The Fall 2025 Coogs for Energy Hackathon tested the innovation skills of the participants with unique problem statements. Team Net Positive excelled at the challenge of coming up with a comprehensive and feasible solution to provide 鈥淪ustainable Soccer Fields for Communities,鈥� a problem statement provided by the Sustainability Committee of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Houston Host Committee (FWC26).
The team, comprising Amir Abutalib, Edgar Turizo-Pinilla, Victoria Guaimare Pereira, Julio Rios Brache, Isabella Galvez Fierro, and Nicolas Bravo Caldas, impressed judges with a community-centered redesign of existing soccer fields in Houston to make them more sustainable to walk away with the $6,000 first prize.
The 2026 World Cup presents an incredible opportunity for Houston to upgrade the school and community soccer fields in the city. Many of these fields still use outdated, diesel-powered lighting systems and have aging turfs. These fields are often overused, expensive to maintain, vulnerable to flooding and heat, and underserved by limited city or school budgets. Team Net Positive had to come up with affordable, resilient solutions that could turn these fields into assets the communities could use and rely on for years to come.
The team decided to focus on renewable energy, water management, and long-term community value in their proposal. They recommended replacing the current inefficient metal halide lights with modern solar-powered LED fixtures paired with batteries and an inverter. This system ensures clean power for up to 25 years, stabilizes operating costs, eliminates diesel emissions, and provides backup capacity to keep games running even during outages.
Team Net Positive's Vision for Sustainable, Community-Focused Soccer Fields
To fix the problem of drainage and heavy water use, the team proposed a hybrid drainage and smart irrigation system featuring lateral French drains, rainwater reuse, and automated irrigation controls. The cost savings expected from these changes are substantial. The new system is also expected to ensure faster drainage, making the fields safer.
Net Positive further recommended using Bermuda grass, a heat-tolerant, drought-resistant, self-recovering surface that stays cooler than artificial turf and reduces long-term maintenance costs.
The team emphasized retrofitting and community benefit, envisioning fields that could double as emergency shelters during power disruptions.
Jaime Gonzalez, the Executive Director of the UH Institute of Ecological Resilience, was one of the mentors to the team. Speaking on the team鈥檚 win he said: 鈥淣et Positive demonstrated exactly the kind of interdisciplinary, community-minded innovation that Houston needs right now. Their solution showed a deep understanding of how nature-based solutions and green infrastructure can strengthen neighborhoods, improve public health, and expand access to safe, resilient community spaces. I was incredibly impressed by their thoughtfulness, creativity, and commitment to delivering solutions that people can actually use.鈥�
Net Positive鈥檚 holistic proposal featured a realistic funding model that hoped to reach out to industry sponsors, hospitals, state flooding funds, and private foundations.
The team鈥檚 technical rigor and commitment to equitability were applauded by the judges. Their solution was not only sustainable, but scalable, practical, and deeply community-focused and that made them the clear winners. Amir who led the team, was elated with their win: 鈥淗onestly, we're super excited and a little shocked. We鈥檙e still processing our win. We didn't know how this was going to go in the beginning. We only had a week to really put all of this together and we worked every day. We were meeting every night, talking to our mentors, and we believed, and we kept going, and we did it!鈥