Lifehack Labs Begins…

Today we’re launching Lifehack Labs into the world.

We’re welcoming twenty of the brightest young people from around the country join us in Wellington today to begin Lifehack Labs. It’ll be five weeks of intensive learning, research, mentoring, coaching and prototyping of technology projects, but really it is just the start of the journey for many of them.

The Labs experience brings together a range of disciplines such as design, entrepreneurship, social innovation, and technology and runs from 15 August until 19 September. This social lab is the first of its kind in New Zealand which aims to improve the wellbeing of young New Zealanders through technology and entrepreneurship. Unlike an accelerator programme, applicants enter Labs as individuals, and form teams and ventures around ideas during the lab with a specific social focus.

We’re helping people build resilient teams who are able and willing to take these technology ideas to scale, and impact the lives of thousands of Kiwis. We’re excited to be kicking off the Lab and supporting the next wave of leaders working on youth wellbeing in the digital age through rapidly advancing technology and social media.

With around 40% of the Kiwi population likely to experience depression in their lives, and New Zealand experiencing some of the lowest youth wellbeing rankings in the OECD, we need more skilled people actively working on the biggest problems in our society using a range of toolkits to help them develop new ideas and build on what’s already working around the country.

Lifehack partnered with Trade Me to run the Lab in their iconic space on Market Lane in Wellington. Lifehack is also working with organisations like entrepreneur hub SODA Inc from Hamilton, Queensland University of Technology, and social enterprise network Enspiral. Labs has attracted mentors from academia, the corporate sector, not-for-profits and the blossoming social enterprise scene in Wellington.

Lifehack is part of the Prime Minister’s Youth Mental Health Project, which also funded projects like Common Ground and SPARX.

We’ll be posting regular updates here on our blog and also on social media, so join us on Facebook and Twitter.