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As Kitchener continues to grow, public service providers face the ongoing challenge of deciding where new infrastructure and programs are needed most. Over the summer term, University of Waterloo Faculty of Environment planning students Miki Zheng and Alexa R. partnered with Kitchener Public Library, FCI Director Dr. Leia Minaker, and FCI Member Dr. Rob Feick to build an evidence-backed decision tool. Using ArcGIS overlay analysis, the team mapped three factors against each other: projected population growth, and deprivation measured two ways, once through the Canadian Index of Multiple Deprivation, and once through EQAO test scores. What came out of the project is a framework KPL can use to test locations, including options like the automated library lockers already running at local community centres.

When a 13-year-old girl stops riding her bike to school, the reasons usually extend far beyond the bike path. During their initial on-campus residency week for the Master of Future Cities (MFC) program, student teams analyzed municipal transportation data and developed practical strategies to address why women and young girls opt out of cycling networks. Using Waterloo as a primary case study, one team introduced "Bridging the Cycling Gap," mapping the transition into early adolescence through a fictional persona named Maya and proposing a gamified social app to reward riders for using municipal cycling routes.

At the AMO conference in Ottawa, municipal leaders and city staff connected with FCI to explore practical, data-backed solutions for their communities. From high-demand resources like the Development Charges Monitor and CivicInquire (an AI-powered homelessness policy platform led by FCI Director Dr. Leia Minaker that recently secured SSHRC funding) to collaborative student partnerships, FCI demonstrated how research moves out of academia and directly into local council chambers. Through the i-Capstone program, municipalities of any size can partner with University of Waterloo student teams to tackle local infrastructure and policy challenges across one or two terms at zero cost.

Replacing assumptions with evidence is essential as Waterloo Region plans for one million residents. The updated Vision 1 Million Scorecard, co-released by FCI and BestWR, provides a practical snapshot of regional readiness across housing, transit, healthcare, and infrastructure. By measuring concrete progress and highlighting critical gaps in community support, this tool equips municipal leaders, industry partners, and residents with the data needed to guide transparent, long-term planning decisions.

Master of Future Cities student Johanna B. secured Best Idea honors at the Brookfield Renewable Innovation Challenge. Bringing a systems-thinking lens to the Pearl Sullivan Engineering IDEAs Clinic, Johanna’s interdisciplinary team designed an on-campus waste-to-energy organics digester and biogas generator. By turning local campus organic waste into methane fuel for central heating operations, the concept delivers immediate waste management savings while establishing a practical, scalable building block for campus-wide district energy planning and long-term net-zero targets.