Blog

A communal blog with the goal of amplifying more diverse perspectives and stories in Chicago civic tech. RSS feed

Chi Hack Night | 2024-2025 Goals

Aug 22, 2024 by Sean Watland

On June 1st, 2024, the Board of Directors held our second in-person board retreat! This retreat served as an excellent opportunity for the 10 Board of Directors to have more focused discussions around what membership means at Chi Hack Night, plan our upcoming OKRs for the year, and enjoy copious amounts of bagels & coffee.

Our COVID-19 Policy

Mar 11, 2024 by CHN Board

At Chi Hack Night we continue to believe in the importance of hosting in-person events particularly in a time where meaningful social life is so vital, but we must work together to do so safely.

2024 Board Election Results

Feb 15, 2024 by Elections Committee - Derek Eder, Adam Hecktman, Josh Kalov

On Feb 13th, we held our fifth election for our Board of Directors. We were amazed at the turnout. Of our 28 official Members, 22 attended virtually to cast their votes. Congrats to our elected and appointed Board Members Cameron Sow, Sean Watland, Sneha Jalukar, Michael Chladek, Samantha Goodman, Kyle Dolezal!

Our 2023 Year in Review

Feb 14, 2024 by Sean Watland, Derek Eder, and Michael Chladek

Ahead of our fifth annual Member Meeting and Board Elections on Feb 7, 2023, we’re publishing our 2023 year in review to share with our Members and our community (that’s you!). We put on 48 Chi Hack Night events, hosted 35 presentations, held our fourth annual board election, remained financially stable, and updated and set new objectives and key results (OKRs) for our organization.

Chi Hack Night’s Fifth Board Election

Jan 26, 2024 by CHN Election Committee

Details about the upcoming Board Member Election on February 13, 2024. Info about who is seeking reelection and how members can run for the board is detailed within.

October 2023 Community Feedback Session: Decaying platforms, rising fascism, and government response

Oct 29, 2023 by Derek Eder

On October 24, 2023, Chi Hack Night hosted a facilitated group conversation with 20 members of our civic tech community about the role of technology and data in our society. In this, our seventh Community Feedback session, we focused our discussion on events and trends going on outside of Chi Hack Night and how the civic tech community might respond to them.

Chi Hack Night | 2023-2024 Goals

Aug 22, 2023 by Sean Watland

On June 3rd, 2023, the Board of Directors held our first in-person board retreat! This retreat served as an excellent opportunity for the 10 Board of Directors to have more focused discussions around what membership means at Chi Hack Night, plan our upcoming OKRs for the year, and enjoy copious amounts of bagels & coffee.

Chi Hack Night: 2022-2023 OKRs Review

Jul 15, 2023 by Sean Watland, President

Each year, the Board of Director plans our OKRs to focus our efforts around things that make Chi Hack Night successful. Check out this post to learn more about how we did.

Join us at Media Party on June 8-10, 2023!

May 23, 2023 by Derek Eder

Chi Hack Night is excited to be partnering with Hacks/Hackers for Media Party Chicago 2023! Join us as attendees and participants along with journalists, designers, entrepreneurs, and tech experts, sparking innovative dialogues on artificial intelligence, democracy, and the future of media!

Chi Hack Night President Transition

Mar 3, 2023 by Derek Eder , Sean Watland

After 11 years, Derek Eder is stepping down as President and leader of Chi Hack Night and will be succeeded by Sean Watland. Derek will remain on the Board of Directors and continue to be an active member of the Chi Hack Night community

2023 Board Election Results

Feb 11, 2023 by Sean Watland

On Feb 7th, we held our fourth annual General Meeting and election for our Board of Directors. We were amazed at the turnout. Of our 28 official Members, 19 attended virtually to cast their votes. There were three members chosen by Chi Hack Night Members based on popular vote and one appointed by the current Board of Directors with majority Membership approval.

