Welcome to the IEEE Pikes Peak Section Future City Engineering Playbook

What is Future City?

Future City is a national engineering education program that challenges students to imagine, design, and present a city of the future. Each year, teams solve a real-world engineering problem by applying science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through research, creativity, teamwork, and communication.

Future City is more than a competition—it’s an opportunity to think like an engineer and discover how engineering improves the quality of life for individuals and communities.

Why Engineers Design Cities

Every city is a system of systems. Engineers work together to design and improve the infrastructure that allows communities to thrive safely, efficiently, and sustainably.

Engineers help design:

• ⚡ Reliable electric power systems
• 💧 Safe water and wastewater systems
• 🚗 Transportation networks
• 📡 Communications and emergency response systems
• 🏥 Hospitals and healthcare facilities
• 🏫 Schools and public buildings
• 🌳 Sustainable communities and green spaces
• 🤖 Smart technologies, sensors, and artificial intelligence

Good engineering is about more than technology—it is about solving problems that improve people’s lives.

How to Use This Mini-Site

Think of this mini-site as your Engineering Playbook.

Rather than giving you answers, it will help you think like an engineer by providing:

• A step-by-step engineering design process
• Systems-thinking tools for solving complex problems
• Engineering questions to guide your research
• Resources from IEEE and other trusted organizations
• Tips from mentors and previous Future City participants
• Ideas to strengthen teamwork, communication, and presentations

As you explore each tab, ask yourself:

• What problem am I trying to solve?
• Who benefits from my solution?
• What are the tradeoffs?
• How do the different city systems work together?
• How can my design make the community safer and more resilient?

The goal is not simply to build a model—it is to develop the mindset of an engineer.

Annual Challenge: Fire Resilient Future

This year’s Future City challenge asks students to design a city that can prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from urban wildfires.

Wildfires are becoming more frequent and severe in many parts of the world. Engineers play an essential role in helping communities prepare for these events through better planning, smarter technologies, resilient infrastructure, and effective emergency response.

As you develop your city, consider questions such as:

• How can technology reduce the risk of wildfire?
• How can homes and critical infrastructure better withstand fire?
• How can emergency responders receive timely information?
• How can electric power, communications, transportation, and water systems continue operating during a disaster?
• How can communities recover more quickly after a wildfire?

Throughout this mini-site, you’ll explore engineering ideas that can help answer these questions while developing your own innovative solutions.

Remember: Great engineers don’t just solve today’s problems—they design a better tomorrow.