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This October, join ICCS at Hacktoberfest 2026 to strengthen your codebases, collaborate with the open‑source community and build confidence in software skills. Find out all the details below.
About
Is there code you’ve been meaning to clean up but haven’t had the time or support? Do you ever suspect other teams are facing similar challenges and that by working together you could find better solutions? This October, ICCS is joining Hacktoberfest 2026, giving VESRI and climate science teams the opportunity to strengthen codebases, collaborate with the open‑source community and build confidence in software skills.
During the month of October, ICCS will be running a series of informal online networking sessions (coffee catch ups) for Hacktoberfest participants to exchange ideas, troubleshoot challenges and get support to write clean, efficient and maintainable code. Kick off and wrap up meetings will also be scheduled so that teams and maintainers can present their projects, ask questions and celebrate achievements.
Why should I sign up?
Good software development practices are essential for building reliable and sustainable tools, but they can be difficult to achieve amid tight deadlines and limited resources. Poor quality code can slow development, introduce bugs, and compromise performance and security. The ICCS Hacktoberfest gives climate researchers and developers the chance to focus on improving their codebase and software sustainability, to collaboratively produce code that is reusable, trustworthy and can be maintained and extended by future climate scientists.
The open‑source ecosystem brings together developers, researchers, and advocates from around the world who collaborate on publicly accessible projects, sharing expertise and driving innovation through openness. By participating in the ICCS Hacktoberfest, you will be able to:
- Contribute code for others to improve and refactor (maintainer)
- Work on improving open-source project code that has been shared via pull requests (user)
- Participate in one to one code clinics in the lead up to Hacktoberfest to get support and advice on programming and software sustainability issues, in addition to ensuring your codebase is “Hacktoberfest ready”
- Refresh and update your programming skills
- Collaborate with peers facing similar challenges
- Tap into a diverse global network of experts
Marion Weinzierl, Principal RSE at ICCS said “Hacktoberfest is a unique opportunity to connect with other open source projects and developers, and learn new software development skills. The ICCS Hacktoberfest will help climate scientists to make their codes “open source ready”, and to explore other open source climate codes. Whether you are a seasoned developer or doing your first steps in this space, this is your chance to learn something new, and hopefully have a lot of fun along the way!”
How does it work?
During Hacktoberfest (October 2026) ICCS will run a series of online networking sessions and coffee catch ups to help VESRI and climate science teams clean up their code, create solutions to any issues and spark new collaborations.
Once you register you will have the option to:
- Sign up to one of our code clinics if you need any support preparing your code in the run-up to Hacktober (maintainer)
- Contribute to other teams code base (user)
- Share your open source code for other researchers to contribute to (maintainer)
- Attend the Hacktoberfest kick off and wrap up event organised by ICCS, where you can hear about the projects that are open, start hacking plus ask any questions
- Join the weekly online networking sessions (coffee catch ups) to get support and network with other teams.
How do I apply?
If you would like to take part in the ICCS Hacktoberfest please register your interest here by Monday 14 September 2026. We will then get in touch with further details on how to sign up for Hacktoberfest and instructions on how to tag your projects. You can also sign up to one of our code clinics if you need some advice in making your repository "Hacktoberfest” ready.
If you would like to find out more about the event we will be running an online Q and A session on Monday 29 June, 15:30 - 16:30 UK time, please sign up here and we will send you the zoom link.
Key dates
Mon 29 June - online Q and A session (sign up here for the link)
Mon 14 September - Registration deadline (registration form is here)
Wed 30 September, 16:00 - 17:00 GMT - ICCS Hacktoberfest kick off event (online)
Wed 7 October, 16:00 - 17:00 GMT- Coffee catch up online networking session
Wed 14 October, 9:00 - 10:00 GMT - Coffee catch up online networking session
Wed 21 October, 16:00 - 17:00 GMT- Coffee catch up online networking session
Fri 30 October, 16:00 - 17:00 GMT- wrap up celebration (online)
Join us this October to strengthen your code, enhance your skills, and become part of a vibrant open‑source community.
If you would like to find out more please read our FAQ page or get in touch at iccs@maths.ac.uk