As Wildfire Threats Escalate, Future City Competition® Challenges Students to Engineer a "Fire Resilient Future"

WASHINGTON, May 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- With wildfire seasons growing in intensity and urban centers increasingly at risk, DiscoverE officially announced the 2026-2027 theme for its world-renowned Future City Competition^®: "Fire Resilient Future." Registration is now open for one of the world's largest engineering competitions, which tasks middle and high school students with imagining, researching, and designing a city of the future. This year's challenge: students must engineer a resilient urban environment that can prevent, protect against, and recover from the devastating impact of wildfires.

Once the theme was released, the competition saw an unprecedented surge in interest, with nearly 100 teams registering within the first four hours of opening day.

"We are no longer just teaching students about engineering; we are asking them to solve real-world crises that will define their generation," said Kathy Renzetti, Executive Director at DiscoverE. "The 'Fire Resilient Future' theme empowers young people to use STEM as a tool for safety and survival in an era of increasing environmental volatility."

The Challenge: Engineering Resilient Cities to Outsmart Wildfires

While traditional city planning historically focuses on growth, DiscoverE is challenging the next generation to prioritize survival and climate adaptation. This year's participants are tasked with a high-stakes mandate: Design a resilient future city that can prevent, protect, and recover from the catastrophic threat of urban wildfires. To do this, teams must go beyond simple fire breaks. For example, middle school students are required to work in teams and complete three deliverables: a 1,500-word essay, a scale model built from recycled materials, and a presentation and Q&A in front of a panel of STEM professionals and engineers. Each component of the project focuses on the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI)—the zone where neighborhoods meet natural areas like forests or grasslands. Instead of just studying the problem, students get to be the solution-finders. From dreaming up fire-safe building materials to designing smart systems that help a community quickly get back on its feet after a disaster, these students are proving that the cities of tomorrow can not only withstand a fire but can bounce back stronger than ever.

The Voice of the Classroom

The selection of the wildfire theme has already sparked significant enthusiasm among the competition's long-standing community of educators, who see it as a way to make science and engineering deeply relatable to students.

"Are you kidding me!?! I am SO EXCITED for this one. I have been hoping for this theme for a while," said Travis Koupal, a Minnesota National Finalist Educator. " This will be an amazing project for our students to undertake."

A Call for Mentors and Teams

As the competition cycle begins, DiscoverE is actively seeking professional engineers and technical experts to lead and mentor teams. With the finals held in Washington, D.C. every February, the program provides a direct pipeline for industry leaders to support the diverse STEM talent of the future.

Educators, leaders, parents, and mentors can learn more about how to register for both the Middle School and High School programs now at futurecity.org.

Supporters: DiscoverE programs, including Future City, are supported by the following organizations:

• Visionary Level: Bechtel Group Foundation, NCEES, and Overdeck Family Foundation.
• Leader Level: Bentley Systems Inc., Northrop Grumman Foundation, PMI Educational Foundation, TE Connectivity, UL Research Institutes, and United Engineering Foundation.
• Champion Level: RTX and Shell Energy.
• Partner Level: BAE Systems
• Supporter Level: ON Semiconductor Foundation

About Future City: Future City is one of the world's leading engineering education programs, engaging students in real-world problem-solving through STEM-based projects. DiscoverE works to cultivate a skilled engineering workforce, with program evaluations showing:

• 83% of middle school students see math and science as vital to their future due to Future City.
  
  
• 92% of educators say their students learn STEM concepts not typically covered in standard curricula.
  
  
• 87% of high school coaches report their students improve in research, problem-solving, and confidence in STEM activities.

About DiscoverE: DiscoverE is a nonprofit organization committed to inspiring and empowering the next generation of engineers through free and low-cost global STEM programs. DiscoverE's initiatives include Engineers Week™, Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day™, Chats with Change Makers, and the Future City® Competition. These programs emphasize problem-solving, creativity, and the critical role of engineering in building a better future. For more information, visit discovere.org.

SOURCE Discover Engineering