Year 10 students earn Honourable Mention in International Mathematical Modeling Challenge

Their achievement places them among a select group of high-performing teams from around the world. Remarkably, they are the youngest New Zealand team ever to have a submission reach the international judging panel.

The IM2C is one of the world's leading mathematical modelling competitions. In 2026, 37 countries and regions were invited to participate. Following national selection rounds, 67 teams advanced to the international stage of judging.

Teams worked independently at their schools during a five-day period between 2 February and 27 April. This year's challenge, Protecting Wildlife at Scale, required students to develop a mathematical modelling approach to support conservation strategies in large wildlife reserves and national parks, using both human and technological resources. Teams used Etosha National Park as their case study.

The judges commended participants for their creativity, ingenuity and ability to communicate complex problem-solving strategies in a clear and effective manner.

This result continues Macleans College’s strong tradition in the competition. In 2025, a Macleans College team was named as one of two Outstanding teams, with the students and their manager Mr Fourie travelling to Hong Kong to attend the official awards ceremony.

For Andy, Ethan, Hugo and Yixuan, this year's success provides valuable experience at the highest level of international competition. Having established themselves as an effective team, they are well positioned to build on this achievement in future years.