#United States #New York #Sustainable Development #Open Source #UN Tech Over

UN Tech Over Event: A Catalyst for Open Source Innovation

The United Nations recently organized its pioneering event, UN Tech Over, emphasizing a departure from conventional UN conferences. Over 200 global technologists, innovators, and open source practitioners gathered in New York from June 16 to 17, 2025, as part of the 2025 UN Open Source Week. The event featured three simultaneous hackathons aimed at promoting the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Overview of the Event

The UN Tech Over brought together multidisciplinary participants who engaged in collaborative problem-solving during three hackathons—each focusing on distinct but interconnected challenges. This unique approach enabled attendees to harness the transformative potential of technology while fostering multi-stakeholder cooperation.

Breakthrough Results

Three themed hackathons generated remarkable solutions, including:

1. Ahead of the Storm: This initiative centered on Open Geospatial Analytics for children-centric climate emergency responses. Comprising over 80 participants, teams addressed challenges posed by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), focusing on scalable solutions aimed at protecting vulnerable children and marginalized communities. By integrating existing tools and data, participants built compelling strategies that hinge on the principles of the Global Digital Compact.

2. Wikipedia Edit-A-Thon: Nearly 40 engaged participants collaborated to enhance Wikipedia’s documentation concerning UN history and themes. This edit-a-thon celebrated the 70th anniversary of Italy and Sri Lanka becoming UN members, resulting in over 970 edits, with 16,300 new words added across six newly created articles and 234 revised pages. The improved content quickly amassed 1.99 million views, exemplifying the effectiveness of collaborative knowledge creation on a global scale.

3. Maintain-A-Thon: Over 40 participants joined this initiative, concentrating on the often-overlooked work of maintaining vital open source software. Under the guidance of industry veterans, including Michael Winser from Alpha-Omega, senior maintainers provided mentorship on best practices in software upkeep, documentation, and issue triage. This track underscored the significance of sustainability and long-term stewardship in digital frameworks that support SDG initiatives.

A Shift in UN Engagement

In stark contrast to traditional UN gatherings characterized by presentations and panels, the UN Tech Over fostered an environment of active collaboration and action. It provided unprecedented opportunities for global open source communities to engage with pressing global challenges through hands-on participation and innovation.

Omar Mohsine, the Open Source Coordinator for the UN, described the event as a pivotal moment in the UN’s engagement with the open source community. He emphasized that this approach empowers practitioners to develop solutions collaboratively, thereby generating impactful outcomes aligned with the SDGs. According to him, “Instead of merely discussing potential solutions, practitioners actually came together to create them, showcasing the incredible advancements made by the open source community.”

Cultivating Open Source Momentum

The success of the event reflects the increasing appreciation of open source technology's role in promoting sustainable development. It highlighted how collaborative innovation can create scalable impacts for vulnerable populations worldwide. This gathering advanced a community-focused approach to technology that prioritizes sustainability and long-lasting benefits.

Arun Gupta, Vice President of Developer Programs at Intel, remarked, “The UN has converged nations into collaborators rather than competitors, making it exciting to watch the open source community step up to solve global issues.”

About UN Tech Over

The UN Tech Over operates under the umbrella of the 2025 UN Open Source Week, facilitated by the UN Office of Digital and Emerging Technologies (UN-ODET) alongside the UN Office of Information and Communications Technology (UN-OICT). This initiative underscores technology’s immense potential to drive progress toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals, promoting collaboration and engagement within the open source community to tackle real-world challenges efficiently.

For additional information regarding the UN Tech Over event and forthcoming UN open source initiatives, please visit UN Open Source Week 2025.