Visions for 2050
A signature initiative of World Business Chicago focused on surfacing, sharing, and advancing bold ideas for Chicago’s future.
Submit your vision by April 15.
Download the full Open Call
What Is Horizon Lines?
Horizon Lines: Visions for Chicago 2050 is surfacing bold, transformative ideas for the city’s next 25 years. Horizon Lines includes…
- A global design vision competition
- A public exhibition held at the Chicago Cultural Center in Summer 2026
- A visionary essay collection
- A citywide investment platform, ChiForward
The Open Call: Visions for Chicago 2050
Horizon Lines invites architects, designers, planners, community leaders, artists, innovators, and interdisciplinary teams to propose bold ideas that explore how Chicago could grow, evolve and lead over the next 25 years.
This is a vision competition, not a request for development proposals or construction-ready plans.
Participants are encouraged to submit ambitious, future-facing ideas that explore what Chicago could build, enhance, protect or reimagine by 2050, including:
- New architectural icons and civic landmarks
- Transformative public spaces
- Mobility, transit, and infrastructure
- Housing and neighborhood vitality
- Climate resilience and environmental innovation
- Economic engines and cultural districts
- Systems that improve safety, connectivity, and equity
- Street-level interventions that enhance daily life
- Bold proposals that challenge assumptions about Chicago’s future
What Participants Receive
Horizon Lines is more than a competition. It is an engine for visibility, coordination and momentum.
Selected visions will receive:
- Public Visibility
Inclusion in a summer-long exhibit at the Chicago Cultural Center. - Expert Feedback
Input from a jury of city government, business and civic leaders. - Early City Engagement
Direct attention from City leadership and planning officials. - Honoraria
$5,000 to the winner; $1,000 each to five runners-up.
Who Should Apply?
We welcome submissions from:
- Architecture, landscape, and urban design firms
- Community-based organizations and neighborhood design leaders
- Universities, student teams, and research groups
- Artists, futurists, systems designers, technologists
- Public–private partnerships
- Interdisciplinary teams formed specifically for this competition
You do not need prior experience with City processes or large-scale development to apply. If you have a compelling, thoughtful vision for Chicago’s future, we want to hear from you.
Each team must have a Chicago-based lead business (for-profit or non-profit), but partnering organizations and team members can be based anywhere.
Learn More in an Upcoming Webinar
Questions? Interested in learning more? Register to attend one of our three upcoming webinars featuring Phil Clement, CEO of World Business Chicago, and Commissioner Ciere Boatright of the Chicago Department of Planning and Development.
How to Submit
Because Horizon Lines is a vision competition with a small honorarium attached, we are intentionally keeping submissions lightweight and accessible. This is not a request for full architectural designs, technical drawings, or detailed development plans. We are asking for clear ideas, grounded in place, and communicated visually.
Chicago’s future will be shaped by the ideas we choose to elevate today. Horizon Lines is an open invitation to imagine what’s possible—and help move it forward.