Google
The Holidays are Made with Code
Less than 1% of girls choose to major in computer science.
And in a world that is increasingly shaped and governed by technology, that is a pretty scary statistic. Because not only will women have a diminished voice in our digital future, but all of society will miss out on the critical ideas and innovations that female coders can provide. That's why we partnered with the White House and National Parks Service to use the holidays as an opportunity to reach millions of girls across the country by inviting them to light up the National Trees with the power of code.
Lighting up the capital with code.
Girls from across the country took over the National Tree Lighting Ceremony, held every year in President's Park, just steps from the White House. President Obama kicked things off and thanked young women from across the country for lighting up the trees with the power of code. A star-studded holiday celebration followed for the thousands in attendance and millions watching at home.
Code a tree for all to see.
Throughout the month of December, girls could code their tree online using an introductory coding program called Blockly. Using the logical principles of coding, girls could determine the color, pattern, and movement of the lights as they would appear on one of the 56 state and territory trees. Each of the trees was covered in a custom-built LED grid of over 900 individual LEDs which would come to life based off of the designs coded by young women online.
Awards
The Webby Awards (People's Voice Award) • AICP Next Awards (Shortlist) • One Show (Finalist) • 4A's (Most Innovative Partnership of the Year)
Press
The New York Times • Seventeen • Washington Post • TechCrunch • Mashable • Engadget