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The dream of living on the Moon has inspired humanity for eons. Artists, writers, scientists, engineers, futurists and many others have vividly imagined what a thriving city on the lunar surface might look like.
Since last fall, middle school students in 37 US regions as well as teams in China, Canada and Nigeria have imagined, designed and built cities for the 2020-2021 DiscoverE’s Future City® Competition. This year’s theme, Living on the Moon, challenges students to design life on the moon at least one hundred years from now, when lunar habitats have already progressed through multiple levels of development.
What started as a collection of lunar landers expanded into an outpost, then a village and is now a city. Future City challenges teams to build on this history, describe the city’s location, share its innovative features and provide examples of how the city uses the Moon’s unique resources to create a place where humans can live, work and thrive.
In January and February, each region held qualifying competitions to select which teams would compete at the Future ttps://vote.futurecity.org/ City Finals. In early March, teams virtually connected with STEM professionals around the globe and answered questions about their cities. Tune into the Future City Awards Celebration on Wednesday, April 7 at 1 pm EST to meet the teams and find out who earns top honors. One team will take home the grand prize of a trip to the U.S. Space Camp and $7,500 for their school’s STEM program (provided by Finals sponsor Bentley Systems). Watch live at futurecity.org, or on Facebook.
For the first time ever, the general public can help choose the winner of all the People’s Choice Award. Visit https://vote.futurecity.org/ from March 15 through April 2 to see all the teams and cast a vote for your favorite. Tune into the Awards Celebration on April 7 to see who wins!
Working as a team with an educator and STEM mentor, students present their vision of the future through a 1,500 word city essay; a scale model of their city (built with recycled materials); a project plan to help keep their project on track; a short video presentation, and a live, online Q&A session with a panel of technical judges. Keeping the engineering design process and project management front and center, students are asked to address an authentic, real-world question: How can we make the world a better place?
Future City has ongoing opportunities for engineering and technical professionals to volunteer in a number of different roles, including team mentors, virtual competition judges, and regional coordinators. For more information about Future City and volunteer opportunities, visit futurecity.org.
One of the nation’s leading engineering education programs and among the most popular, Future City has received national recognition and acclaim for its role in encouraging middle schoolers to develop their interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). In 2017 Future City received a prestigious national award as a leading engineering education program, as it was recognized by US2020 and co-founding sponsors Chevron and Tata Consultancy Services for its achievements and innovations in STEM education and its accessibility to underrepresented youth.
In 2016, the Future City Competition received the 2016 Henry C. Turner Prize for Innovation in Construction, presented by Turner Construction Company and the National Building Museum.
In 2015, Future City was named the grand prize winner in the UL (Underwriters Laboratories Inc.) Innovative Education Award program and received a $100,000 award. The UL award highlights the essential, urgent and significant value of E-STEM education.
Major funding for DiscoverE’s Future City Competition comes from the Bechtel Corporation, Bentley Systems, Inc, Shell Oil Company and PMIEF. Additional program support provided by UEF, the Pentair Foundation and NASA.
About DiscoverE
DiscoverE is leading a growing volunteer movement that inspires and informs present and future generations to discover engineering. Our network of volunteers in the US and abroad is drawn from the DiscoverE coalition of more than 100 professional societies, major corporations and government agencies. Together we meet a vital need: introducing students, parents, and educators to engineering, engaging them in hands-on engineering experiences and making science and math relevant. For more information, visit www.discovere.org.