Our 2022 Year in Review

Feb 7, 2023 by Derek Eder, Sean Watland and Michael Chladek

Ahead of our fourth annual Member Meeting and Board Elections on Feb 7, 2023, we’re publishing our 2022 year in review to share with our Members and our community (that’s you!). We put on 48 Chi Hack Night events, hosted 34 presentations, held our third annual board election, held a hybrid community feedback session, celebrated our 500th Chi Hack Night episode, simplified the committees our Board uses to get work done, streamlined the renewal process for our membership, remained financially stable, and updated and set new objectives and key results (OKRs) for our organization.

Chi Hack Night’s Fourth Board Election

Jan 20, 2023 by CHN Election Committee

Details about the upcoming Board Member Election on February 7, 2023. Info about who is seeking reelection and how members can run for the board is detailed within.

Chi Hack Night #500 Call for Speakers

Jun 17, 2022 by Derek Eder

July 12, 2022 will mark the 500th episode of Chi Hack Night. That’s 10 years! For this very special in-person hack night, the presenters will be YOU! We’re bringing back LIGHTNING TALKS from members of our community. Your prompt: How has Chi Hack Night changed you or your organization?

March 2022 Community Feedback Session

Apr 29, 2022 by Laurie Merrell

On March 15, 2022, Chi Hack Night held a hybrid community feedback session to assess how our community is feeling about the current phase of the pandemic and what people are looking for from Chi Hack Night in this moment.

2022 Board Election Results

Feb 24, 2022 by Josh Kalov

On Feb 22nd, we held our third annual General Meeting and election for our Board of Directors. We were amazed at the turnout. Of our 57 official Members, 26 attended virtually to cast their votes. There were three members chosen by Chi Hack Night Members based on popular vote and two appointed by the current Board of Directors with majority Membership approval.

Our 2021 Year in Review

Feb 22, 2022 by Katie O'Shea, Derek Eder, Eric Sherman, Joel Inwood and Michael Chladek

Ahead of our annual Member Meeting and Board Elections, the Chi Hack Night Board of Directors has compiled the list of our organization’s notable achievements for 2021 to share with our Members and our community (that’s you!) We put on 48 Chi Hack Night events, hosted 31 presentations, held our second annual Member Meeting and board election, resumed 3 in-person events, continued to examine actions we could take to promote racial justice, began offering $100 presenter honorariums, remained financially stable, and tracked our first ever objectives and key results (OKRs).

Feb 22, 2022: Chi Hack Night's Third Board Election

Jan 24, 2022 by Alexis Shoemaker , Josh Kalov

On Tuesday February 22, 2022, Chi Hack Night will hold our third member meeting and election for our Board of Directors. There are a total of 6 seats up in this election. Three of them will be chosen by Chi Hack Night Members based on popular vote and three will be appointed by the current Board of Directors with majority Membership approval. All of the seats are 2 year terms.

In-person Chi Hack Night returns on Nov 16, 2021

Nov 9, 2021 by Derek Eder

On November 16, 2021 at 6pm, in-person Chi Hack Night will return! After 20 months and 75 remote hack nights, we’re excited to bring Chi Hack Night back to the physical world. With COVID cases decreasing in Chicagoland and adult vaccination rates up to 75%, we feel that it is safe again to gather for a masked evening of socializing, learning, and civic hacking. Oh, how we’ve missed you!

Chi Hack Night now offering $100 presenter honorariums

Jul 1, 2021 by Derek Eder

To increase the diversity of speakers at Chi Hack Night and to provide opportunities to potential presenters who may not have the privilege or ability to give their time away for free or in service of their company or organization, Chi Hack Night is now offering a standard presenter honorarium of $100 for all speakers to compensate them for their time and expertise.

Intro to being anti-racist in civic tech

Mar 25, 2021 by Ryan Spencer , Derek Eder

In recognition of Chi Hack Night’s commitment to Black Lives Matter and the racial justice movement, we believe it’s important for our community to continue taking steps to address white supremacy culture. But what does it mean to be anti-racist? What is white supremacy culture and how does it show up? Over the past months, Chi Hack Night’s DEI committee has discussed and researched these questions. Now we’re sharing what we learned so that we can all work to make our communities more equitable and just.

2021 Post-election community feedback results

Feb 26, 2021 by Sam Evans , Derek Eder

Following the 2016 presidential election, Chi Hack Night held a post-election community feedback session. Four years later and with another presidential transition, we decided to hold a remote community feedback session to discuss the same questions as we assess the challenges and opportunities for the Chi Hack Night Community in 2021. Here are the results.

