the teams consisted of people with ideas, student developers, Googlers, young people with experience of being out of work and education, designers and social innovators (you can see the full list on the Eventbrite page here.) All of our teams produced some excellent prototypes during the two days and two winning ideas were selected. If you would like to help any of our teams develop their ideas further, please get in touch through the Simpl ideas page.
Details of the first Interactivism event: Interactivism - Accessibility Hack Weekend, where participants were challenged to make the web more accesible for older people, can be found here.
You can read all of the reports from Interactivism on the Simpl blog and can keen up to date with any future Interactivism events by following us on Twitter @Simplco.
All information collected for the Interactivism competition will be held by FutureGov, Google and RSA only. All ideas submitted for the competition remain the sole property of the idea originator unless otherwise stated by the idea originator. Idea originators must be prepared to work with Google should their idea be chosen to be given further support following the Interactivism event.
If you use an RSS reader, you can subscribe to a feed of all future ideas posted to Simpl.
1"One click" job applications Take the pain out of applying for jobs, free up time for volunteering and upskilling, and find employers the best recruits
15 to 25 Social divisions exist in the UK despite the internet. Social divisions almost *define* the UK. Hence the need for this challenge. My idea is to use online communities, the might of Google, the goodwill of the RSA Fellowship (and others), NFP agencies and more, to offer young people a group of committed lifelong mentors, probably beyond their regular social reach. And to see what happens.
3A "What's Going On?" Info Stream of Youth Activities/Job Opportunities w/ Custom RSS Subscriptions "Wouldn't it be great if young people could find out about jobs or skill-building, mentoring & learning opportunities, entrepreneurship, and, say, rock-and-roll-camp for girls - through a single RSS feed? And what if the feed was customizable - so that said young people (or parents/guardians/mentors) could subscribe to an organization (that hosts such activities), a venue (near home, for example), or a specific firm where said young people might really, really want to work?"
2Active Enterprise Links This idea links students with real world businesses to support their learning and eventually leads to valuable workplace connections.
0Bare Apps Bare Apps is a mobile phone and web system targeted at young persons in the 16-24 age groups and is designed to be inclusive and to engage a local community with its youth.
4Blastbeat in a Box - with Blastbeat Changemaker and MyPlace Blastbeat in a Box creates and gameifies the existing Blastbeat programme and develops an online tool kit, built around the Blastbeat programme. Blastbeat wraps the learning experience in music, dance or sport, that leverages young peoples interests and passions to engage NEETs back in the learning process and enhances their positive learning experience teaching business and life skills in a very compelling way.
Blastbeat in a Box helps to empower young people to be event creators and social entrepreneurs, programming and selling out live events and creating performance opportunities for other young people that are intense yet cool and FUN.
Blastbeat has a programme and an expertise that has proven very successful at engaging these young people, NEET's in particular will benefit young people NEET
0Box2box2box It takes 17 trees to make a tonne of cardboard boxes. Cardboard boxes are usually used once before being recycled or landfilled. This makes me cry with frustration- but i think the internet can help.
4Cloud Gaming as Personal Tutor (C.G.P.T) Lack of interest and motivation or/and lack of knowledge of how to achieve desired goals, are some of the most important reasons for unemployment and illiteracy. A personal tutor and motivator is exactly what young people need in such situations; to help them fix things up and get back to the track. Young people require personal tutors who are ready wherever they are, whenever they need some help.
1 "One click" job applications 