CONTACT:
Future City Competition - National:
Carina Sayles
Sayles & Winnikoff Communications
(212) 725-5200 ext. 210
Raffaella Mazzella
Sayles & Winnikoff Communications
(914) 310-9661
Aimee Miller
Sayles & Winnikoff Communications
(212) 725-5200 ext. 122
2020 - 2021 FUTURE CITY COMPETITION REGIONAL WINNERS
Alabama
School: Central School
Hometown: Huntsville, AL
Future City Name: Zarathustra Complex
Arizona
School: Esmond Station
Hometown: Tucson, AZ
Future City Name: Selene
Canada (PEI)
School: Rothesay Netherwood
Hometown: Prince Edward Island, Canada
Future City Name: Gravity Falls
California (Northern)
School: Stratford School, Sunnyvale Raynor
Hometown: Sunnyvale, CA
Future City Name: Moon Base Gamma
California (Southern)
School: Bernardo Heights Middle School
Hometown: San Diego, CA
Future City Name: Urbs Maxima
China (Chengdu)
School: Jinjiang Campus of Chengdu Jiaxiang
Hometown: Chenghu, China
Future City Name: Moon Palace
China (Shanghai)
School: Shanghai Wanlicheng Experimental School
Hometown: Shanghai China
Future City Name: Wanli Star City
China (Shenzhen)
School: Shenzhen Longhua Minzhi
Hometown: Shenzhen, China
Future City Name: Eggshell City
Colorado
School: Colorado Academy
Hometown: Denver, CO
Future City Name: Mangata Subexo
Florida (South)
School: St. Hugh Catholic School
Hometown: Miami, FL
Future City Name: Luna-Lumos
Florida (Tampa Bay)
School: Morgan Fitzgerald Middle School Center for Gifted Studies
Hometown: Largo, FL
Future City Name: Selene
Georgia
School: Fulton Science Academy Private School
Hometown: Alpharetta, GA
Future City Name: Lunark
Great Plains
School: West Middle School
Hometown: Lawrence, KS
Future City Name: Novaturia
Iowa
School: Taft Middle School
Hometown: Cedar Rapids, IA
Future City Name: Lunar Domum
Idaho
School: Heritage Middle School
Hometown: Meridian, ID
Future City Name: Selene
Illinois
School: Wood Dale Jr. High
Hometown: Wood Dale, IL
Future City Name: Novis
Indiana
School: Norwell Middle School
Hometown: Ossian, IN
Future City Name: Crateris
Kentucky
School: East Oldham Middle School
Hometown: Oldham County, KY
Future City Name: Alpha Zenith
Michigan
School: St. John Lutheran School
Hometown: Rochester, MI
Future City Name: Getaway Station Armstrong (GSA)
Mid-Atlantic
School: Capitol Hill Day School
Hometown: Washington, D.C.
Future City Name: Mahina
Minnesota
School: Roseville Area Middle School
Hometown: Canada, MN
Future City Name: Skyward City
Missouri
School: St. Clair R-XIII School District
Hometown: St. Clair, MO
Future City Name: Altera Domi
North Dakota
School: South Heart Public School
Hometown: South Heart, ND
Future City Name: Jherico
Nebraska
School: Lux Middle School
Hometown: Lincoln, NE
Future City Name: LUX
New England
School: Birchland Park Middle School
Hometown: East Longmeadow, MA
Future City Name: Lunar City
New Jersey
School: JerseySTEM
Hometown: Summit, NJ
Future City Name: Helianthus
New Mexico
School: Annunciation Catholic School
Hometown: Albuquerque, NM
Future City Name: Callisto
New York (Albany)
School: Richard H. O'Rourke Middle School
Hometown: Burnt Hills, NY
Future City Name: Spartemis City
New York (City)
School: NIA IS 239
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Future City Name: Luna Oppidum
New York (Western)
School: Mill Middle School
Hometown: Buffalo, NY
Future City Name: Polaris
Nigeria
School: Junior Secondary School Area 10
Hometown: Abuja, Nigeria
Future City Name: Crystallite Lunar City
Ohio
School: Remote Learning Academy
Hometown: Akron, OH
Future City Name: V.E.C.T.O.R.
Oklahoma
School: Sequoyah Middle School
Hometown: Edmond, OK
Future City Name: Copernicus
Pennsylvania (Central)
School: Warwick Middle School
Hometown: Lititz, PA
Future City Name: A1-Choros
Pennsylvania (Philadelphia)
School: Saint Hilary School
Hometown: Rydal, PA
Future City Name: Eclipse’s Edge
Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh)
School: The Ellis School
Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA
Future City Name: Jaye Khoob
South Carolina
School: McCracken Middle School
Hometown: Spartanburg, SC
Future City Name: Eagleton
Tennessee
School: Annoor Academy of Knoxville
Hometown: Knoxville, TN
Future City Name: Altaluna
Texas (Houston)
School: Al-Hadi School
Hometown: Houston, TX
Future City Name: SIDRA-XIV
Texas (North)
School: West Ridge Middle School
Hometown: Austin, TX
Future City Name: Luna Station Vulcan
Washington
School: Bellingham Homeschoolers
Hometown: Bellingham, WA
Future City Name: Mizari Andalli
Wisconsin
School: Glen Hills Middle School
Hometown: Glendale, WI
Future City Name: Newmoon City