2021 Board Election Results

Feb 12, 2021 by Eric Sherman

On Feb 9, we held our second annual General Meeting and election for our Board of Directors. We were amazed at the turnout. Of our 41 official Members, 28 attended virtually to cast their votes. There were four members chosen by Chi Hack Night Members based on popular vote and two appointed by the current Board of Directors with majority Membership approval.

Our 2020 Year in Review

Feb 6, 2021 by Derek Eder, Josh Kalov, Cameron Sow, Eric Sherman, Joel Inwood and Ryan Spencer

2020 is over. We survived. Chi Hack Night survived. It wasn’t easy. This, friends, is our recap of the year. What started as a highlights reel for the year has transformed into a shared biography on one of the most chaotic, stressful and challenging years we will hopefully ever experience. But through the crucible of pandemic, racial uprising, authoritarianism and more, we’ve come to realize the importance of our community and what we do at Chi Hack Night. So bear with us. It’s a bit long, but hopefully you’ll find it a worthwhile read.

Feb 9, 2021: Chi Hack Night's Second Board Election

Jan 19, 2021 by Alexis Shoemaker , Eric Sherman

On February 9th, 2021, Chi Hack Night will hold our second election for our Board of Directors. There are a total of 5 seats up in this election. Three of them will be chosen by Chi Hack Night Members based on popular vote and two will be appointed by the current Board of Directors with majority Membership approval. All of the seats are 2 year terms.

Chi Hack Night’s 2020 Election Information Guide for Illinois

Oct 6, 2020 by Cameron Sow , Jonathon Rogoff

The 2020 Election is fast approaching. America’s presidential contest is shaping up to be one unlike any other. Chi Hack Night wants to equip you with accurate information to support you as you cast your ballot.

Introducing the Tech & Data Help Desk

Jul 31, 2020 by Derek Eder

Chi Hack Night is now offering free tech & data assistance to nonprofits, government, small businesses and people that request it.

Chi Hack Night stands with the Black Lives Matter movement

Jun 6, 2020 by The Chi Hack Night Board of Directors

Chi Hack Night stands in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. We commit to the fight to end systemic racism and injustice. For real system change to be achieved, we cannot remain silent or on the sidelines. We must also take this time to listen, reflect and learn while also having our voice heard as part of a broader movement.

Leaning into remote, 501(c)(3) status attained & celebrating episode 400!

May 8, 2020 by The Chi Hack Night Board of Directors

As we enter into the second month of staying at home and the world being turned upside down by COVID-19, we’d like to share what Chi Hack Night has been up to, as well as some exciting updates. We are now a 501(c)(3) charitable organization and our 400th episode is coming up next month!

The Civic Technologist's Guide to Helping Out During the COVID-19 Outbreak (Chicagoland Edition)

Mar 23, 2020 by Derek Eder

If you’re reading this, you’re probably interested in, or already part of Chicago’s civic tech community. With everyone sheltering in place, the tools we use and information that we share have never been more critical. Well, if you know about technology and its impact on civic life, this is your moment: you are someone who can be a leader in your own community and to the people that you love. This is a guide for volunteering with Chi Hack Night during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Introducing Remote Chi Hack Nights

Mar 16, 2020 by Eric Sherman , Derek Eder

Are you already feeling that Tuesday night void? Looking for a way to help out and contribute during the COVID-19 outbreak? Chi Hack Nights are going remote! Same time, but now from the comfort of your own home / quarantine location!

Chi Hack Night is Postponed Until Further Notice

Mar 9, 2020 by Derek Eder

Due to the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Chi Hack Night has been postponed until further notice. In the coming weeks, Chi Hack Night will facilitate remote hack nights on Tuesdays over our Slack channel, email and Twitter.

So you want to start a breakout group?

Feb 28, 2020 by Yonatan Kogan , Karl Fogel

A practical guide to running breakout groups at Chi Hack Night. Have an idea for a breakout group? This guide is for you! It contains hard-earned knowledge, recommendations and resources compiled by Chi Hack Night veterans.

