# Future Problem Solving Program International

Future Problem Solving Program International (FPSPI), originally known as Future Problem Solving Program (FPSP), and often abbreviated to FPS, is a non-profit educational program that organizes academic competitions in which students apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills to hypothetical future situations. The program looks at current technological, geopolitical, and societal trends and projects those trends 20–30 years into the future in order to train students to develop solutions to the challenges they may face as adults. FPSPI was founded by creativity researcher Ellis Paul Torrance in 1974. Today, thousands of students from over 14 countries participate in the program each year. Most FPSPI components are open to students who are in the equivalent of the U.S. grade level range of 4 through 12.

## Structure

FPSPI consists of state and nationwide organizations called affiliates. Each affiliate is responsible for conducting the competitions which take place in its own geographic area. Students begin preparing for competition at the start of each school year. Depending on the affiliate and the type of competition, there may be regional, state, or national levels of competition that take place during the year. Only the winners of any given competition qualify to proceed to the next level. The highest level of competition takes place at the annual International Conference (IC), which is held in May or June, at the end of the United States school year. The IC is held at the campus of a public university in the United States (the country with the largest number of competitors), with a new location being chosen every two years.

## Pedagogy

FPSPI was originally founded to train students to use a specific six-step problem-solving process:
* Identify challenges that exist in a given situation.
* Pick a high-impact "Underlying Problem" to focus on, formulated as an attainable goal that addresses the problem.
* Brainstorm solutions to the Underlying Problem.
* Develop criteria that measure solutions' positive impact on people affected by the Underlying Problem.
* Evaluate and rank the solutions using the criteria.
* Develop an elaborated Action Plan based on the highest-ranking solution.
The original Future Problem Solving competition—now known as Global Issues Problem Solving (GIPS)—evaluates students' competency in using this problem-solving process in the context of a fictional future situation. Students in the GIPS competition are grouped into grade level ranges and may compete as individuals or as teams of four. Prior to each competition event, FPSPI announces the competition topic (such as "Artificial Intelligence" or "Oceans") and provides a list of suggested readings. Students spend 1–2 months researching the topic with an eye to potential future challenges and solutions. At the beginning of the competition, students are given a Future Scene (FS), a one- to two-page document that describes the hypothetical future situation having to do with the pre-announced topic. Competitors then proceed according to the six-step process. Students are graded on their correct application of the process and on their use of cited research and creative originality.
FPSPI later developed additional programs that make use of the six-step problem-solving process, or that otherwise train students in creative critical thinking. In the Community Problem Solving (CmPS) competition, students are evaluated on how well they apply the process to present-day problems in their own community. The Action-based Problem Solving (AbPS) program adapts the process for classroom use. In the Scenario Writing competition, students write a short story, set at least 20 years in the future, based on one of the GIPS competition topics. The Scenario Performance component is similar but is geared toward students who prefer telling stories through oral communication. Finally, students can also compete in the Presentation of Action Plan competition. After completing the six-step process in two hours, students then immediately begin work on a second competition called "Presentation of Action Plan" in which they illustrate their final solution by preparing and performing a skit.

