TOGETHER: Towards Open Game Environments for Teams in Highereducation and Research

Overview

Our group aims to develop educational tools to empower learners to become globally engaged citizens that take a leading role in tackling sustainability challenges. We develop a scalable hybrid serious game that challenges students from different disciplines to together run a simulated city from the perspective of different stakeholders with different interests and constraints. The goal is to train students in the European sustainability competence framework (GreenComp). 

Core areas/themes

We focus on sustainable cities and communities as well as clean water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, decent work and economic growth, and industry, innovation and infrastructure. In the TOGETHER game, students take the role of different stakeholders that are differently affected by these goals. In the game, students not only learn about these goals but are also trained in a systems thinking approach that allows them to understand the relation between these themes. 

Interdisciplinarity

The Faculty of Science and Engineering (FSE), the faculty of Law (FoL), and the Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB) form the core of the group. All members are part of the Community of Practice (CoP) in Gamification. Furthermore, other members of the CoP provide input in the project and join parts of the project.  

Impact

The TOGETHER serious game will be developed to be accessible to large numbers of students and to facilitate (virtual) exchange between students from different faculties and universities. Furthermore, we aim to engage local stakeholders to develop software modules that simulate local challenges and incorporate these in the game. In this way, students become involved in developing solutions for these local challenges and can learn from local stakeholders in the process.