Future Shocks Challenge Grant Competition — 2026 Announcement

Blog Co-Authors: Joseph P. Mitchell, III, Senior Advisor for Strategy, National Academy of Public Administration, Cristina Caballe Fuguet, Vice President, Global Public Sector, IBM, and Dave Zaharchuk, Research Director, Thought Leadership, IBM Institute for Business Value.

Over the past several years, governments, communities, and ecosystem partners have confronted an expanding set of disruptive events—from geopolitical instability and economic uncertainty to climate‑driven disasters and cyber threats. These shocks highlight a critical reality: resilience now depends on the ability to responsibly deploy emerging technologies that strengthen public missions and protect communities.

Severe wildfires, destructive flooding, and extreme weather events continue to strain emergency response systems and disrupt essential services. At the same time, advances in artificial intelligence, automation, advanced analytics, cybersecurity, and digital platforms are reshaping how governments anticipate, prepare for, and respond to crises. The urgency—and the opportunity—has never been greater.

To accelerate this progress, the National Academy of Public Administration, the IBM Center for The Business of Government, and the IBM Institute for Business Value are pleased to announce the 2026 Future Shocks Challenge Grant competition.

The Context – Building on Prior Future Shock Challenge Grants

The inaugural Future Shocks Challenge Grant in 2024 surfaced global examples of innovative resilience strategies, contributing to the publication of Resilience in Action: Crisis Leadership through Innovation, Collaboration, and Human‑Centered Solutions and Drought, Deluge, and Data: Building Climate‑Resilient Communities.  Building on that momentum, the 2025 Challenge Grant generated additional insights that informed Building Community‑Based Resilience: Emergency Preparedness and Response Case Studies further expanding the collection of real‑world resilience case studies.

The 2026 competition builds on this momentum with a sharpened focus on technology‑driven solutions that build operational and societal resilience.

A New Focus for 2026: Emerging Technology for Mission Resilience

While previous competitions highlighted broad strategies for resilience, the 2026 competition places a distinct and deliberate emphasis on innovative uses of emerging technology that have already been piloted or implemented within government or in support of government missions.

We are seeking real-world case studies that show how emerging technologies are strengthening resilience, such as:

• AI‑enabled forecasting, planning, or decision support
• Advanced data integration and situational awareness tools
• Novel cybersecurity, digital identity, or quantum‑safe approaches
• Intelligent automation to protect continuity of operations
• Technology‑enabled cross‑sector emergency collaboration
• Tools that strengthen mission readiness and workforce resilience

In short: we welcome submissions demonstrating how emerging technologies are making governments more adaptive, responsive, and resilient. In particular, we are interested in examples that demonstrate how these technologies support stronger governance by strengthening coordination mechanisms, improving oversight and accountability, enabling more adaptive policy responses, and strengthening coordination across agencies and sectors during periods of disruption.

Future Shocks Domains of Interest

This year’s competition welcomes case studies highlighting emerging technology applications across five mission‑critical areas that have been central domains throughout the Future Shocks initiative:

• Emergency preparedness and response
• Cybersecurity and digital trust
• Supply chain resilience
• Sustainability and climate adaptation
• Workforce development and mission readiness

Submissions must feature solutions piloted or implemented since 2024, and may come from international, U.S. federal, state, or local government organizations—or their ecosystem partners.

Challenge Grant Awards

Each selected winner will receive $1,500 to develop a publishable essay.

Note: Government employees are welcome to submit proposals but are not eligible to receive funding.

2026 Challenge Grant Timeline

Stage One: Proposal Submission

Submit one or more proposals presenting a real-world example.

Deadline: April 3, 2026

Stage Two: Selection of Finalists

The National Academy of Public Administration, the IBM Center, and the IBM Institute for Business Value will review proposals and select finalists, each receiving a $1,500 Challenge Grant upon successful completion of all requirements.

Announcement of winners: May 29, 2026

Stage Three: Essay Development

Finalists will prepare a 1,000‑word essay and collaborate in preparing the essay for publication by IBM and according to IBM editorial guidelines.

Essays due: July 17, 2026