Hidden deep underground, a substance can be found that has fuelled evolution over the last few centuries: Oil. But now, a different kind of revolution is taking place, on in which you Campuseros play a huge part, which is the digital revolution.  This means a new fuel is required, which is to be found up in the air – data.  In the same way that oil evidences our past, data is the evidence of our actions in the current, digital era.  We can make sense of it and use the insights it provides to understand our present and thereby better plan our future.

Until now we couldn’t make sense of varying information that was being generated from different sources in different formats.  Every person’s footprint on this planet allows us to learn what happens in the world and understand why it happens, instead of relying on what people choose to say that they do such as through social media.  It is now possible to anonymise and aggregate that data and create live Census dashboards that allow us to understand trends and changes in patterns of crowds, as they happen.

This capacity to observe, select and quantify reality is revolutionizing the way we make decisions and the way we answer questions. Similarly to the ODI (The Open Data Institute), Telefonica Dynamic Insightsare helping to promote Digital Confidence and find ways in which to use our data for social good.   Researchers are achieving wonders with data, such as mapping the spread of the Avian Flu, understanding catastrophes through communication patterns or improving the performance time of emergency services – they are helping us to live better, help our communities and preserve our planet. Now that’s what I call remarkable.

But more is always needed and more can be done which is where you Campuseros come in.  Telefónica knows it can’t do all of the innovation.  All of us have ideas on how to improve small things, and remember that big things are combinations of a lot of small things intelligently put together.  So if we improve one small thing at a time, who knows what big changes we can produce?

So, bring your genius; your capacity to think outside the box; your will to change; your capacity to turn ideas into reality and use that at our Datathon at Campus Party; launched by Telefonica with The ODI and MIT.

They’re putting together datasets that you can use to build ideas, concepts, applications and even businesses, all with the ambition of improving the way we live. And the best part is everyone wins: Companies, People and the Planet.

The Datathon will be launched by Professor Alex “Sandy” Pentland and Gavin Starks at 5pm on the 3rd of September at the O2.  All the details are available here. The prizes are worth their weight in data; the winner will get fast track access on the next Wayra call in the UK, later in September.  This means the team will have preferred access to Wayra!  The runner-up and 3rd place will receive a cool £1,000 and £500 respectively (snazzy!).

So grab this amazing opportunity to assess and unlock the value of the information we create, and to interact with leading people in the data industry –it’s all in the gig.