As a child, Weinberg freshman Diego Guerrero had a puzzle of the world that he would build over and over again, he said.
Although Northwestern’s geography department shuttered in August 2024, Guerrero still found a place at NU to explore his interest in maps: the Cartography Club.
Founded in Winter Quarter 2024, the club provides educational and social opportunities for students to connect with others who share a passion for geography.
Weinberg sophomore Natalie Roots-Nowakowski, co-founder and co-president of the Cartography Club, said the club is the “only real source … for an accessible way” to learn about geography and cartography at NU.
At weekly meetings, Cartography Club members participate in games such as logic puzzles, map dating, “Jeopardy!” and GeoGuessr where they test their knowledge of world geography and maps. Roots-Nowakowski said members can also give presentations on topics they’re interested in, including different time periods and the geopolitics surrounding those eras.
Weinberg sophomore and Operations Chair Aster Li said while the club does have a social component, the executive board hopes to enhance the educational aspects of the club.
“We want to increase cartographic and geographic literacy among the student population, because I think this is a big problem in America nowadays,” Li said. “Knowledge of world geography is not great in many people, and I think as global citizens, we ought to be competent in that respect.”
Li said the club is a welcoming social space, especially for students who don’t have a lot of prior experience with geography or maps.
“At such a cutthroat school like Northwestern with all the finance and consulting stuff … it’s a very nice change of pace,” Li said.
At the same time, Li said it can be difficult for the club to attract members because it competes with pre-professional clubs that students may feel are more beneficial for their resume.
Weinberg sophomore Miles Heck, who is the club’s co-founder and co-president, said the club’s biggest event each quarter is typically its GeoGuessr tournament, which it recently hosted. GeoGuessr is an online game where participants attempt to guess a location in the world based on images from Google Street View.
The club plans to host a field trip to the Newberry Library this quarter, Heck said. The library contains a wide variety of maps and sources related to the history and culture of travel.
The executive board also wants to bring in professors from the University of Chicago geographical sciences department to speak to club members.
“There are a lot of people who are really smart and really intelligent and are kind of cracked when it comes to the games, but there are also a lot of people who are just coming to meet new people, meet new friends and because they’re interested in the world around them,” Roots-Nowakowski said. “I think it’s really accessible for people of all interests and geographic knowledge.”
Email: c.angiolillo@dailynorthwestern.com
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