2020 Board Election Results

Feb 5, 2020 by Derek Eder

On Feb 4, we held our first-ever General Meeting and election for our Board of Directors. We were amazed at the turnout. Of our 41 official Members, 30 attended in person to cast their votes. There were three members chosen by Chi Hack Night Members based on popular vote and three appointed by the current Board of Directors with majority Membership approval. All board members serve 2 year terms.

Chi Hack Night in 2019: Our first year as a non-profit

Feb 4, 2020 by Derek Eder

Ahead of our first ever non-profit board election, now is a good time to look back on 2019 and review all that we have accomplished at Chi Hack Night. In many ways, 2019 was the most introspective and transformative year for Chi Hack Night since we were founded in 2012.

Feb 4, 2020: Chi Hack Night's First Board Election

Jan 14, 2020 by Derek Eder , Josh Kalov

On February 4, 2020, Chi Hack Night will hold our first ever election for our Board of Directors. There are a total of 5 seats up in this election. Three of them will be chosen by Chi Hack Night Members based on popular vote and two will be appointed by the current Board of Directors with majority Membership approval. All of the seats are 2 year terms.

Introducing the Chi Hack Night Board of Directors

Apr 11, 2019 by Derek Eder

We announced in November 2018 that after almost 7 years and 300 events, Chi Hack Night was forming as a non-profit. Since then, we’ve been hard at work behind the scenes forming our new organization. Today, we are excited to announce a major step on that journey: our first Board of Directors!

The 2019 Chi Hack Night Black History Month Speaker Series

Feb 7, 2019 by Monique Wingard , Derek Eder

Chi Hack Night is proud to present our second annual Black History Month Speaker Series. This year’s speaker series will consist of 3 Chi Hack Night presentations on Tuesday nights in February and a partnership event with the Chicago Chapter of The National Association of Black Journalists.

Chi Hack Night is incorporating as a non-profit!

Nov 9, 2018 by Derek Eder

In December 2018, Chi Hack Night will incorporate as an independent, membership-driven 501(c)3 non-profit organization. We will invite attendees to become voting members and elect who will serve on our Board of Directors. And on December 11th, we will hold a town hall feedback session about these changes at Chi Hack Night.

Chi Hack Night on WTTW Chicago Tonight

May 18, 2018 by Derek Eder

On May 16, 2018 WTTW Chicago Tonight featured Chi Hack Night on their program. The segment covered our 300th event and included interviews with a cross-section of our community.

The 2018 Hackies Winners

May 11, 2018 by Derek Eder

On May 8th, 2018 we celebrated the 300th episode of Chi Hack Night! In honor of this momentous milestone, we recognized the many people, projects, partners, and presentations that make our community great. The evening included the awarding of “the Hackies”, our new civic tech version of the Oscars! 13 Hackies were awarded by popular vote.

Civic Tech and Data Journalism: Better Together

Apr 10, 2018 by Katie O'Shea

On March 10, 2018, a cadre of journalists, civic tech folks, and other interested people gathered in a room at the Marriott Magnificent Mile to discuss the relationship of civic tech and data journalism. Derek Eder and I were to facilitate the discussion at this session, which was called “Civic Tech and Data Journalism: Better Together.” We didn’t include a period on the end of the title, but for us it was implied – it was a statement of fact. However, we soon found, just minutes into the discussion, that, for many in the group, the title should have ended in a question mark.

Protecting yourself on social media

Apr 3, 2018 by Derek Eder

This guide is for people who are concerned about use of their data by social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and Google and its effect on themselves and the world. Though Facebook is emphasized in the guide, most of these steps and principles can be applied to just about any web platform.

Chi Hack Night & City Tech Women’s History Month Speaker Series

Mar 6, 2018 by Sonja Marziano , Derek Eder

Jumping off from the success of our Black History Month Speaker Series in February, for the month of March, we will celebrate Women’s History Month at Chi Hack Night featuring presentations from Alya Adamany Woods from ChicagoNEXT, Sana Jafri from Chicago Learning Exchange, Vicki White from Chicago Books to Women in Prison and Michelle Frisque the CTO of Chicago Public Libraries. We hope you will join us!

Introducing the Chi Hack Night & City Tech Black History Month Speaker Series

Feb 2, 2018 by Sonja Marziano , Derek Eder

For the month of February, we will celebrate Black History Month at Chi Hack Night featuring presentations from Alvyn Walker from Leave No Veteran Behind, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, Fabian Elliott of Black Tech Mecca, Charlene Carruthers of BYP100 and Colony 5. We hope you will join us!

Chi Hack Night: 2017 Year in Review

Jan 4, 2018 by Derek Eder

48 events. 35 presentations. 4 satellite events. 15 new co-hosts. 1 open data pledge. And much more! This is the Chi Hack Night 2017 Year in Review!

The Clear Water Project

Sep 13, 2017 by Sean Thornton

Chicago’s Clear Water Project is an effort to keep beaches safe through a combination of new water testing technologies, predictive modeling, and continued volunteer engagement. Based on its pilot run in 2017, the Clear Water Project method was able to issue water quality advisories with three times more accuracy than Chicago’s previous method.

5 Year Celebration Recap

Apr 24, 2017 by Derek Eder

For our 250th hack night, we asked for presentations along the theme of 5 years forward / 5 years back. We also wanted to open up the format a bit and encourage other kinds of performances, including talks, poems, songs and skits.

Chi Hack Night develops its civic role

Apr 22, 2017 by Stephen Rynkiewicz

Working in newspapers was an education in civics, and in hacking. Chi Hack Night helped me put the two together. As Chi Hack Night marks its 5th anniversary this week, its role in Chicago’s tech community and civic life , and I’m personally grateful for its endurance.

Reflecting on 5 Years of Chi Hack Night

Apr 18, 2017 by Derek Eder

Today marks Chi Hack Night’s 250th event and 5 year anniversary! Yes, we’ve been doing this for 5 years, and what a ride it’s been! For the occasion, we invited our members, alumni and past presenters to share how Chi Hack Night and it’s community has affected or benefited them. We were floored by your responses. It turns out you like us! You really like us!

Celebrate 5 Years of Chi Hack Night with Us!

Mar 30, 2017 by Derek Eder

April 18, 2017 will mark the 250th episode of Chi Hack Night. That’s 5 years! To celebrate this day, we want to hear from you, the members of Chi Hack Night, via lightning presentations and testimonials.

Technology alone can't solve Chicago's murder problem

Mar 10, 2017 by Steven Vance , Christopher Whitaker

As members of Chi Hack Night, an open group that has been shaping civic technology in Chicago for five years, we responded to Scott Moorhouse’s opinion piece suggesting a hackathon to solve Chicago’s violence problem.

Presenting the Women In Tech Speaker Series

Mar 7, 2017 by Kyla Williams , Derek Eder

Smart Chicago Collaborative and Chi Hack Night have teamed up to create a speaking series in celebration of Women’s History Month in an effort to elevate the talented, diverse women in civic-driven technology across Chicago.

Chi Hack Night: 2016 Year In Review

Dec 31, 2016 by Derek Eder

49 events. 33 presentations. 27 blog posts. 2 open data pledges 58 video presentations. And much more! This is the Chi Hack Night 2016 Year in Review!

Recap: The Holiday Party Hacktacular Lightning Talks

Dec 20, 2016 by Derek Eder

On December 13th 2016, Chi Hack Night hosted our last event of the year: The Chi Hack Night Holiday Party Hacktacular. Eight members of the Chi Hack Night community shared their own story or insight about civics, society and technology. The major themes this time around were the needs, tactics and benefits of inclusion, perspective on our community’s role in society, and the responsibilities that we have as users of data.

Lightning Talks 3: Call for Speakers

Dec 2, 2016 by Derek Eder

Lightning Talks return for our last Chi Hack Night of the year! Do you have an interesting or funny story to tell about civics, society and/or technology? Want to show off that awesome project you’ve been working on? Now’s your chance to tell it to the world!

Post-election community feedback results

Nov 26, 2016 by Derek Eder

On November 15, 2016, Chi Hack Night held a post-election community feedback session. It was our largest Chi Hack Night ever with over 165 attendees. Read through the full results and see how our community is planning to adapt to America’s new political reality.

Chi Hack Night at Transparency Camp 2016

Oct 28, 2016 by Derek Eder

Oct 14-15, 2016 was Transparency Camp in Cleveland, Ohio - and Chi Hack Night was there to represent Chicago! As advocates of transparency and open government, it’s only natural that members of Chi Hack Night decided to attend. With Cleveland a 5-6 hour drive away, we decided to make a road trip out of it! We rented a van and hit the road.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office at Chi Hack Night

Sep 16, 2016 by Steven Vance

On Tuesday, September 13th 2016, three analysts from the United States Government Accountability Office presented at Chi Hack Night to describe the data-intensive nature of their work assessing our federal government’s efficiency to a crowd of over 100 people. Presenters Rebecca Abela, Silvia Ellis, and Joanie Lofgren all work in the GAO’s Chicago office, one of 11 offices across the country.

High school students are joining Chi Hack Night to train in user experience & design

Aug 26, 2016 by Eve Tulbert

This Fall, Mikva Challenge and Mumkin Studio will partner to kick-off a program for teen user experience design interns at Chi Hack Night. Four Chicago Public High School students will work with Chi Hack Night during the fall quarter. They’ll design, implement, and evaluate user experience for two Chi Hack Night projects.

Petcokealerts.org: Simple tools supporting big objectives

Aug 5, 2016 by Ben Wilhelm

Petcokealerts.org supports advocacy groups on the southeast side in their fight against an environmental injustice.

Some of you do not really love women

Jul 28, 2016 by Kristi Leach

There is a lot of talk at Chi Hack Night right now about being inclusive. Truly including people means learning to appreciate the things they enjoy, the ways they express themselves, their style. If you don’t like the way women sound and socialize and approach professional life, maybe you…don’t really like women.

July 19 lightning talks: empathy, inclusion and progress

Jul 21, 2016 by Derek Eder

On July 19th 2016, we heard from 9 members of Chi Hack Night on the projects they’ve worked on and the lessons they’ve learned from our community. Though there was no defined theme or coordination among the presenters, all 9 talks ended up focusing on the topics of empathy, inclusion and progress.

Lightning Talks Return!

Jul 5, 2016 by Derek Eder

Based on the success of the lightning talks we did for our 200th episode, we’re giving it another go on July 19th! Do you have an interesting or funny story to tell about Chi Hack Night? Want to show off that awesome civic project you’ve been working on? Now’s your chance to tell it to the world!

Taking Predictive Analytics to the Beach

Jun 23, 2016 by Sean Thornton

Chicago is piloting an analytical model to enhance its Park District’s regular beach water quality inspection process. The model, which was built entirely by a team of volunteers from Chicago’s civic tech community, aims to predict which beaches may need to close based on likely E. Coli contamination.

Chi Safe Path

Jun 3, 2016 by Steve Luker

Chicago has some extremely treacherous sidewalks, curbs and cross ways that have the potential of doing great bodily injury to those with disabilities. To help with this problem, Steven Luker submitted an app to the Center for Neighborhood Technology Urban Sustainability App Competition this weekend to allow users to report, see, and route around bad sidewalks.

Mysterious Disappearances

May 19, 2016 by Joel Inwood

It was a dark and stormy night. As I trudged through the downpour on the old steel bridge across the Chicago River, I was excited that we had finally reached a breakthrough. For months we had been developing the perfect formula, better than any government or nonprofit throughout the land, for using public data to rate nursing homes.

Tales from #200

Apr 15, 2016 by Derek Eder

April 12th, 2016 marked our 200th Chi Hack Night! From our humble beginnings on March 22nd, 2012 as 4 nerds sitting around a table eating macaroni, to this week with 130 people from across the city from all manner of backgrounds, skillsets and neighborhoods, we have come a long, long way. Here’s what happened at Chi Hack Night 200.

#200 Celebration: A place to learn and grow civic tech leadership

Apr 12, 2016 by Christopher Whitaker

In both his State of the Union and his remarks at #SXSW, Chicagoan and President Barack Obama stated that the most important office in a democracy was that of the Office of the Citizen. At Chi Hack Night, we’re privileged to be part of an active movement of people getting engaged in their communities through the use of technology.

#200 Celebration: Why I Attend Chicago Hack Night Events

Apr 11, 2016 by Daniel Bassill

I’ve been attending Chicago Hack Night events for at least 2 years and I’m writing this article to help celebrate their 200th weekly gathering. This image is from May 29, 2016, where the Heartland Alliance presented information. You can see me in the middle, sitting by the wall. That’s my usual spot. Helps me see better.

#200 Celebration: Becoming a Runner-Up in a Hackathon (without writing a single line of code)

Apr 10, 2016 by Audrey Henderson

It was September 2012, and I was reading a description for the Reinventing Chicago event at CNT (Center for Neighborhood Technology) the following month. The cost was $100, which isn’t a huge amount of money, but not exactly pocket change, at least not for me. But just as I was about to enter my payment information, I noticed that hackathon participants could attend for free. Even though I had no idea what a hackathon was, I figured, it was a weekend. How bad could it be?

#200 Celebration: Why I Come to Chi Hack Night

Apr 9, 2016 by Emily Drevets

I don’t code or design or project manage or map. I am a writer. And an improviser. And sometimes a marketer. And I read a lot of books. Despite that, I have felt so welcome. More importantly, I’ve realized how every problem is interdisciplinary and we need everyone on board—everyone from all backgrounds— to solve them.

#200 Celebration: Congratulations from Cook County Government!

Apr 8, 2016 by Simona Rollinson

Simona Rollinson, Cook County’s Chief Information Officer, offers her congratulations to Chi Hack Night and the broader civic tech ecosystem in Cook County. In addition to providing data and information, she hopes to strengthen the fabric of this community. A strong civic tech community is a public asset.

Chi Hack Night #200: Call for speakers and writers

Mar 25, 2016 by Derek Eder

April 12, 2016 will mark the 200th episode of Chi Hack Night. To celebrate this day, we want to hear from you, the members of Chi Hack Night, about what you’ve done with or learned from this group. You can participate in two ways: by doing a lightning talk or writing a blog post.

So you built an app, now what? Guerilla marketing protips for civic tech apps

Mar 4, 2016 by Joel Inwood , Vinesh Kannan

On Feb 23rd 2016, Joel Inwood hosted a one-time breakout session at Chi Hack Night to discuss lean and feedback-centric methods of promoting your civic app. Three participants had their own project that needed some exposure, each of which is described below in the form of a case study that may provide some inspiration. We have generalized some guerilla marketing methods at the end that you should be able to apply to your own project.

Adrienne Alexander tells Chi Hack Night what she does as a union lobbyist

Feb 3, 2016 by Steven Vance

Adrienne Alexander came to Chi Hack Night last night to tell us about her experience as a lobbyist working for the state’s largest public employees union.

Freedom of Information and Laquan McDonald

Jan 19, 2016 by Steven Vance

The story of how the Laquan McDonald video got released thanks to one curious journalist and the Freedom of Information Act.

Chi Hack Night: 2015 Year in Review

Dec 22, 2015 by Derek Eder , Christopher Whitaker

It’s the end of the year, and time to reflect on all the amazing things we accomplished in 2015 at the Chi Hack Night, Chicago’s place to build, share and learn about civic tech. Our community has never been as large, as diverse, as engaged and as productive as it is now. We have a lot to be proud of.

10 lessons from organizing Chi Hack Night

Nov 23, 2015 by Derek Eder

Chi Hack Night has been referenced as the largest, most successful and productive civic hacking community around. This post is my first attempt at synthesizing and sharing our organizing model, starting with 10 lessons we’ve learned over the years.

The inside track on how Aldertrack works

Oct 24, 2015 by Steven Vance

Mike Fourcher, founder of Aldertrack, and perpetual “news startup antagonist” (okay, I don’t remember the actual adjective he used), joined his colleague Claudia Morell, a reporter, and us at ChiHackNight on Tuesday night to explain how Aldertrack works.

The labor required to keep civic apps alive

Oct 9, 2015 by Derek Eder

The CPS Tiers map doesn’t update automagically. I volunteer my time to keep it accurate and up to date, and it’s worth doing.

311 is back in the spotlight after 3 years

Oct 8, 2015 by Steven Vance

Last week, for budget “season” in Chicago, Mayor Rahm Emanuel proposed privatizing the 311 system – where citizens and aldermen request services from any city department, and citizens get information about city services – as a way to pay for the technology upgrade the system desperately needs.

Meet Team #ChiHackNight at the Code for America Summit

Sep 28, 2015 by Christopher Whitaker

The Chi Hack Night will be sending 13 members of our community to the Code for America Summit September 30th - October 2nd, 2015. We had everyone who went answer a few questions about themselves and what they’re looking forward to at this year’s Summit. We can’t wait to meet everyone there!

Results of our community feedback session

Sep 23, 2015 by Derek Eder

Yesterday, the Chi Hack Night had our first ever community feedback session. The Chi Hack Night has grown and changed a lot over the last 3 ½ years, and we wanted to take the time and hear from everyone on how it’s going, and how we can make it better. To handle our large group (there were about 70 people in attendance), we broke out into four groups, led by Genevieve Nielsen, Rose Afriyie, Cathy Deng and Karl Fogel, to provide feedback on four topics.

Why the Slow Roll Chicago working group uses GitHub to collaborate

May 25, 2015 by Steven Vance

Email wasn’t just limiting our discussion quality and member inclusion, it was also limiting file storage, file sharing, and file versioning (which file is the latest?). Email has tended to demand a lot of attention, and there’s a lot of wasted time typing responses. I wanted to use a tool that didn’t have such demands, and that helped organize responses into actionable requests and delegation.

Introducing Chi Hack Night

May 12, 2015 by Derek Eder

I’m happy to announce the new name and logo for our event. Since we started 3 years and 155 events ago, our event has grown into a community all it’s own. We emerged out of the Open Government movement here in Chicago, and have become something much more. We’re not just about Open Gov anymore. We’re about Chicago.

How Data Can Advance Economic Justice

Jan 27, 2015 by Katie Buitrago

At Woodstock Institute, our mission is to advance economic justice, particularly for low-wealth communities and communities of color. To move towards this goal, we prepare data concerning economic justice and empower others to use and understand it. As our national partners at the National Community Reinvestment Coalition say, data drive the movement.

Mob Programming as an Open Door to Learning to Program

Jan 15, 2015 by Nick Mader

The flourishing of the Civic Tech movement has brought techies and citizens together, using technology to make cities more transparent and better coordinated. The movement’s strength and joy is its diversity - Chicago’s Open Gov Hack Night attracts a wide range of talents and interests each week, from web designers to database managers, data scientists, designers, business intelligence professionals, journalists, government representatives, social science researchers, non-profits and community organizers.

Open Gov Hack Night: 2014 Year in Review

Jan 6, 2015 by Derek Eder

The Open Gov Hack Night is Chicago’s weekly event to build, share, and learn about civic tech. And, boy, was it ever a place to do just that in 2014. Looking back over the last calendar year, we did a lot - too much to recount in one blog post. But I can hit the highlights!

Open Source, Closed Data

Dec 20, 2014 by Hunter Owens

One problem organizations have faced in the past when opening up their data is that, well, the data has to remain closed. For example, data with either HIPAA or FERPA provisions is pretty much stuck in a closed state. Furthermore, many organizations are reluctant to open up certain datasets. However, all hope is not lost - this post will advance the idea of Open Source, Closed Data and present several implementation strategies.

An Intro to Web Scraping with Python

Nov 26, 2014 by Zaynaib Giwa

Web scraping is the task of extracting data from a website. It’s a nifty skill in any technologist’s toolkit because interesting data isn’t always accessible via an API or in a table/csv - sometimes, interesting data is just sitting on a webpage.

Introducing Civic Tech Voices

Nov 24, 2014 by Cathy Deng

Nowadays, more and more folks are paying attention to civic tech, seeing potential at the intersection of civics & all things digital. Civic Tech Voices is a collaborative blogging experiment, of sorts, with the goal of amplifying more diverse perspectives & stories in civic tech.