The DO Neighbourhood
Innovaton Challenge

Transforming Urban Living
through Vibrant Communities

Saturday, 12 August 2023, 9 AM - 6 PM

Ready to design spaces that encourage social interaction and
well-being among tenants in Hong Kong?

Why should you join The DO Challenge?

  1. Have access to a unique group of co-creators and potential co-founders
  2. Have the opportunity to pitch your idea and develop it into a validated product within 1 day.
  3. Receive guidance and mentorship from industry leaders, C-suite executives and successful entrepreneurs.
  4. Get the chance to be selected into an incubator to continue building your project and get support on product development, presentation and sales skills.
  5. Get the opportunity to showcase your solution and win in the open competition.

Our Approach: The DO Method

By utilising The DO’s approach to innovation, you will co-create innovative solutions in just one day. Working on a team, the DO Challenge supports the feeling of ownership and a sense of impact while allowing you to work and build strong bonds across silos. The DO will help you co-create radically relevant products and services that are purposeful.

The Challenge will be structured around the 4-staged DO Method: Dream, Focus, Plan and DO. The DO Method is an innovation method that will guide you from scoping the problem, to prototyping, pitching, and taking action. Our innovation methodology enables us to be faster, more efficient, delivering more relevant solutions.

What to expect from this co-creation process:

2023 TDC DO Neighbourhood Challenge Outline (1)
  1. Solve a hyper-specific problem in a short amount of time. 
  2. Meet like-minded and highly motivated people from interior design, tech, engineering, architecture and other backgrounds who want to co-create and work together.
  3. Get direct input from your desired user base in order to quickly realise opportunities for ideation and conceptualisation.
  4. And it’s not over after the Challenge! Be part of the continuous and evolving group that will come together regularly for meaningful discussions and initiatives exclusive to the Challenge participants.
  5. Did we mention that you will have fun?!

Application period ends in...

  • 00Days
  • 00Hours
  • 00Minutes
  • 00Seconds

days.

Driving force for change


By 2050, two out of every three people are likely to be living in cities or other urban centres (from 55% in 2018 to 68% by 2050), according to a United Nations report.
Learn more


In 2022, urban population of Hong Kong was 100 %. Urban population of Hong Kong increased from 88.9 % in 1973 to 100 % in 2022 growing at an average annual rate of 0.24%.
http://demographia.com/dhi.pdf
Social Science & Medicine found that people who live in areas with high levels of social cohesion have lower levels of depression and anxiety.
As urban cen­ters expand in size and pop­u­la­tion, many city dwellers are moving away and turn­ing to com­mu­ni­ty-based neigh­bor­hoods to gain stronger con­nec­tions with peo­ple near­by while also sat­is­fy­ing the need for con­ve­nience and clean­er air.
Previous slide
Next slide

About last year's
The DO Challenge

17 -18 September 2022

  • 2 DAYS
  • 80+ APPLICATIONS
  • 42 SELECTED PARTICIPANTS
  • 5  TEAMS
  • 11 DO EXPERTS & MENTORS
  • 15 IDEAS

Meet the Team

BELINDA
ESTERHAMMER

Managing Director Asia

Cyrus Wong The DO Asia

CYRUS
WONG

Senior Manager

Aigul
Safiullina

Sustainability & Community Lead

Ana Perez The DO Asia

ANA
PEREZ

Marketing Lead

Athena Chan The DO Asia

Athena
CHAN

Program Officer

Katherin Kirschenmann

Co-Founder

Meet our Experts, Judges and Pitch Doctors

CHELSEA PERINO

Managing Director, Global Marketing & Communications

The Executive Centre

DANIEL CHUN

Teaching Faculty | Academy of Interdisciplinary Studies HKUST and Vice President at Smart City Consortium

DONNY SIU

Head of Entrepreneurship Programs

HKUST

 

FELIX WONG

Notion Ambassador

FLORIAN HOFFMANN

Founder                      

The DO

JEN FLOWERS

Group and ASP Head of Customer Intelligence and Partnerships, Wealth and Personal Banking

