FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
General Questions
The International Blockchain Olympiad (IBCOL) is an annual global competition inviting current and recent students to propose solutions for real-world challenges with blockchain technology. IBCOL 2024 is the 7th International Blockchain Olympiad.
The mission of the International Blockchain Olympiad (IBCOL) is to support sustainability and maturity in blockchain by working with academic, industry, and government partners. Working with secondary and tertiary students, IBCOL provides education and training on designing complete blockchain solutions.
Participants of the International Blockchain Olympiad (IBCOL) are encouraged to be responsible contributors of our digital future:
- Promoting Awareness on Blockchain Technology & Applications: students from around the world will benefit from the experience of participating in the IBCOL program of activities, which includes seminar series, specialized training and workshops, mentoring, and networking events besides the actual competitions. This will cultivate a genuine interest in the area of innovation, originality, creativity and cutting-edge technology. It will also instill the right ethical values in the younger generation to pave the way for their further exploration of blockchain in the future.
- Enhancing Employability by Equipping Participants with helpful Skills: The prospective and actual participants will benefit tremendously from the IBCOL programme, as they learn practical skills and knowledge outside their disciplines and push the boundaries of their comfort zones. Students get a taste of the real world, and learn how to identify and overcome challenges in actually making something happen.
Eligible participants must be either current or recent students from :
- Secondary-level academic institution (e.g. middle school, high school, collegiate institute, gymnasium, lyceum, etc)
- Tertiary-level academic institution (e.g. college, university, Hochschule)
Contestant Teams have:
- Minimum 1 and maximum 6 eligible individuals
- May not be more than 50% identical to another team
Observers must be eligible individuals.
Yes! Blockchain is not only for “technology” students. In fact, if you’re from a tech background, we advise you to think beyond technology, and avoid the trap of creating a solution looking for a problem!
Yes! Blockchain is not only for tech or business students. Historically, students from a diverse range of majors or interests have competed on equal footing, as the solution design requires deep thinking into problem solving for specific domains and verticals.
Proposals
As always, the theme of the International Blockchain Olympiad is to invite students to propose their (realistic) vision of a blockchain future. The IBCOL 2024 lets teams enter their proposals into one of the seventeen categories that correspond with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) of the United Nations (UN):
- No Poverty
- Zero Hunger
- Good Health and Well-being
- Quality Education
- Gender Equality
- Clean Water and Sanitation
- Affordable and Clean Energy
- Decent Work and Economic Growth
- Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
- Reduced Inequality
- Sustainable Cities and Communities
- Responsible Consumption and Production
- Climate Action
- Life Below Water
- Life on Land
- Peace and Justice Strong Institutions
- Partnerships to achieve the Goal
A proposal may be categorized into up to three of these categories (order matters). The Competitions Committee reserves the right to recategorize any proposal.
A team of students (up to six per team) describes the problem or challenge being addressed, an overview of the solution, details of the solution architecture, and demonstrates how the solution addresses the problem. Elements of a business plan like market analysis, competitive analysis, revenue model, distribution strategy, etc are optional — i.e. do it if it helps explain your solution design. Likewise, elements of a project plan like development plan, testing plan, financial plan, etc are optional.
Your proposal to a blockchain solution may be expressed with any myriad of tools. The following item are required:
- Proposal Slide Deck for Reading
- Whitepaper (IEEE Conference Format, A4)
The following items are optional:
- Video (e.g. demo, pitch, or a story)
- High-fidelity prototype
The following items are required by IBCOL 2024 Finalists:
- Poster Board (academic symposium style; digital only; 16:9 ratio)
The following items are not required but IBCOL 2024 Finalists may find it helpful to have prepared:
- Proposal Slide Deck for Reading
- High-fidelity prototype
We recommend creating a concept of your project and gradually develop these materials as the project matures. In fact, the development of these materials would help increase the quality of your project. Maximize your development cycles.
The most important aspect of a blockchain solution is the design. A bad implementation with a good design succeeds eventually; a good implementation with a bad design fails immediately. Thus, it is not required to implement a prototype to demonstrate technical skills — so no coding expected, let alone smart contracts or chain code — although if a team decides that it is useful for explanatory purposes, go for it!
Teams may pursue multiple project proposals, and may enter multiple proposals for the exhibition event, but may only compete with one proposal.
Teams may be composed of 1 to 6 eligible individuals. Each team has one team lead. Individuals may be on more than one team, but team compositions cannot be more than half alike.
Yes. And the representative school shall be the one of the team leader’s. If there is at least one tertiary-level individual in a mixed secondary- and tertiary-level team, then that team is considered a tertiary-level team.
Current and recent students (without age limit) may register as a competitor. The Competitions Committee may request proof-of-enrollment or proof-of-graduation.
Definitions:
- Current Secondary-Level Students : Any current student studying at a secondary academic institution (ISCED 2011 level 2-4).
- Current Tertiary-Level Students : Any current student studying at a tertiary academic institution (ISCED 2011 level 5-8).
