Illustration - Challenge 2025 - Low Tech Solution

Reinventing simple and resilient solutions

Low Tech Solution

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United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The development of your solution must take into consideration at least one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.


The concept of low-tech is based on the idea of ​​developing simple, sustainable and accessible technologies, often in opposition to expensive and complex high-tech solutions. These approaches emphasize sobriety, reparability, and the use of local resources. They offer powerful alternatives to global issues such as the climate crisis, energy insecurity and social exclusion.

Definition of Low Tech

  • What Low Tech is:
    • Sober and environmentally friendly approaches.
    • Accessible and easily repairable solutions.
    • Resilient technologies, adapted to local contexts and available resources.
    • Prioritization of social and environmental impact on technological performance.
  • What Low Tech is not:
    • A total opposition to high-tech: low-tech can coexist and integrate with more advanced technological systems.
    • A regression: it is not about giving up on progress, but about making it more inclusive and sustainable.
    • A universal solution: each low-tech application must be designed to meet a specific need.

Key issues:

  • Over-reliance on expensive and complex high-tech solutions.
  • Difficulty accessing technologies in disadvantaged or remote areas.
  • Lack of visibility on the potential of low-tech for modern applications.
  • Need to promote simple but effective approaches to address local challenges.

How can we create innovative solutions that draw on low-tech principles to address social and environmental challenges, while promoting resilience, sustainability and accessibility for all communities?


  • Accessibility: Promote technologies adapted to the needs of local communities.
  • Sustainability: Creating solutions that minimize waste and maximize repairability.
  • Resilience: Empowering communities to respond to crises.

  • Private companies: Seeking to integrate sustainability principles into their operations and products.
  • Social and community organizations: Wanting practical and accessible solutions to their local challenges.
  • Developers and Creators: Innovators interested in simple and resilient technologies.
  • Public institutions: Exploring low-tech approaches to make their services more inclusive.
  • Marginalized communities: Benefiting from low-tech solutions adapted to their specific needs.

  • Focus: Accessible, sustainable and repairable low-tech solutions.
  • Solution Stage: Prototype or proof of concept usable in real contexts.
  • Geographic Focus: Canada, with openness to international perspectives.
  • Considerations:
    • Compliance with the principles of circular economy and energy efficiency.
    • Priority use of local resources.
    • Possible integration with more advanced technologies.
    • Measuring the social and environmental impact of the proposed solutions.

  • 1st Prize: $5,000 (minimum)

  • Societal impact: Number of beneficiaries and visible improvement in their quality of life.
  • Simplicity: Ease of use, repairability and low cost.
  • Sustainability: Reducing waste and using recycled or local materials.
  • Viability: Ability of solutions to be reproduced on a large scale.

All details relating to technologies, innovations or methods submitted to Cooperathon will remain strictly confidential, unless otherwise indicated.


Unlock this information on by registering today to Cooperathon 2025 – Startup Beta Journey.
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