A simple act and a shared purpose: our Mapathon to support MSF

Helping in a crisis doesn’t always mean being on the ground. Sometimes, it starts with a group of colleagues giving a bit of their time to help from behind a screen.

Image: RiskSTOP Group's Managing Director, Danny Lillington, mapping buildings during the Mapathon.

A new episode of RiskSTOP Group’s People at the Heart podcast is live, sharing how colleagues came together to support MSF’s Missing Maps initiative.

In this episode, host Johnny Thomson speaks with Natalie Joyce about RiskSTOP Group’s recent mapathon in support of MSF’s Missing Maps initiative.

At the heart of the conversation is something close to home: the values that encouraged RiskSTOP Group colleagues to get involved.

Around 50 colleagues joined the online session, coming together to support a humanitarian initiative from their desks. In just 90 minutes, the team mapped around 1,000 buildings in Chad, helping to create clearer digital information that could support MSF teams working on the ground.

For Nat, the response from colleagues reflected something important about the culture at RiskSTOP Group. “Everyone, from the start, got really stuck in; everyone seemed to understand why it really mattered, and it just felt really purposeful,” she says.

That sense of purpose runs through the episode. The mapathon was simple to take part in, but its potential impact felt much bigger. Each building mapped could represent a home, a family, or a group of people who may be easier to identify and reach in a future crisis.

As Johnny reflects, “You don’t actually have to be on the front line of a crisis to make a difference.”

Since the session, colleagues have continued mapping in their own time, using #RiskSTOPGroup2026, with others considering how volunteering days, charity days and team meetings could help continue the effort.

For RiskSTOP Group, the mapathon was a practical expression of social responsibility, teamwork and the belief that small actions can contribute to something much larger.

Listen to this episode of People at the Heart below

People at the Heart exists to share the stories, ideas and people that shape life at RiskSTOP Group. This episode is a reminder that making a difference can start with something simple and that purpose is strongest when people come together.

To hear more stories from our people and community, visit the People at the Heart page on riskstopgroup.co.uk.