During the Hackathon, nine groups composed by both students of the Bachelor Degree course in Business Administration and Management and students of the Master Degree course in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering of the University of Trieste cooperated with the aim to propose a Project Idea able to address the EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR) programming period 21-27. The students, guided by EU programming experts, stakeholders, technical and communication experts, and representatives from all the CLASS 4.0 Project Partners, merged their knowledge and expertise to address specific industrial, economic and social needs referring to the four EUSAIR pillars (Blue Growth, Connecting the Region, Environmental Quality, and Sustainable Tourism).

The groups faced different problems characterised by different themes and presented their original ideas through a 2-minute pitch, in which they highlighted the main aims and features of their project and the potential partners. All the ideas were evaluated by a cross-border committee and the three groups that proposed the best projects were awarded. Their outputs will be developed as project ideas in the form of executive reports for the programming period 21-27.

The Hackathon underlined the importance of merging different specialities and knowledge fields, in order to join the efforts and propose solutions to everyday problems that affect such a crucial area as the Adriatic-Ionian region. Through video-interviews, participating students and experts expressed their enthusiasm for the event and witnessed their efforts and passion towards the goal.