Ayiti: The Cost of Life
Filed in archive Social Enterprise by mstandaert on November 06, 2006
Well, I've never heard of games like this, but it's pretty fascinating coming across the concept. Via Pienso and Still Haven't Found.
The game comes from GlobalKids and GameLab (with help from Microsoft) who have developed something called Play 4 Keeps, which helps young people create socially conscious games. Some good funky music there as well.
Playing 4 Keeps (P4K) is an innovative youth media project that involves a team of Global Kids youth leaders at South Shore High School in Brooklyn, New York. These young people are learning to develop and produce socially conscious online games, while gaining skills in game design, digital media, leadership, and peer education. Their work has the potential to educate thousands of young people about critical global issues. The program is a collaboration with the award-winning online game design company Gamelab (gamelab.com), with whom the GK Leaders have worked closely in the production of the Ayiti game.
With a generous three-year grant from the Surdna Foundation, P4K was piloted in 2002-2003 and, since then, GK has been able to develop a strong partnership with Gamelab as well as test and refine its curriculum and approach to youth-inspired, youth-led production of socially conscious online games.
In 2005, because of its innovative work in youth-developed online games, Global Kids was fortunate to have been selected as one of eleven organizations supported by Microsoft's Partners in Learning Mid-Tier Initiative, which seeks to identify and encourage "pockets of innovation" for increasing digital literacy and career readiness. Ayiti: The Cost of Life is the first game produced through Microsoft's support.
Amazing stuff, and more on the way or already out there. It looks like I've missed the memo on this.
One could foresee the possibility that games like these could be a way for nonprofits to both educate and create profits for their causes. How about a game about international development based on 'Civilization' or something like that, where you have to help a nation develop, deal with war, natural disaster, famine
, poverty, etc., etc. It could be a very interesting and educational game. You could have options to use microfinance, support social enterprises, get government or private aid, and have a multitude of scenarios as a result of your decisions.Permalink: Ayiti: The Cost of Life
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ayiti social development enterprise business social+enterprise cost+life ayiti+cost
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