A sustainability innovation challenge where project management meets AI-enabled building.
Two weeks to ship a working prototype and run it like a real project — documented end to end in a Coda workspace you keep. It's not about who can code. It's about who can frame a meaningful problem, plan, collaborate, use AI well, and deliver.
Free to enter10 PDUs for PMI membersIndividuals & teams welcomeBuild in any tool or stackFor LA communities
Jun 15
Hold the date
Aug 28
Registration opens · free
Sep 12
Kickoff call
Oct 3
Deliverables due
Oct 17
Event & awards
The Challenge
Project management, meet AI-enabled building.
Students, project managers, technologists, and community builders form teams to build a practical tool for a real Los Angeles community problem — and run the whole thing like a real project. Three moves, two weeks.
01
Frame
Pick a real problem brought by a nonprofit or community partner. A genuine need, a real population, real constraints.
02
Build
Ship a working prototype in two weeks, in any tool — and document the project in a Coda workspace you keep.
03
Present
Demo it live and walk the judges through how you planned, scoped, managed risk, and delivered.
Practice project management in an AI-enabled world — and PMI members earn 10 PDUs for taking part.
◆
A portfolio you keep
Walk away with a working prototype and a documented, end-to-end Coda project you can actually show.
●
Real community impact
Build something an LA nonprofit can use — open-source and theirs to keep, designed with the people it serves.
Free to enter · individuals or teams · mentorship, a recorded kickoff, and prizes & recognition.
Responsible AI & Ethics
AI lowered the barrier. It raised the bar.
Sustainable & ethical AI — the center of this challenge
We know "sustainable AI" can sound like a paradox.
It often is. Data centers are straining power, water, and air in communities across the country — frontline communities most of all, and we won't pretend otherwise. But AI isn't going away, so we take that as a starting fact and turn it into the challenge's hardest constraint: build as if truly sustainable AI is the goal. It doesn't fully exist yet, and this challenge is meant to be one small step toward it.
Sound of Earth has team members researching data-center design, the policy shifts shaping where and how they get built, and the ethical impact on the frontline communities living beside them.
Overall placement, nonprofit mission-aligned category awards, and special recognition for craft and approach. Prizes are funded by sponsors and partners. amounts TBA
Best Use of AIBest Project Management ApproachBest Data VisualizationDesign ExcellenceCommunity Connection
Free to enter. Register as a team of 2–5, or sign up solo and we'll match you into a team at kickoff. team size to confirm Sponsors, mentors, judges, and nonprofit partners welcome too.
1
Register your interest
Add your name (and teammates, if you have them). It's free, and takes a couple of minutes.
2
Get set up
We confirm you and share the Coda resource hub — problem briefs, the workspace template, FAQs, and key dates.
3
Form or join a team
Bring your own team or get matched at the kickoff call, then start building.
&
