Student Resources

This page catalogues important resources for Map the System participants to access throughout the duration of the competition. This includes competition rules and guidebooks, the competition timeline, systems mapping resources, research design resources, presentation resources, where to find peer support, and more.

Students may take part in Map the System as part of a course or independently. Students who are taking part in Map the System outside of a course are encouraged to take advantage of the non-course syllabus to help guide them through competition milestones (coming soon!).

This page will be updated throughout the competition as resources become available from our Map the System partners. If you are having trouble accessing any of these resources, please email Leah Feor at mapthesystem@uwaterloo.ca for support.

• Review the UWaterloo Map the System Workbook
• Review Canada's Map the System website to find key information. The Student Resources webpage is especially useful in helping students at all stages of mapping their systems, from systems-thinking context to practical application.
• Review the Evaluation Criteria
• View the Centre for Peace Advancement's Map the System Student Webinar below (November 2020) or review slides from the webinar

• View the Centre for Peace Advancement's Map the System 2022 Information Session recording below (January 2022)

• Review this 12 step "Student Guide to Mapping a System" that will help you and your team walk through the process of mapping a system
• Review the tool,  Impact Gaps Canvas created by Daniela Papi-Thornton, designer of Map the System. This exercise will help you understand the landscape of your problem and identify some paths to a solution.

• View the Research Design Essentials webinar below or review the slides from the webinar

• Participants are invited to structure their video presentations around the slides in the Map the System Presentation Template.

• Contact Map the System Campus Lead, Leah Feor for support throughout the competition at mapthesystem@uwaterloo.ca.

• IDEO’s Human-Centred Design Toolkit
• "Why social ventures need systems thinking" article
• "Reclaiming Social Entrepreneurship" TEDx talk
• 2019 Map the System Student Info Session