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Eric Li, a Grade 12 student at Richmond Secondary School, is one of the city’s Green Ambassadors. Li is currently competing in the Canadian Geographic Challenge to see which students will represent Canada at the international competition.

Photo courtesy Eric Li

High school senior competing in geography challenge

By Hannah Scott, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

Published 11:26 PDT, Tue March 15, 2022

Last Updated: 12:13 PDT, Tue March 15, 2022

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Richmond Secondary School student Eric Li is reaching for the stars in the Canadian Geographic Challenge—and he wants to spread the word so other local students can do the same.

The competition has three levels based on student age. Li competes in Level 3, for ages 16 to 19.

“I only heard about (this competition) in my 11th grade year,” says Li. “That’s something I hope to change; I hope to get more people to know about these competitions earlier.”

Li was recently named a top 10 finalist, advancing to the next round to see which students will represent the country in the International Geography Olympiad.

“Geography has always interested me because it can help solve real-world problems,” says Li. “Everything from climate change to political division can be better understood through geography.”

He adds that geography is also linked to his interest in local government, and can be used to solve some problems including the issue of affordable housing.

With the help of an academic sponsor—a librarian, teacher, or high school administrator, for example—interested students begin by completing a multiple-choice test. The top 20 then move on to a written test, which narrows the pool down to 10 students who are tasked with a fieldwork project.

“There are not many parameters, and you can explore your interest in anything geography-related,” Li explains.

Last year, his fieldwork project explored the topic of cycling to school and whether more students would be interested if there were tools available to fix their bikes. He hasn’t decided on this year’s project yet.

“At first I was quite anxious—(this was) one of the first academic competitions I did. It was kind of a challenge to set all of this up by myself and getting a teacher sponsor. This year I was able to get more people at my school excited about it,” he says.

Li explains that most of the student participants are from eastern Canada and many attend private schools. He wants other public school students to have the same opportunities.

Geography is a passion of Li’s, and he spends about 20 to 25 hours a week studying. He’s also the president of his school’s environmental science club and expresses gratitude for the support of his geography teacher Rakshin Kandola.

Eric Li (right) is grateful for the teacher sponsor of his school’s environmental science club, Rakshin Kandola.

Photo courtesy Eric Li

“We mainly prepare students to compete in environmental competitions—this is one of them, along with the Envirothon,” he says. “Ms. Kandola has helped by lending us her room and giving me a lot of advice on how to teach people effectively. I’m thankful that she’s there to help me.”

Outside of school, Li is part of the city’s Green Ambassadors program, which also ties into the environmental elements of the geography competition.

“Through participating in the Green Ambassadors program, I’ve been able to learn a lot about our city’s environmental initiatives and speak to local officials about what the city’s going to do in the future to combat climate change,” says Li. “It’s very fulfilling to know that I am contributing to something bigger than myself and helping combat climate change. It really is the tribulation of our time, and I’m proud to say that I’m doing everything I can.”

Li also plans to pursue post-secondary education in geography, and wants to work in local government and urban planning in the future.

Should he move on to the top six round, Li will be interviewed to see if he is chosen as one of the top four students who represent Canada at the international competition. The deadline for the fieldwork project is in late March, and the top six students will be interviewed in early April.

To learn more about the Canadian Geographic Challenge, visit challenge.canadiangeographic.ca/en