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.

Future Problem Solving Program International

Abbreviation	FPSPI
Established	1974
Founder	Ellis Paul Torrance
Type	Educational program
Legal status	501(c)(3)
Headquarters	Melbourne, Florida
Website	fpspi.org

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:

1. Identify challenges that exist in a given situation.
2. Pick a high-impact "Underlying Problem" to focus on, formulated as an attainable goal that addresses the problem.
3. Brainstorm solutions to the Underlying Problem.
4. Develop criteria that measure solutions' positive impact on people affected by the Underlying Problem.
5. Evaluate and rank the solutions using the criteria.
6. 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
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

External links

• Future Problem Solving Program International