The ProCleanLakes Hackathon brings together citizens, students, researchers, professionals, public authorities, NGOs, businesses and other stakeholders to develop innovative solutions for the protection, restoration and sustainable management of European natural lakes.

The Hackathon follows a structured, challenge-driven approach that transforms real environmental needs into opportunities for collaborative innovation. It focuses on key areas such as water quality monitoring, pollution prevention and remediation, data analytics and artificial intelligence, biodiversity and ecosystem restoration, citizen science, community engagement and climate resilience.

The methodology defines the roles and responsibilities of all participants, including Seekers, who submit real-world challenges; Solvers, who develop innovative solutions individually or in multidisciplinary teams; Mentors, who provide guidance throughout the development process; and Jury Members, who independently evaluate the proposed solutions.

Through a series of stages, from challenge submission and participant registration to solution development, mentoring, evaluation and the selection of winning teams, the Hackathon aims to generate practical, creative and impactful ideas. Participants will develop their proposals using the official ProCleanLakes Hackathon Solution Canvas and support them with a visual mock-up or prototype.

The process also provides a pathway for further development beyond the Hackathon, including business mentoring and support in exploring potential funding opportunities for winning teams.

Discover the complete methodology, including participant roles, implementation stages, evaluation criteria, expected outputs and the Hackathon calendar, in the document below.

Have a Challenge? Let’s Innovate Together!

Register your organisation and share your challenge with us! Your input can help inspire innovative solutions for healthier lakes and more sustainable freshwater ecosystems.

Together, we can turn challenges into opportunities for change.

Deadline: 26 October 2026 

Submit an Innovation Challenge

Are you an organisation with a challenge related to lake protection, restoration or sustainable management?

To submit your challenge, please complete the official ProCleanLakes Hackathon Innovation Challenge Submission Template and send the completed document by email to the ProCleanLakes Hackathon Organising Team.

Submission deadline: 2 November 2026

Submit your challenge: info@procleanlakes.eu

Please use the following email subject line: ProCleanLakes Hackathon – Innovation Challenge Submission.

Submit Your Solution

Are you participating in the ProCleanLakes Hackathon as a Solver? Once your team has developed its proposed solution, complete the official ProCleanLakes Hackathon Solution Canvas and prepare a visual mock-up or prototype.

Please submit your completed Solution Canvas, together with the supporting visual material, by email to the ProCleanLakes Hackathon Organising Team.

Submission deadline: 8 December 2026

Submit your solution: info@procleanlakes.eu

Please use the following email subject line: ProCleanLakes Hackathon – Solution Submission.

For any queries, please contact us at info@procleanlakes.eu following email subject line: ProCleanLakes Hackathon – HelpDesk