McMaster SEES hosts the 2026 National Geomatics Competition

For the first time, McMaster University had the opportunity to host the National Geomatics Competition from February 18th to 22nd. The university invited teams of undergraduate students from post-secondary institutions across Canada to take part in a geology-based competition in Hamilton, Ontario.

The NGC provides an experience that brings together students, academia and industry representatives, giving undergraduates the chance to learn, test their skills through real-world problems and engage with professionals.

Teams were assigned the task of solving a geomatics problem, presenting their solutions in front of a panel of judges which consisted of industrial and academic experts in the industry.

The competition spanned 4 days, each involving different forms of engagement such as introductory and geography-related activities, networking opportunities, tours and field visitations.

Day 1: After all the students arrived, they engaged in icebreaker activities through geomatics-themed bingo cards and geography trivia.

Day 2: Then, the teams had the opportunity to attend a networking event, connecting one-on-one with industry professionals from ESRI Canada, Stantec, Mining Matters, Dillon Consulting and the McMaster Map Library. They gained insight on careers in geomatics, role requirements, co-op placements, internships and more. As well, Members of Esri Canada gave presentations on Esri resources, the use of their applications and their personal experiences with employment growth.

Afterwards, one half of competitors engaged in the annual NGC Scavenger Hunt, while the other half had a tour of the McMaster University Map Library.

Day 3:  The problem prompt was released and competitors headed out to downtown Hamilton to research Event-Based Mobility at the TD Coliseum. Recently renovated, this multi-use event space has attracted a lot of attention towards the city’s entertainment district. Competitors were assigned the task of coming up with real-world solutions which could address high-volume traffic, accessibility to public transport and regulate post-event crowding.

Competitors were given an extensive tour of the venue to see the various interior and exterior areas of the site that were prone to traffic flow from events. They then went to work in order to create presentations that addressed the prompt.

Day 4: The teams presented their solutions to a panel of judges, which assessed these based on sustainability, feasibility and community impact. Following this, organizers hosted a Gala to end off the competition and announce the winners of the 2026 NGC Scavenger Hunt and 2026 NGC.

Here are the 2026 NGC award winners:

1st place – Jeffrey Collinson, Mussaab Manzer, and Solange Saucier (Team 17 from Simon Fraser University)

2nd place  – Alison Timmer, Jordan Prior, and Michael Thomas Pearse Wilson (Team 6 from British Columbia Institute of Technology)

3rd place – Nicolas Paquet, Jérémie Blain, and Kim Trécherel (Team 3 from Sherbrooke University)

This could not have been possible without the extensive preparation from the organizing committee, participation of both competitors and judges, and sponsorship support from Esri Canada, Stantec and the Association of British Columbia Land Surveyors.

Many of our undergraduate students helped support the events success including Co Chairs: Matthew Kastanis and Nolyn Lakhanpal, our Logistics Team: Sarah Paquin and Aubrey Noriega, our VP Finance: Erica Pew, our Academic Team: Justin Melchiorre and Chloe Butler-Stubbs, our Sponsorship Team: Rose Knudson, Nadia Marangunic, and Sachin Fairfax, and our Communications Team: Amber Chanthavong, Elaina M. and Alison Hess.

Lastly, a special thank you goes out to all the hard work put into solutions and presentations by the 51 participants that were able to attend!