Overview
We invite affiliate champions in team and individual Global Issues to compete at our world finals. Competitors have two hours to write their Global Issues booklet in response to a future scene based on the International Conference topic. Only submissions completed during the official two-hour competition period will be considered. All Global Issues teams are required to complete an action plan presentation in order to be eligible for awards.
Participants must work directly within FPSOnline or work offline in a handwritten booklet. Students are responsible for bringing their own laptop and/or pens or pencils to the competition room.
All Global Issues competitors, whether individual, team, or MAGIC, will be assigned official competition rooms. MAGIC participants should read the article specific to their competition as there are differences in how these competitions are conducted. Read below for more details on the Global Issues competition for teams and individuals.
You can read more about our other competitions at the International Conference in our Resources Library.
Helpful Links
How does the MAGIC competition work?
How does the Action Plan Presentation portion of the competition work?
2026 World finals competition information
When students arrive at their competition room, they will receive important instructions from the competition leads. We recommend that students, coaches, chaperones, and parents review the information in this article prior to attending the International Conference. Coaches will receive competition times, rules, and room assignments on-site during International Conference check-in.
1. Future scene
At the start of the official competition time, competitors will receive a paper copy of the future scene, developed to explore the International Conference topic. Students must base their original problem-solving responses on the future scene situation, operating within its parameters.
2. Competition format
Students will have 2 hours to read and complete the problem-solving process in their official Global Issues booklet.
- Teams write sixteen challenges and solutions and compare eight solutions in their step 5 grid.
- Individuals write eight challenges and solutions and compare five solutions in their step 5 grid.
2. Booklets
Team and individual competitors must decide whether to complete their booklet electronically (typed) in FPSOnline or on paper (handwritten). Only student work entered into the official booklet (paper or electronic) will be scored.
Teams must choose one method of completing the booklet; they cannot choose to have some students type while others handwrite their responses.
Electronic (Typed)
- Students electing to complete their booklet in FPSOnline must close all other programs, applications, browsers, etc. Only a single FPSOnline page will be permitted. All other windows/tabs/etc. are prohibited. Having prohibited pages open may result in disqualification.
- Students who complete their booklet electronically are responsible for providing their own laptops.
- Students are responsible for bringing their International Conference FPSOnline login credentials with them to their competition room.
- Students will have access to campus wi-fi. Students may elect to use personal hotspots.
- No power sources (outlets) will be provided. Students are responsible for ensuring that their electronic devices will have sufficient power for the competition.
- Students competing as a team can all log in simultaneously to write their booklet. To review teammates’ work, students may need to refresh their browsers.
- Team members must coordinate with each other to ensure all work is captured. If multiple students enter the same field simultaneously (such as two students typing in the Action Plan field), they will overwrite each other.
Paper (Handwritten)
- Students handwriting their booklet will receive a paper copy of the official Global Issues booklet.
- Students should make sure their writing is legible and dark enough to be read.
- Conference staff will handle the upload process for all handwritten booklets.
3. In the competition room
All booklets must be written in the official competition rooms as assigned.
Monitors will be present to ensure that students do not use prohibited items and that they adhere to Future Problem Solving rules for the duration of the competition.
Competition staff will not be able to provide technical support for students electing to type their work.
4. Supplies
Students must provide their own pens or pencils, highlighters, and laptops (if choosing to type in FPSOnline). Students can bring a paper dictionary and thesaurus to use during the competition. Students can also bring a handheld non-programmable calculator; calculator apps or websites are not allowed.
No other materials are permitted. Students should leave all unnecessary items with their chaperone.
All competitors will receive a paper copy of the future scene and scrap paper for notes. Students handwriting their booklet will receive a paper copy of the official Global Issues booklet.
5. Outside resources
Students cannot utilize outside resources. Prohibited items include, but are not limited to: student notes prepared before the competition, AI tools, research, references, coach/parent advice, and internet searches.
6. Translations and accommodations
All requests for translations or educational accommodations must be made during registration. Any need for translation of written work should be noted during registration. All evaluations are completed in English.
