Green Economy Game: A Modular Approach for Sustainable Development Education

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Wilian Gatti Junior
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1111-8162
Beaumie Kim, Prof.
Liping Liu
Xingru Lai

Abstract

In this paper, we discuss our approach to designing a board game, the Green Economy, that promotes systems thinking.  We anchored our game design process on design-by-analogy and rapid prototyping concepts by taking a modular approach to overcome the trade-off between realism and simplicity. The unique feature of the Green Economy enables players to change the rules of the game during the gameplay, which gives them a partial design opportunity.  The theme, sustainable development, was chosen to challenge the players’ systems thinking in sustainable development. Systems thinking enables us to understand and face the complex challenges in global and networked social structures.  Our design experience demonstrates the benefit of designing dynamic game elements that involve both strategic gameplay and game (re)design through systems thinking.

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How to Cite
Gatti Junior, W., Kim, B., Liu, L., & Lai, X. (2020). Green Economy Game: A Modular Approach for Sustainable Development Education. International Journal of Designs for Learning, 11(2), 96–107. https://doi.org/10.14434/ijdl.v11i2.25020
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Articles
Author Biographies

Wilian Gatti Junior, University of Calgary

Wilian Gatti Junior is a doctoral student in the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary. His research explores design thinking through gameplay and game design.

Beaumie Kim, Prof., University of Calgary

Beaumie Kim is an Associate Professor in the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary. Her work in Learning Sciences is focused on empowering learners to create meaningful artifacts and construct their own understanding using gaming, modeling, and visualization tools for learning in diverse learning contexts.

Liping Liu, University of Calgary

Liping Liu is a master's student in Educational Research in the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary.

Xingru Lai, University of Calgary

Xingru Lai is a language education researcher. She received her master’s degree in the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary.