[jbeales]

When I saw the HN headline I wondered what "Hack the North" was. As a Canadian I wondered if it was to tackle "uniquely northern" problems, then went down the pessimistic path if it was for northern problems, it would be pretty douchey & ignorant to pretend that a bunch of brogrammers in a southern city could use their laptops to solve the social problems of a place where many lack safe homes & potable water.

Luckily, "Hack the North" is branding, and it makes sense if you're trying to attract an American audience, although if most of your attendees are from Canada, having them fly south to "Hack the North" is kind of ironic.

For anyone thinking about organizing a hackathon to solve northern problems: Make sure your hackers are actually helping solve problems and not trivializing them.