7. No self-identification
The booklet must not contain identifying information (name, location, affiliate, school, etc.).
8. Good judgment
FPSOnline
Competitive submissions for the International Conference will be processed using our virtual platform FPSOnline.
Whether you use FPSOnline throughout the year, or this will be your first time, we recommend that you review the Quick Start Guide for video walkthroughs of using FPSOnline.
FPSOnline at the International Conference
Be sure to review the updated rules for using FPSOnline during the 2026 International Conference.
- Scoresheets for all competitions will be released after the International Conference Awards Ceremony via FPSOnline.
- On May 21, 2026, we will share login credentials for coaches and students directly to coaches. We will use the coach email noted during IC registration to send this information.
- For Global Issues, all work must be typed directly in FPSOnline – competitors are not allowed to upload files or work in a separate document and then transfer (copy/paste) work.
- International Conference staff will be present to monitor the competition. They will not be able to provide technical support. In the event of device failure, the timer will not be stopped. Students will be provided with paper to continue their work.
FPSOnline practice session
On Friday, May 22, 2026 at 12:00 PM EDT, we will host an FPSOnline practice session. The session will stay open until Wednesday, May 27 at 8:00 PM EDT. Coaches will receive login information on May 21, 2026. This information will be sent directly to the email listed on the IC registration. Use our IC help form if you have questions or need support during the practice session.
A future scene related to the International Conference topic will be provided for students. Future Problem Solving will not review or evaluate any work submitted during the practice session.
The goal is to help students become familiar with the FPSOnline system.
- Logging in
- Entering text
Students will have two options available during the practice session:
- Option 1 will have no timer, unlike the official competition window. This will provide students with unlimited time to become acquainted with FPSOnline, prior to their competition.
- Option 2 will have a 2-hour timer, reflecting the official competition setting.
Please refer to the Quick Start Guide for best tips when using FPSOnline. This article includes important information about logins, browsers, devices, formatting, and more. FPSOnline. This article includes important information about logins, browsers, devices, formatting, and more.
Competition Integrity
All work submitted by students for their competition must be their own original work, and completed within the 2-hour competition timeframe in accordance with posted rules and competition instructions. The use of outside materials is prohibited, this includes, but is not limited to: AI tools, websites, coach/parent advice, research, references, or content prepared before the competition. Submitted work will be scanned for authenticity (including AI-generated content and plagiarism). All competitors must follow all competition rules and room instructions. Failure to follow competition rules may result in disqualification. For more information, please review the Competition Integrity page.
Evaluation
Evaluators use the official Global Issues Problem Solving Evaluation Guidelines to assess all International Conference submissions. Future Problem Solving evaluators analyze student work for the best application of the problem-solving process to the provided future scene.
Multiple evaluators consider each competitive submission. Each underlying problem is reviewed by a pair of evaluators to determine if there is a critical error. Booklets with a critical error will only receive one evaluation and are ineligible to advance to the final round. All other booklets receive three evaluations.
- Each evaluator uses total points to determine a booklet’s rank. Points and ranks from each evaluation are used to create a composite score (values are assigned to a set range of points and ranks).
- The composite score is used to identify the top team and individual booklets, by division, for advancement to the final round.
- In the final round, a team of three evaluators examines all the advancing booklets using a Paired Comparison Analysis (PCA). PCA is an evaluation method that allows each step of two booklets to be compared head-to-head to determine which booklet is the strongest overall. While completing a PCA, evaluators use the scoresheets from previous rounds and the actual Global Issues booklets to determine which booklet is stronger.
While there are guidelines and descriptions of expectations, Future Problem Solving evaluation is based on subjective scoring. Because there is no single “right” answer, varying interpretations of student work are possible. Each evaluator determines the points that will be awarded for each section of the scoresheet. For more information and a sample scoresheet, see the how Global Issues is evaluated article.
Questions?
If you have any questions related to this competition at the International Conference, fill out our IC help form.