## Topic History

Each year, FPSPI releases a list of five study topics, one for each of the five GIPS competitions that occur each academic year.
List of past and current FPSPI topics :
| Academic Year | Practice Problem 1 | Practice Problem 2 | Qualifying Problem | Affiliate Bowl | International Conference |
| 2024-2025 | Food Security | Rising Sea Levels | Agricultural Industry | Nanotechnology | TBA |
| 2023-2024 | Tourism | Urbanization | Antarctica | Autonomous Transportation | Air Quality |
| 2022-2023 | E-Waste | Digital Realities | Robotic Workforce | Throw-Away Society | Currency |
| 2021-2022 | Water Supply | Building Green | Insects | Mining | Antibiotic Resistance |
| 2020–2021 | Youth In Competitive Sports | Wearable Technology | Human Environmental Impact | Personalized Medicine | Neurotechnology |
| 2019–2020 | International Travel | Sleep Patterns | Gamification | Living in Poverty | Terraforming |
| 2018–2019 | Mission to Moon, Mars, and Beyond | Drones | Food Loss & Waste | Coping with Stress | De-Extinction |
| 2017–2018 | Spread of Infectious Disease | Toxic Materials | Philanthrocapitalism | Cloud Storage | Criminal Justice Systems |
| 2016–2017 | Educational Disparities | It's All in the Genes | 3D Printing | Identity Theft | Biosecurity |
| 2015–2016 | Treatment of Animals | Disappearing Languages | Recovering from Natural Disasters | The Global Workplace | Energy of the Future |
| 2014–2015 | The Impact of Social Media | Processed Foods | Propaganda | Enhancing Human Potential | Intellectual Property |
| 2013–2014 | Social Isolation | Desertification | Surveillance Society | Land Transportation | Space |
| 2012–2013 | Culture of Celebrity | Robotic Age | Megacities | Ocean Soup | Global Status of Women |
| 2011–2012 | All in a Day's Work | Coral Reefs | Human Rights | Trade Barriers | Pharmaceuticals |
| 2010–2011 | Healthy Living | Air Transport | Genetic Testing | Water Quality | Emergency Planning |
| 2009–2010 | Sensory Overload | Invasive Species | Orphaned Children | Food Distribution | Green Living |
| 2008–2009 | Olympic Games | Cyber Conflict | Space Junk | Counterfeit Economy | Pandemic |
| 2007–2008 | Body Enhancement | Simulation Technology | Neurotechnology | Debt in Developing Countries | Child Labor |
| 2006–2007 | Fundraising and Charity Giving | Protection of National Treasures | Cultural Prejudice | Caring for Our Elders | Privacy |
| 2005–2006 | Climate Change/Threat | Freedom of Speech | Nutrition | Health Care Access | Redistribution of Wealth |
| 2004–2005 | Entertainment | Terrorism/Security | Agriculture of the 21st Century | Depletion of Oceanic Species | Business Crime |
| 2003–2004 | Smart Clothes | Rage/Bullying | Artificial Intelligence | Media Impact | Immigration |
| 2002–2003 | Sports Medicine | E-Commerce | Nanotechnology | DNA Identification | Worldwide Communications |
| 2001–2002 | Alternative Energy | Educational Options | Organ Donation | Environmental Law | Virtual Corporations |
| 2000–2001 | Tourism | World Population | Water | Habitat | International Relations |
| 1999–2000 | Fads | Financial Security | Amateur Sports | The Internet | Genetic Engineering |
| 1998–1999 | Undersea Living | Computer Error | Life Long Learning | Prison Alternatives | Distribution of Wealth |
| 1997–1998 | Natural Disasters | Freedom | Women in the Workplace | Non-Traditional Families | Medical Ethics |
| 1996–1997 | Homes of the Future | Extraterrestrial Life | Cashless Society | Competition | Increasing Life Span |
| 1995-1996 | Firearms | Mental Health | 21st Century Marketplace | Cybernetics | United Nations |
| 1994-1995 | Cities | Homelessness | Kids and Violence | Prejudice | Privacy |
| 1993-1994 | Robotic | Antarctica | Extinction of Animals | Space Law | Control of Disease |
| 1992-1993 | Stress on Students | Hunger | Oceans | Drugs | Nuclear Waste |
| 1991-1992 | Space Exploration | Legal Epidemic | Sports Ethics | Land Use | Advertising |
| 1990-1991 | High School Dropouts | Ozone Depletion | Transportation | Censorship | Corruption in Government |
| 1989-1990 | Shrinking Tropical Rainforests | The Arms Race | Poverty | Medical Advances | Crime |
| 1988-1989 | Energy Sources | Youth and the Law | Nutrition | Employment | Terrorism |
| 1987-1988 | Space Travel | The Elderly | Acid Rain | Immigration | Birth Defects |
| 1986-1987 | Garbage | Changing Family Structures | Water | Illiteracy | The Impact of Media |
| 1985-1986 | Endangered Species | Feeding the World | Artificial Intelligence | American Legal System | Organ Transplants |
| 1984-1985 | Drunk Driving | Nuclear War | Education | The Greenhouse Effect | Industrialization of Space |
| 1983-1984 | Electronic Games | Prisons | Lasers | Nuclear Waste | Genetic Engineering |

## Notable alumni

* Allison Schroeder, Academy Award-nominated screenwriter
* Meganne Christian Astronaut and researcher
* Jack Petocz, LGBTQ+ Activist