- Recent Secondary- or Tertiary-Level Students : Any recent student of a tertiary academic institution within and including up to three (3) years since graduation or hiatus. The Competitions Committee may request an endorsement from academic or administrative staff from their institutions.
Nominations
There are three ways for a team to be nominated:
- An officially-sanctioned national blockchain olympiad committee
- An officially-sanctioned national-level nominating party
- Self-nomination
If a national blockchain olympiad is active this year in your country or territory, please refer to them directly for all details on their process. IBCOL 2024 receives competition and exhibition nominations from them directly, without additional secondary screening activities.
If a national blockchain olympiad is not active this year in your country or territory, you may be nominated by an organization within your country or territory. IBCOL 2024 receives competition and exhibition nominations from them directly, with possible secondary screening activities if deemed necessary by the Competitions Committee.
There are three parties that can nominate:
- National Committee (NC)
- National Nominator (NN)
- Self-Nomination (SN)
Accredited organizers are authorized by IBCOL 2024 to nominate teams to compete. Accredited organizers are required to inform the IBCOL Competitions Committee of their nomination process.
Secondary screening may be conducted for nominees from accredited organizers depending on the process and other factors for that country or territory.
There is no limit to the number of nominations.
Teams from countries or territories without an NC or NN that have eligible individuals may directly submit their proposal to the Ersatz Blockchain Olympiad Committee and proceed to secondary screening.
No, unless the accredited organizers has rules stating otherwise.
Extensions must be requested at least 7 days before a deadline and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Some valid reasons include but are not limited to: war, civil unrest, natural disasters, and other force majeures.
The Ersatz Blockchain Olympiad Committee takes the role of a accredited organizers to evaluate nominees from countries or territories without an accredited organizers and to evaluate some nominees that were passed by accredited organizers under special circumstances. The evaluation is conducted with the standard evaluation criteria by a jury panel selected from a pool of jurors from around the world. If the nominee passes the evaluation, they are allowed to proceed.
A nominee becomes a finalist when IBCOL 2024 Competitions Committee officially recognizes that team and is entered into the registry for IBCOL.
Registration
After you enter your first submission, you will be given a Team ID to be included in future re-submissions and submission 2.
For national-level nominations, please refer to the deadlines set by your national blockchain olympiad committee or national-level nominator.
For self-nominations, the deadline to submit is Monday 30 September 2024. Extensions may be granted on a case-by-case basis with sufficient explanation, such as but not limited to war, civil unrest, natural disasters, and acts of god ("force majeure").
Submission
For national-level nominations, please refer to the deadlines set by your national blockchain olympiad committee or national-level nominator.
For self-nominations, the deadline to submit is Monday 30 September 2024. Extensions may be granted on a case-by-case basis with sufficient explanation, such as but not limited to war, civil unrest, natural disasters, and acts of god ("force majeure").
The submission requirements are set by your national blockchain olympiad committee or national-level nominator — there may be some differences in their requirements and that of the IBCOL 2024 International Finals. The following submission requirements are for the IBCOL 2024 International Finals.
| Materials | Requirement | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Team Member Profile | Mandatory | 3-4 sentences and photo for each team member |
| Team Member CV | Recommended | PDF files |
| Poster (big one-pager) | Mandatory (for Finalists only) |
|
| 10-min Presentation | Recommended (for Finalists only) | MP4 file or Youtube URL, 10-minute limit |
| Pitch Deck | Mandatory (for Finalists only) | PDF or .pptx file, no slide limit |
| Whitepaper | Mandatory |
|
The submission evaluation criteria are set by your national blockchain olympiad committee or national-level nominator — there may be some differences in their criteria and that of the IBCOL 2024 International Finals. The following submission requirements are for the IBCOL 2023 International Finals.
| CRITERION | GUIDELINES | EVALUATION |
|---|---|---|
| 1. CHALLENGE | Is it appropriate to use blockchain to address the problem or challenge? Does blockchain add value to the overall solution design? | Pass/Fail |
| 2. IDENTITY | Does the proposal handle digital identity? How is the legal and compliance aspect? | Pass/Fail |
| 3. PRIVACY | How is data privacy handled? How is consent handled? What are some privacy-related risks and how are they handled? | 20% |
| 4. SECURITY | How is data access, availability, and authentication handled? What are some security-related risks and how are they handled? | 20% |
| 5. TRUST | How is data integrity handled? What are some trust-related risks and how are they handled? | 20% |
| 6. PRESENTATION | Does the team present their solution in a clear and concise manner? Does the team competently address all enquiries about their solution? | 40% |
Competition
Monday 30 September 2024
Amsterdam, Netherlands. inHolland University
Students, educators, and members of the media have free admission. Other attendees may purchase tickets.
Category Awards
Based on the SDG categories :
- Gold Medal Awards
- Silver Medal Awards
- Bronze Medal Awards
- Awards of Distinction
- Recognition
Criteria Awards
- Awards for Commercial Depth
- Technical Depth
- Presentability
- Originality
Consensus Awards
Based on participation at the IBCOL 2024 finals
- Awards for the Most Impactful Project
- Most Sustainable Project
- Most Sophisticated Project
- Most Ambitious Project