Fishackathon brings coding and creativity together

“Speakers to winners, an Otter theme ran throughout,” said John Wood, product manager at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Wood was referring to Cal State Monterey Bay's mascot at Fishackathon 2016, held over Earth Day weekend. The aquarium was one of dozens of sites on six continents to host the annual event.

The initiative, now in its third year, is led by the U.S. Department of State.

From April 22 to 24, about 50 people with skills in data science, software coding, design and marine science converged at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. They were there to help protect marine life and the billions of people who look to the sea for their next meal by using creative applications of technology.

The Cal State Monterey Bay team of Joshua Kling, Sarah Anderson, Ryan Green, Bryan Huynh, Zach Leids, Andrea Perez, Gregory Greenleaf, Nate Pincus and Karen Tafolla took first place with an app, Fish Ops, to help fishermen in the Philippines identify and avoid protected areas. The app also provides a way for the government to locate hotspots where extra resources might be needed to enforce no-fishing zones. And– bonus! – it alerts fishermen to dangerous weather conditions.

Another CSUMB team came in second with an app, “Rogue Net,” to track lost, abandoned fishing gear.

Fish Ops will now compete for the top international honor and the $10,000 cash prize that goes with it. The winning entry will also receive support from the State Department to bring its app to reality. The winner will be selected by a panel of global judges and announced on World Oceans Day, June 8.

Students weren’t the only CSUMB representatives to shine. Dr. Glen Bruns, an assistant professor in the School of Computing and Design, gave a well-received talk at the event’s plenary session.

“Besides having an awesome sleepover experience next to the fish tanks, our teams won the top two places, competing against teams that had students from UC Berkeley, Stanford and other UC campuses,” said Dr. Bude Su, chair of the School of Computing and Design.

Fishackathon by the numbers: