Map of Origins

Purpose

Map of Origins makes the group's geographic diversity visible. By standing on an imaginary world map on the floor, participants see at a glance where everyone comes from. It sparks conversations about home, travel, and cultural background, and creates an immediate sense of the group's richness.

At a glance

• Group size: 8–50
• Duration: 10 minutes
• Difficulty: Easy
• Facilitation style: Facilitator-led, whole group
• Setting: In-person only

How to run

1. Designate the room as a world map. Point out the compass directions: "This wall is North, that's South, the door is West, the window is East."
2. Ask: "Go stand where you were born (or grew up, or feel most at home)."
3. Once everyone is placed, walk around and ask a few people to share briefly about their location.
4. Optionally, ask a follow-up: "Now move to a place you'd love to visit."
5. Debrief: "Look at this diversity. What do you notice?"

Materials needed

• None (optionally, tape cardinal directions on the floor)

Pitfalls & common mistakes

• Unclear orientation: Be very clear about which direction is which.
• Forgetting to ask stories: The map is just the setup — the stories are the icebreaker.
• Sensitive histories: Be aware that "where are you from" can be loaded for some people. Offer alternatives ("where you feel most at home").
• Too many people in one spot: Ask cluster members to briefly negotiate positioning.

Inclusion & accessibility

• Wheelchair users participate by moving to their spot.
• Offer "where you feel most at home" as an alternative for people with complex backgrounds.
• Virtual alternative: use a digital map tool where people place pins.
• Be culturally sensitive about national identities.

Variations

• Map of the country/city: Zoom into a national or city map for local groups.
• Map of experiences: Stand where your most formative experience happened.
• Two-round map: First where you are from, then where you want to go next.

When NOT to use this

• In virtual settings without a digital map tool.
• When "where are you from" is a fraught question for the group.
• In very small rooms with no space to spread out.

Source & further reading

• Widely used in intercultural training and international conference facilitation.
• Inspired by sociometric mapping techniques (Jacob Moreno).