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Tackling global challenges starts with understanding a problem and its wider context, rather than jumping straight into a business plan or an idea for a quick fix. This competition asks you to select a social or environmental issue and to explore, probe, and research all the connecting elements and factors around it. We want you to present this issue back to us in a way that people can understand, share, and learn from.
You will have the opportunity to make connections with socially-conscious students, researchers and practitioners from within UWaterloo and the wider community.
You could also be selected to participate in the Global Final and compete with teams from across the globe to win cash prizes.
But more importantly, you’ll get the chance to research a real-world problem, learn about organisations working the field, and contribute towards making a real difference in your chosen area.
Map the System is open to University of Waterloo undergradute and graduate students, and recent graduates in any faculty who want to learn more about a problem they are passionate about.
Teams can be made up of individuals, or up to five people. At least one team member must be a current student, or recent graduate (within 12 months).
By the submission deadline, your team will need to submit (1) a visual map, (2) a written summary of your research, and (3) a bibliography.
Learn more about submission requirements here.
The UWaterloo Map the System team competed at both the Canadian Finals and Global Finals in 2020! Team members Kaitlin Webber, Sam Petrie, and Emma McDougall focused their research on transit-induced gentrification in the Light Rail Train (LRT) Corridor in Waterloo Region.
Read the reflection on the Map the System campus finals.
Learn more about the team's experience as one of the top 6 finalists at the Canadian finals. Watch the team's Canadian Finals video submission. View the Map the System Canada Finalists Showcase (PDF), which features each team's systems map.
Learn more about the Global Finals Showcase. Watch the team's Global Finals video submission.
View the team's completed systems map (PDF) , written submission (PDF) , and bibliography (PDF).
The 2019 UWaterloo Map the System campus winners went on to compete at the Canadian Finals at Ryerson University. The team, Stefan Hogg and Nicolas Werschler, focused on the challenge of food insecurity in Northern Ontario. While they did not advance past the Canadian Finals, their experience as the first ever UWaterloo team in Map the System was incredibly valuable and encouraged dozens of student teams to participate in the challenge in 2020.
Learn more about the 2019 campus finals.
Contact Michelle Jackett to learn how to get involved.
Map the System is an initiative of the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, in partnership with educational institutions across the world.
