Problem E of the 2026 ICM® asked teams to think about passive solar shading. Now we'd like to see what happens when those ideas are applied to a local building.

Could a building on your campus benefit from passive solar shading? What would your model recommend? Would the results be compelling enough to convince university administrators to take action?

Update, August 2026:

A Climate-Resilient Cooling Retrofit for the High-Tech Campus Library at the University of Science and Technology of China    
University of Science and Technology of China

Team:

• Wentao Zhao
• Peihao Yang
• Yan Liu
• ICM Team Advisor: Wentao Zhao

Passive Solar Shading Retrofit of the Songjiang Campus Gymnasium
Shanghai Lixin University of Accounting and Finance    

Team:

• Xinxuan Liu    
• Yuhan Xie    
• Geyu Zheng
• ICM Team Advisor: Shuaifeng Li

Both teams succeeded because they gave the administrator exactly what a decision-maker needs to approve a capital project: a complete financial picture. Rather than presenting only the engineering merits of their proposed retrofits, they clearly stated both the total implementation cost and the projected financial savings. Readers could immediately evaluate the investment against the expected return without having to infer or calculate anything themselves.

This is exactly what a persuasive letter to university administrators should do. It makes the business case just as clearly as the engineering case.

By pairing strong passive solar shading models with transparent cost-benefit analyses, these teams transformed a mathematical modeling exercise into an actionable proposal. Their letters demonstrate that rigorous modeling, combined with clear financial framing and audience-focused communication, is what makes a real-world recommendation persuasive to a nontechnical decision-maker.

Turning a contest solution into writing that could genuinely influence a real decision is no small accomplishment. Congratulations to both teams on having their work selected for publication in The UMAP Journal ICM edition, to be released later this year.

How to Participate

• Choose one building on your campus that could benefit from the implementation of passive solar shading strategies.
• Apply your retrofit model to that building.
• Write a one-to-two page letter to your university administrators, convincing them to retrofit this building with passive solar shading.  Outline the steps that they should take and why they should consider these improvements. 

The best letters will be published by COMAP.  

Submission Guidelines

You can submit your letter here.

• Submit a one-to-two-page letter addressed to university administrators.
• Include relevant citations and references.
• References must be included within the two-page limit.
• Do not submit your original Problem E paper.
• Submit only the new letter and supporting information requested in the submission form.

Important Dates

• The submission deadline is July 1, 2026.
• Winning submissions will be notified no later than August 1, 2026.

A Chance to Get Published

The strongest submissions may be selected for publication by COMAP in The UMAP Journal or other COMAP publications. This is your chance to show how math modeling can be used beyond the contest in a real-world situation.

Are You Eligible?

Teams are eligible if they:

• Participated in 2026 ICM Problem E.
• Earned a Successful Participant designation or higher.
• Submit a single entry based on their content submission for Problem E.

Teams may participate with all or only some of their contest team members. Graduating students may still participate. However, new team members cannot be added.

Note that participation in this follow-on application of your model will not change the designation or outcome of ICM Problem E.

Important Publication Requirement

While the ICM contest permits documented AI tool usage, submissions for publication must be written solely by the student authors. Any submissions that raise concerns about AI usage will not be considered for publication.

Why Participate?

The contest may be over, but now’s your chance to take what your team learned, apply it to a building on your campus, and see where it leads.

We can’t wait to see how your Problem E model applies to your own campus.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can participate?

Each team that earned a Successful Participant or higher designation in the 2026 ICM Problem E may submit one entry.

What if not all team members want to participate?

Fine, any subset of the original team is welcome to contribute to the team’s solution.

Can one or more of the team members participate if they have graduated since the ICM contest ended? 

Yes, this is a continuation of the original team that participated.

Can we replace a team member with another student at our school?

No, any subset of the original team is welcome to contribute to the team’s letter.

Can a team submit more than one letter?

No.

Can two teams combine from one school to create one submission?

No, each team developed its own retrofit model.  They should be using their unique solution to apply to their home institution. 

I did not solve Problem E, but would like to participate. Can I?

No, this is an opportunity to bring the work of the ICM Problem E to the team’s home institution.

Can I use translation software for my submission?

Yes, however, translation software often uses AI and reads like AI-generated content.  Your team may not be considered for publication if there are concerns.

Can we improve our model from our initial submission?

Yes, but it is not required. 

Do I need to include citations in the letter?

Yes, you should continue to use professional writing standards and cite all sources within the letter and list all references used at the end.

Are my references part of the 1-2 page letter?

Yes, they must be listed within the 2-page limit.

Do I submit my original paper with this 1-2 page letter?

No, only your 1-2 page letter to your university administrators with references.

When will I find out the results?

No later than August 1.

What are the prizes?

The strongest submissions may be selected for publication by COMAP in The UMAP Journal or other COMAP publications. This citation can be used on your resume.

How is the team recognized in the publication?

Each submission will include the team number and identify the subset of team members that wrote the 1-2 page letters as authors.  Only submit the names of those who wrote the letter as authors in your submission.  Additionally, the entire team will be acknowledged by their team number, advisor, and members of the original team, since they created the model during the 2026 ICM Problem E.