Universität Wien

290302 VU Urban Research to Practice: Science for Policy Hackathon (2025W)

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 29 - Geographie
Continuous assessment of course work
Moodle
We 07.01. 09:00-17:00 Ort in u:find Details

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 50 participants
Language: German, English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

MI, 15.10. 13:15-16:30 Marietta-Blau Saal Hauptgebäude, Hochparterre, Stiege 10
MI, 07.01. 09:00-17:00 die HausWirtschaft, Bruno-Marek-Allee 5/1, 1020 Wien
DO, 08.01. 09:00-17:00 die HausWirtschaft, Bruno-Marek-Allee 5/1, 1020 Wien
DO, 15.01. 16:00-20:00 die HausWirtschaft, Bruno-Marek-Allee 5/1, 1020 Wien

  • Wednesday 15.10. 13:15 - 16:30 Ort in u:find Details
  • Wednesday 22.10. 13:15 - 16:30 Hörsaal 21 Hauptgebäude, Hochparterre, Stiege 8
  • Wednesday 29.10. 13:15 - 16:30 Hörsaal 21 Hauptgebäude, Hochparterre, Stiege 8
  • Wednesday 05.11. 13:15 - 16:30 Hörsaal 21 Hauptgebäude, Hochparterre, Stiege 8
  • Wednesday 12.11. 13:15 - 16:30 Hörsaal 21 Hauptgebäude, Hochparterre, Stiege 8
  • Wednesday 19.11. 13:15 - 16:30 Hörsaal 21 Hauptgebäude, Hochparterre, Stiege 8
  • Wednesday 26.11. 13:15 - 16:30 Hörsaal 21 Hauptgebäude, Hochparterre, Stiege 8
  • Wednesday 03.12. 13:15 - 16:30 Hörsaal 21 Hauptgebäude, Hochparterre, Stiege 8
  • Wednesday 10.12. 13:15 - 16:30 Hörsaal 21 Hauptgebäude, Hochparterre, Stiege 8
  • Thursday 08.01. 09:00 - 17:00 Ort in u:find Details
  • Thursday 15.01. 16:00 - 20:00 Ort in u:find Details

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

The goal of Urban Research to Practice: Science for Policy Hackathon 2025/26 is to support Master students in developing and applying inter-and transdisciplinary skills and knowledge to formulate science-based policy recommendations. Focusing on selected urban sustainability challenges, participants will gain an in-depth understanding of how these challenges are addressed in policy-making in general, and in the context of the City of Vienna in particular.
The course consists of two parts: weekly classes from October – December, and a two-day Hackathon (7 and 8 January) followed by a science-based policy pitch (15 January). During the weekly semester course, students will work in interdisciplinary teams to develop strategies to address one of the specified challenges in the context of Vienna. Developing an in-depth understanding of this challenge requires combining current academic research with information provided by the City of Vienna, relevant local, national and international strategies and policies, and comparing learnings from other international practices. 
To achieve this, the weekly course will focus on building the transdisciplinary knowledge and skills required to analyse specific urban sustainability challenges in an science-practice-policy-arena. Furthermore, the course will support students in establishing contact with the relevant departments and experts from the City of Vienna, as well as provide them with expert inputs on policy making.
During the hackathon, students will implement their skills and knowledge to develop innovative science-based policy briefs. Here, they will receive mentoring support by experts in research based policy-making, and experts from the City of Vienna. The developed policy briefs will be pitched to a jury. The selected winners will present their pitch to a large audience during the lectures series “From Knowledge to Practice” (Ringvorlesung “Vom Wissen zum Handeln”) organised by the University of Vienna´s Environment and Climate Hub.
Please note: The course requires participants to apply with a short form. You have to register on u:find as well as fill in the short form by 28 September: https://urbanlab.univie.ac.at/urban-research-to-practice-science-for-policy-hackathon-2025-26/

Assessment and permitted materials

This course is based on continuous assessment. A prerequisite for positive completion is full participation in at least 80% of all indicated dates. This means that you can only miss a max. of 2 lecture sessions between October and December. Furthermore, attendance in the first unit and the full hackathon is mandatory.
Registered participants who are absent in the first unit will be de-registered.
The assessment depends on the following components, all of which must be assessed positively (min. 50%) in order to complete this seminar positively.
1. Preliminary brief of the sustainability challenge and its policy relevance (20%)
2. Active contribution to asynchronous tasks (20%)
3. Active participation and contribution to session discussions throughout the course and hackathon (30%)
4. Final pitch and policy brief following the 2-day hackathon (30%)
The course will be held in English. Students can submit their assignments in English or German.

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

To successfully complete the course, students are expected to
· Carry out and submit all asynchronous assignments in preparation or follow-up of the sessions
· Actively contribute to session discussions, the hackathon and final pitch
· Deliver a preliminary brief about the challenge and its policy relevance (group work)
· Deliver a final policy brief pitch explaining your solution to the respective sustainability challenge (group work)

Examination topics

More information will be communicated via Moodle after course registration. 

Reading list

More information will be communicated via Moodle after course registration. 

Association in the course directory

(MR1-a/b-PI) (MA_neu_GGCST_MA5)

Modul MNB4

Last modified: Th 02.10.2025 16:07