The Community Geography Lab is a physical and virtual space the encourages and facilities mapping for and by local community members. Here we define “community” as the campus and Northeast Ohio region surrounding Kent State University. The space is a collaboratory: a research environment that allows researchers from across disciplines as well as community residents, to come together in a space to collaborate and share resources. Our goal is to facilitate knowledge transfer between academics and non-academics, students and faculty, town and gown. The digital space will provide accessible mapping resources – open-source software and up-to-date data files, with a focus on being the campus and community clearinghouse for spatial data. The physical space will be focused on mapping through collaboration and education through maps and the mapping process. Housed in McGilvrey Hall’s Map Library, the space will encourage engagement and discussion about shared social and environmental challenges at Kent State, the city of Kent and other communities in Northeast Ohio.