The Agricultural University of Athens Successfully Hosted the EU-CONEXUS ENABLES Hackathon “Gamifying Agricultural & Biotech Education”

The Agricultural University of Athens (AUA) successfully hosted the EU-CONEXUS ENABLES Hackathon entitled “Gamifying Agricultural & Biotech Education”, which took place from 10 to 12 June 2026 as part of the parallel activities of the EU-CONEXUS Conference 2026. During this three-day event, 23 undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral students from the partner universities of EU-CONEXUS formed seven (7) teams and developed innovative digital solutions aimed at educating 15-year-old students on topics related to agriculture and biotechnology.

Participants were challenged to design and present digital learning tools, including games, applications, simulations and interactive platforms, employing creative approaches to simplify and communicate complex scientific concepts.

The Hackathon was organised under the coordination of Dr Aikaterini Koletti, EU-CONEXUS ENABLES Project Manager at AUA, while guidance and mentoring were provided by Professor Konstantinos Demestichas of AUA, Professor Helen Hughes and Lecturer Rachel O’Dowd from the South East Technological University (SETU), Ireland.

The submitted proposals were evaluated by a judging panel comprising Assistant Professor Sofia Mavrikou and Associate Professor Dimitrios P. Vlachakis of AUA, Professor Helen Hughes and Lecturer Rachel O’Dowd of SETU, and Ms Sabine Brueser from the University of Rostock. The awards ceremony was conducted by Professor Ilinca Năstase, Vice-Rector of the Technical University of Civil Engineering of Bucharest and Scientific Coordinator of the EU-CONEXUS ENABLES project.

The first prize was awarded to the team “Chashki I Khushki” from the South East Technological University, consisting of Ihor Maslovskyi, Dzheffriei Ihesinulo, Oleksandr Storozhuk and Ihor Mekhtiiev. The second prize was awarded to the team “MNM”, also from South East Technological University, with members Mykhailo Kholiev, Nazariy Buryak and Marwan Fayad. Third place was awarded to the team “SynthoRithm” from AUA, consisting of Anastasios Manolopoulos-Dekaristos, Ilias Glynos and Paraskevi-Eleni Darzenta.

The EU-CONEXUS ENABLES Hackathon highlighted the importance of creative learning, interdisciplinary collaboration and the use of digital technologies in education. At the same time, it reaffirmed AUA’s active role in the development and implementation of innovative educational initiatives within the EU-CONEXUS Alliance, strengthening collaboration among students, researchers and academics from across Europe.