Ian Apperley and Mike Riversdale who, along with Ben Wilde, are responsible for organising Hack Miramar.

It sounds like a shadowy group of cyber crims, but Hack Miramar is actually a community engagement project that aims to connect ideas with experts, data and technology.

It is the second civic hackathon event, run by eastern suburbs residents Mike Riversdale, Ian Apperley, and Ben Wilde, all with IT backgrounds.

Over two days, participants will be divided into teams to brainstorm and develop ways to use technology to improve community consultation with council and government.

They will then pitch to a Dragon's Den-style panel that organisers hope will include Wellington Mayor Celia Wade-Brown or Deputy Mayor Justin Lester.

The first hackathon last year focused on improving Wellington's transport and ideas emerged for taxi-pooling and tracking cyclist numbers.

"The idea is simple," Apperley said.

"We get a willing troupe of people together for a weekend and we give them a challenge. In this case, the challenge is, 'How do we improve community engagement in Wellington?'

"Transport saw the creation of smartphone applications and some electronic devices as well as ideas generation.

"We think that community engagement in Wellington can be much improved. It's about how we talk to each other as neighbours and suburbs. It's about how we get the community to engage on important issues."

The event will look at expanding community engagement initiatives such as Neighbourly.co.nz, regional or suburban Twitter accounts and localised Facebook groups.

Organisers recognised that not everyone in the community was tech-savvy, but said they were open to all ideas.

Wellington City councillor Paul Eagle - chairman of the community, sport and recreation committee - supported the initiative.

"I think it's great a group have got together, recognising people are disengaged with civic issues," he said.

"I want them to challenge the council's decision-making processes."

Jason Paul, adviser on community resilience with the Wellington Region Emergency Management Office, has consulted coastal communities on the placement of tsunami warning lines.

"I'd like to see a community that is empowered to make the decisions that affect them, especially as we are starting to think about pre-planning how our communities might rebuild if we have a disaster here," Paul said.

Ben Woodward, voice behind trending Twitter account Why Wellington, says the account has unlocked the pride and passion Wellingtonians have for their city.

"A hashtag could just as easily be used as a central point for community consultation, collaboration and conversation from council level to street level."

After Hack Miramar, organisers will aim to network with groups who can help develop their ideas further.

The free event runs from 9am to 5pm on March 7 and 8 at 127 Park Rd, Miramar. Registration is through the website.