This interview is part of a series on innovation mapping which will explore different types of mapping initiatives in Egypt. I sat down with Alik Mikaelian, Head of Solutions Mapping at UNDP Egypt Accelerator Lab to discuss the importance of mapping solutions in Egypt to solve complex development challenges.

Aida Youssef: What is a solution?

Alik Mikaelian: An innovative grassroots solution can be a product, a service, a DIY hack, or a successful behavior. They are usually a response to an unmet need, grounded in a specific context, and might be more relevant, given their proximity to the problem. Mapping those grassroots solutions is essentially understanding these unmet needs, finding stakeholders’ gaps, resources, and strengths.

AY: How do you define mapping?

AM: Regarding our work at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Accelerator Labs, solutions mapping means finding things that work and expanding on them. It is seeking out and making use of local assets, identifying uncommon but successful behaviors and strategies that enable people to better solve a problem, despite facing challenges and having no extra resources. For example, in a GEF/UNDP project aimed at protecting people and the economy from the devastating impacts of sea-level rise. A simple reed fencing used by farmers living in the coasts of Kafr El Sheikh unlocked a nature-based solution to rising sea levels in Egypt. Now the local solution is part of a 69 km dyke protecting vulnerable hotspots across the coasts of Egypt.

“Why are we mapping?” diagram / Copyright © United Nations Development Programme Egypt

AY: How did the solutions mapping start?

AM: At the UNDP Accelerator Labs, solutions mapping started with a hypothesis that many grassroots innovators worldwide have an important role to play in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals on time. And as a large international organization, our role is to see how we can begin to mainstream what is happening in the margins to scale impact.

This hypothesis was built based on the previous works of Professor Anil Gupta, Founder of the Honeybee Network, who teaches and lives the maxim that every grassroots innovation is also an indicator of an unmet need. As well as, Eric Von Hippel, the creator of the term user-led innovation, who sees informal innovation as a feature, not a bug.

In 2019, UNDP built the world’s largest and fastest learning network on sustainable development challenges thanks to the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development of Germany and the Qatar Fund for Development as founding investors and support from Italy and UNDP core donors. It started with 60 Lab teams covering 78 countries and in 2020 expanding to 91 Labs covering 115 countries. Egypt’s Lab has been launched as part of the second cohort in 2020.

AY: Who are the solutions mappers at the Accelerator Lab?

AM: Solutions mappers in the network are a community of curious development practitioners from different backgrounds and experiences. Together we are working on trying new approaches, tools, and solutions that push the boundaries of development fieldwork.

It is also important to mention that many mappers are young volunteers. Last year, we collaborated with Greenish Clubs to train students to become solution mappers in their community. And we are currently evolving that collaboration by developing a small guidebook that gives anyone simple tools to look for solutions in their surroundings.

AY: How important is collaboration in this mapping initiative?

AM: Collaboration is integral. Working with individuals and organizations will help us access more spaces and new perspectives that will increase our reach and understanding of development challenges.

AY: What constitutes success in this mapping project and conversely, what are the challenges you have faced?

AM: For this map to succeed, we need to map with intention. This means identifying a goal for what we’re doing. One of our constant challenges here in the network is answering the “what’s next?” question. How are we transforming the solutions mapped into actional learnings that can inform decision-making? How can we scale the impact of existing solutions? Our mapping becomes more impactful by having clear expectations, criteria, and learning pipelines.

AY: In collaboration with UNDP Egypt Accelerator Lab and other partners, we at RISE Egypt have launched the Digital Innovation Map of Egypt as part of the LEEP of Collaborative impact initiative. In what way is solutions mapping related to the innovation map?

AM: They are complimentary. The innovation map will allow more access to information from the local community and the innovation ecosystem which means there will be more eyes and minds that can develop their solutions.

AY: How do you think the innovation map will be useful for people within and outside of the innovation ecosystem?

AM: For someone within the ecosystem, this map is an important database to have. It’s like keeping tabs on people we meet on our phone. Visually, it will allow us to see connections and show what innovations can tell us about the bigger picture. And for the average person, it reveals the potential of what is happening in the country and supports the idea that a lot is going on. It’s pretty inspiring.

Interview by Aida Youssef, RISE Communications Associate