The UNESCO Youth Hackathon invites young people ages 18–30 to design projects that advance Media and Information Literacy (MIL). The 2025 edition drew over 1,200 teams from 138 countries.
2026 theme:
"Play Your Part: Youth Designing the Future of Media and Information Literacy"
Challenge tracks:
Teams choose one or more focus areas: AI and MIL, MIL Education, Community Impact, Youth Engagement, or an Open Track for other MIL ideas that fit the theme. Projects can take many forms, including games, apps or websites, podcasts, comics or short films, educational toolkits, campaigns, and community interventions.
Historical 2026 submission requirements:
| Requirement | Details |
|---|---|
| Proposal document | PDF or Word, up to 10 MB, in English |
| Pitch video | Up to 3 minutes; any language with English subtitles |
| Team size | 2–6 members, all ages 18–30 |
Originally published 2026 schedule:
| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| Call for participation | From June 15 |
| Online mentoring | July 1–2 |
| Submission window | July 6 to August 16 |
| Global evaluation | August 18 to September 15 |
| Winner announcement | September 15–30 |
| Official announcement | During Global MIL Week, October 24–31 |
| Winners ceremony | November 26–28 |
The original call's timeline lists evaluation through September 15 and winner announcement September 15–30, while its evaluation paragraph says September 13 and its introduction promises an official announcement during October 24–31. These are the original published schedule statements. A dated UNESCO news article, published October 23 and updated October 26, now identifies the four winning teams: Lucide, PEKA, Beyond the Bubble and I Thought I Knew You.
No 2027 application window was verified in the checked official pages.
Prize:
The four 2026 winning teams are invited to the Voices European Festival of Journalism and Media Freedom in Thessaloniki, Greece. UNESCO covers flights, accommodation, and meals for 2 members of each winning team.
About UNESCO:
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is a UN specialized agency founded in 1945 and headquartered in Paris.
Source check, November 4, 2026: The 2026 call supplies the historical deadline and rules. The current programme page and dated winner article confirm the selected teams. Their November 26–28 presentation at the Voices festival in Thessaloniki is separate from the online mentoring and submission phases. Flights, accommodation and meals are promised for two members of each winning team; this does not establish full-cost coverage for every participant. No participation fee is listed.