HSBC

JOANNA HOTUNG

Director

Hotung Mills Education Foundation

JORDAN KOSTELAC

Founder

Deploy

KATHERIN KIRSCHENMANN

Founder

The DO

Dr. Kit Au

KIT AU

Program Director

The DO

LEE WILLIAMSON

Regional Head of Gen.T

Tatler Asia Limited

MACY CHENG

Senior Manager – Method & System

Wheelock Properties (Hong Kong) Limited

SAMUEL POON

Assistant General Manager (Project Design & Marketing)

Wheelock Properties (Hong Kong) Limited

SERENA FAN

Founder & Executive Director 

Hong Kong Children’s Discovery Museum

SOPHIYA CHIANG

Founder

Deploy

CATHERINE YU

Assistant Director, Partnerships

HKSTP

HENRY FONG

Assistant Director, Partnerships

HKSTP

Our Judges

JEN FLOWERS

Group and ASP Head of Customer Intelligence and Partnerships, Wealth and Personal Banking

HSBC

LEE WILLIAMSON

Regional Head of Gen.T

Tatler Asia Limited

SERENA FAN

Founder & Executive Director 

Hong Kong Children’s Discovery Museum

Our Experts

JORDAN KOSTELAC

Founder

deploy

Our Next Expert

Our next expert

Our Next Expert

Our next expert

Our Ecosystem Partners

Our Sponsors

FAQs

You can apply through our online application form HERE.

Yes, we will provide a certificate and we can also provide a letter to your company if you need to apply through your HR department. 

This is an individual application and we do not accept team applications.

Apart from working closely with your chosen team for the duration of the challenge, you will also have a chance to be mentored by the leading experts in smart cities & proptech, successful serial entrepreneurs and C-suite executives. You will be able to expand your professional network and walk away with your potential co-founders and investors.

If you are interested in innovation and thinking outside of the box the, answer is most likely yes. Whether you are an entrepreneur or employee, you’ll fit right in as long as you are motivated to build something over the weekend and you are open to new ideas. We believe that great ideas can come from anywhere.,

During the workshop, we will use our award-winning DO Method that rapidly turns ideas into action around topics that are crucial for you. Throughout the process, you will go from DREAM and PLAN to FOCUS and of course, DO!

The DO’s most recent innovation projects and global partners that use The DO Method include H&M, E&Y, BMW, Siemens and Unilever.

Our applications are open until 28 July 2023 and we will confirm our participants by 31 July.

Apart from the motivation, we are looking to select participants with diverse backgrounds that will complement each other.

All participants stay onsite for the entirety of the event as you will have access to the support you need to help make this Challenge successful – including access to experts. Also, you will work in teams so it is best to be in person together to keep team morale high.

Participation is free.

Once you are selected as participant we, will send you all the information and also invite you to an onboarding call which will happen a week before the Challenge starts.

WLAB, Area A, 1/F, Block A-D, Tung Kin Factory Building 196-198, Tsat Tsz Mui Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong

Yes, we will make sure you are well-fed throughout the day.

This Challenge is private, invite-only, and will take place on 12 August 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM.

Yes! We have amazing experts that will join and support you.

Send us an email at wlab@thedo.world and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

Still doubting?

Expand your horizons, make new friends and learn innovation with the key leaders in the region and the world! You will remember this DO Challenge packed with fun, learnings and meaningful connections.

JOIN THEDOCOMMUNITY

The DO Community is the foremost online, global community of DOers with purpose – from experts and innovators to industry leaders and entrepreneurs.

Join the DO Community to find curated learning opportunities, join thought leadership webinars, and collaborate on ventures.

Any questions? Get in touch!

Belinda Esterhammer

Director of Innovation

Belinda Esterhammer

Managing Director The DO Asia

Stay Updated with our Latest News

Your download was sent to you via email!

Inclusive Cities White Paper 2023