Update April 1, 2026:
"Hi everyone, thank you for taking part in this challenge! Submissions are now closed. Please allow us some time to go through all of the entries. We will announce the results in a new post. Stay tuned!¨
March 8 is International Women’s Day, a time to celebrate the incredible women who shape our world. This year, we want to go beyond words and put their stories on the map!
It has been exactly one year since we kicked off the Women@LocalGuides initiative, and we have so much to celebrate together. With over 700 topics from 100+ women and allies, the Women@LocalGuides tag has served as a catalyst for conversation, sparking nearly 10,000 posts & meet-ups and deepening community ties on Connect.
This success is fueled by the passion of our community members. We want to give a special shout-out to these incredible initiatives and the consistent dedication shown by their creators over the past year:
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1 Year of “She Leads”: Congratulations to @FalguniP and @Erna_LaBeau on the first anniversary of “She Leads”. Thank you for consistently spotlighting the journeys of the inspiring women who shape our community! Don’t miss their Together We Lead meet-up on March 7th.
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Support Women Business: @Globe_trotter_Ish is back with her high-impact challenge! We encourage everyone to join her in the #SupportWomenBusinessWithMaps mission to review and uplift female-led businesses.
To keep this amazing momentum going, we are officially launching another challenge under the Women@LocalGuides tag!
We are challenging every Local Guide to curate and share a “Local Heroines” list on Google Maps. Whether it’s a woman-owned cafe that serves the best coffee in town, a library named after a female trailblazer, or a community center empowering women, let’s capture those gems into valuable, shareable lists.
Tip to double your impact: make sure you add the businesses you review for @Globe_trotter_Ish’s challenge directly into your ‘Local Heroines’ list!
How to participate
You can join the Local Heroines challenge from your mobile device or desktop!
On the Google Maps App:
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Go to the “You” tab: Open the Google Maps app and tap the “You” icon at the bottom of your screen.
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Start a new list: Scroll down to the “Your Lists” section and tap “+ New list”
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Set your list’s name and visibility: Give your list a title (“[Your City] Local Heroines”) and ensure the list type is set to “Public.”
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Add your 5 locations: Search for and include at least 5 places that celebrate women.
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Write your descriptions: In your list view, you will see an “Add a note about this place” field directly under each location. Tap there and write your note (5 words minimum but please remain concise) explaining why this place is a “Heroine” spot.
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Share the link below: Copy your list link and paste it in a reply to this post.
On Desktop (Web):
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Open Google Maps: Go to maps.google.com.
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Open your lists: Click the “Saved” icon (bookmark symbol) in the left sidebar.
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Start a new list: Click the “Lists” tab and then “New list”.
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Set your list’s name and visibility: : Give your list a title (“[Your City] Local Heroines”) and click the three dots (⋮) to set “Sharing options” to “Public”.
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Add your descriptions: Click “Edit list” and write your note (5 words minimum but please remain concise) explaining why this place is a “Heroine” spot.
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Share: Click the “Share” button and paste the link in a reply to this post.
The criteria
When reviewing your lists, we will consider helpfulness, quality, and originality. Your list notes (for each place included in your list) should follow our Community policy and the Maps user-generated content policy. Generic notes with no distinct human voice and without added value from the author’s perspective and experience will not qualify.
Important: Only good quality lists that celebrate women-owned businesses, historical landmarks related to women empowerment or female historical figures, will qualify for this challenge! Your list must be created on Maps and shared on this thread by March 31, 2026.
To be eligible for the badge, your entry must also meet these requirements:
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Public Link: The Google Maps list must be set to “Public” so our team can view it.
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Minimum Places: Your list must contain at least 5 different locations.
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Detailed Notes: Each of the 5 places must have a custom note (minimum 5 words) explaining its significance to the “Local Heroines” theme.
The winners
Everyone whose list follows the challenge instructions and criteria above will be awarded a Connect challenge winner badge or will be added to our running lists of challenge winners.
The results of this challenge will be announced in a new post — and if you share a photo of yourself visiting one of the businesses on your list in the comments, we might feature it in our results topic!
We can’t wait to see the meaningful places you highlight—let’s give these local heroines the visibility they deserve on the map!
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