Program Overview
$1,000 / $500 / $250
2026 theme: Designing Humanity’s First Steps on Mars.
The CESASC STEAM Essay Contest is open to all K–12 students worldwide. Each year a different theme invites young thinkers to combine science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics with social, ethical, and environmental reasoning. The 2026 theme is Designing Humanity’s First Steps on Mars.
Students are challenged to design and imagine human missions to the Red Planet—proposing realistic and creative plans for landing, surviving, and building sustainable communities while protecting both human life and the Martian environment. Entries are judged by a panel of science, engineering, and STEAM education experts.