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What is the role of a NASA Space Apps Challenge Local Lead?
Local Leads organize and facilitate a NASA Space Apps Challenge Local Event for a specific city or town. The event can be in-person, virtual, or a mix of both. Local Leads increase awareness of and engagement with the 2025 NASA International Space Apps Challenge on October 4-5, 2025.


Do you want to PARTICIPATE in the 2025 NASA Space Apps Challenge?
This application is only for event organizers, known as “Local Leads.” If you’d like to join as a participant, do not complete this application. Instead, follow us on social media to be notified when participant registration opens:
Local Lead Benefits
  • Serve as a Local Lead alongside the NASA Space Apps Global Organizing Team to develop the world’s largest annual global hackathon, with participants and supporting teammates in over 160 countries/territories around the world.
  • Champion Space Apps in your local community, recruiting local coders, scientists, students, artists, storytellers, designers, engineers, data experts and others who may participate during the NASA Space Apps Challenge (October 4-5, 2025).
  • Immerse yourself and serve as a thought leader in your city’s space, tech, innovation, and creative communities.
  • Support noteworthy participants in their hackathon journeys. Nominate top projects for judging at the global level, with Global Nominees, Global Finalists, and Global Winners being recognized by NASA.


Local Lead Responsibilities
*Please note: Local Leads cannot participate on teams to submit projects or solve challenges.
  • Coordinate Local Event logistics - Local Leads are responsible for providing, arranging and funding the logistics for their Local Event from their own resources, including venue, food, supplies, swag and prizes, as they may choose at their discretion. Local Leads are also responsible for considering accessibility and connectivity logistics.
  • Recruit supporting Local Team Members - Each Local Lead is responsible for recruiting, training, and delegating work to needed personnel to run their Local Event.
  • Recruit participants from their community to join the Local Event. These participants will create projects during the event and submit them to the NASA Space Apps Challenge website.
  • Follow NASA International Space Apps Challenge branding guidelines.
  • Support participants through their entire hackathon journey and encourage project submission.
  • Recruit Local Judges and complete Local Judging.
  • Recruit Local Collaborators, as needed. Each Local Lead is responsible for their own collaborator outreach and funding efforts.
  • Follow NASA’s China funding restrictions regarding affiliation: Prohibited bilateral activity with China means participating, collaborating, or coordinating bilaterally with the People’s Republic of China (PRC), including Hong Kong and Macau, or a PRC-owned company, in relation to participation in SpaceApps. “PRC or PRC-owned Company" means any department, agency, or instrumentality of the government of the People's Republic of China and any governmental subdivision thereof, including Hong Kong and Macau, any company owned by the People's Republic of China, or any company, university, or similar institution incorporated under the laws of the People's Republic of China or governmental subdivision thereof, including Hong Kong and Macau.


Local Lead Application Process:

The application deadline is June 1, 2025.

Prior participation as a Space Apps Local Lead does not guarantee your automatic selection as a 2025 Local Lead.

Applications are subject to screening and will be reviewed and approved or denied with notices sent via email. Local Lead Applications are individually reviewed by the Global Organizing Team on a first come first serve basis and there is rolling approval granted to the earliest applicants. Each application is evaluated against the following criteria.
Local Lead Application Criteria:
  • Local Leads must be over the age of 18 years old.
  • Local Leads can only host one Local Event event.
  • Only one application is approved per city. If there is already a Local Lead in the city you are applying for, your application will not be approved.
  • Only one city is approved in a 40 miles/65 km radius from the closest approved city. If there is a city already approved within this radius, your application will not be approved. NASA Space Apps Challenge promotes collaboration over competition. Please consider collaborating with any nearby Local Event if your application is not approved.
  • You demonstrate and clearly communicate your ability to organize and host a NASA Space Apps Local Event.
    • Ask yourself: What other important logistical elements should I consider to make my event a success (such as venue, food, accessibility, and connectivity)? Do I want to hold an in-person or virtual Local Event in my city?
  • You clearly communicate plans/initial ideas on how you will support and recruit participants.
    • Ask yourself: How can I increase the number of qualified participants in my Local Event? How can I make sure my participants are successful at submitting a project?
  • You clearly communicate plans/initial ideas on how you will source/recruit supporting Local Team Members, Local Collaborators, and Local Judges.
    • Ask yourself: How can I source/recruit sponsors (called Local Collaborators), support local team members, and Local Judges to help make my Local Event engaging? What network connections or ideas do I have that can assist?
  • You clearly communicate that you are willing to commit time to organize a Local Event, lead a support team, and support participants.
    • Ask yourself: Can I invest the time necessary to run my Local Event? Have I demonstrated my time management skills in other projects or areas that I can use as an example?


Incomplete applications will not be reviewed. If you have any questions about this form or the event, please contact info@spaceappschallenge.org. Thank you!
This information collection meets the requirements of 44 U.S.C 3507, as amended by section 2 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. You do not need to answer these questions unless we display a valid Office of Management and Budget control number. The OMB control number for this information collection is 2700-0192 and it expires on 06/30/2026. We estimate that it will take about 13 minutes to read the instructions, and answer the questions. You may send comments on our time estimate above to hq-spaceapps@mail.nasa.gov. Send only comments relating to our time estimate to this address.

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* 1. Given Name:

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* 2. Family Name/Surname:

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* 3. Email Address:
Please provide the email where you will receive all NASA Space Apps Challenge communication

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* 4. I am only applying for one city/location