NOTE: All recipients of Echo and Echo Dot devices have been contacted for their shipping information.

Alexa, the voice service that powers the Amazon Echo, provides capabilities, or skills, that enable customers to interact with devices in a more intuitive way using voice. Every skill you create makes Alexa smarter. This challenge invites you to build an Alexa skill that will improve sustainability or accessibility around us (choose one challenge).

Sustainability challenge:

Build an Alexa skill that promotes a sustainable lifestyle and empowers Alexa users to make a change in the way they live. For example, an Alexa skill that compares the carbon footprint generated by catching the bus versus driving a car. Using publicly available datasets may be useful in developing an Alexa skill for this challenge. Here are some examples:

- A number of free datasets hosted in Amazon Web Services (AWS).

- Community-sourced, aggregated air quality data from around the world made available by Openaq.

- Water quality data collected by over 400 US agencies and provided by the Water Quality Portal service..

- Energy efficiency-related datasets from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

- The state of California’s open data portal contains several Sustainability focused data sets.

Accessibility challenge:

Build an Alexa skill that makes life on your university campus easier for those who may not experience it the way you do. For example, an Alexa skill that gives users directions optimized for someone using a wheelchair or scooter.

The best part…no hardware is necessary to enter. If you do not have an Alexa-enabled device, you can test your skill with Alexa right in your browser and begin building your skill right away. The contest begins on April 6 at 1:00 PM PDT and will close on May 7, 2017 at 11:59:59 PM PDT. Winners will be announced on May 31, 2017.

We can’t wait to see what you build.