Wilson Center | Serious Games Initiative

📷 | Kristen Marcinek presenting her contributions from the last two semester during The Wilson Center End-of-Semester Intern Showcase 🎉

🎮 Grant for Game-based approaches: National Leadership Grants for Libraries Registration is OPEN through September 20th, 2024 | Game-based approaches from libraries and/or archival services are welcome for the Institute of Museum and Library Services' (IMLS) National Leadership Grant for Libraries. IMLS is looking to support projects that improve community well-being and broaden community access to libraries and archives. Please note: we are not the grant giving agency! We don't give grants at the Wilson Center. However, we are a convening organization, and as part of our work with the Federal Games Guild, we aggregate grant opportunities from our members that welcome game-based approaches for publicly available grants to support the broader community of those interested in using games for public good. More details on this specific opportunity can be found: https://lnkd.in/eHXBXK4i Or by contacting hwechsler@imls.gov More grants from across the Federal Games Guild can be found here: https://lnkd.in/e-uynfuK

🏆 The Wilson Center’s Serious Games Initiative is pleased to announce that The Plastic Pipeline, a serious game produced in collaboration with the Wilson Center | China Environment Forum and FableVision Studios, won two awards! The first award, is “Best Game for Government Audiences” from the Serious Games Showcase and Competition Europe in Bristol, England (Ruddy Nice). The second, is “Best Game in Environmental Impact” from the Games for Change Festival in New York City. 📖 To learn more about the awards and The Plastic Pipeline, read our blog post about the announcement 📖 ➡ https://bit.ly/4dLMmtL Kristen Marcinek, Sonja R. O'Brien, Elizabeth M H Newbury, John Matuszewski

📣 SXSW EDU has opened voting for next year's sessions 📣 Vote for sessions featuring Director of the Serious Games Initiative, Elizabeth M H Newbury. 🗣 Session 1: Empowering Media Literacy Through Games ➡ https://bit.ly/4cjVTXA Explore how innovative game-based learning tools foster media literacy and civic engagement. Join experts from Filament Games, iCivics, The Wilson Center, and iThrive Games as they discuss cutting-edge games like NewsFeed Defenders, Infosphere Invaders, and more. Discover how these games empower students to navigate media landscapes, recognize disinformation, and develop critical thinking skills. Learn about the design process, implementation strategies, and measurable impacts of these games on students' media literacy and civic participation. 🗣 Session 2: Going Global with Green Games: The Plastic Pipeline ➡ https://bit.ly/4dzRdy8 Ocean plastic pollution is a global crisis; but what can we do? The award-winning Plastic Pipeline game takes players through points on the ‘lifecycle’ of single-use plastics to learn about policies that can help stem the tide of pollution and save our oceans. Environmental education has often focused on consumer-level behavior, like recycling or clean up, but that's just the start. The Wilson Center created a game that would help young adults in the US and Southeast Asia to both learn about plastic pollution and also what can be done at the policy-level to stem the tide of plastic pollution. 🗣 Session 3: AI Games: Making Sure Learning Isn't Artificial ➡ https://bit.ly/4cpB9hu With the pervasiveness of AI, how can we lower the barrier to make learning about this critical and emerging technology easier? Join the Wilson Center's Serious Games Initiative and FableVision Studios to learn how we took research in AI and transformed it into a series of free, multiplayer games. From bias in algorithms to synthetic media and deepfakes, it's never more important to discuss how we can increase our understanding about AI. Click the “Up” Arrow to the right of the title after clicking the link to cast your vote! ✔

🎮 Grant for Game-based approaches: Annual International Space Apps Challenge Registration is OPEN through October 6 | Game-based approaches are welcome to be submitted for the NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Annual International Space Apps Challenge! Teams are invited to engage with NASA's free and open data to address real-world problems on Earth and in space. Please note: we are not the grant giving agency! We don't give grants at the Wilson Center. However, we are a convening organization, and as part of our work with the Federal Games Guild, we aggregate grant opportunities from our members that welcome game-based approaches for publicly available grants to support the broader community of those interested in using games for public good. More details on this specific opportunity can be found: https://lnkd.in/gegriYs Or by contacting shobhana.gupta@nasa.gov or info@spaceappschallenge.org More grants from across the Federal Games Guild can be found here: https://lnkd.in/e-uynfuK

In April 2024, Ambassador Mark Green, president and CEO of The Wilson Center, wrote "The growth of international trade has been one of the most important economic developments in modern times…And yet in 2024, trade seems to have become the proverbial 'skunk at the pool party.' Political leaders look away whenever the topic comes up" in his blog “Trade? What's That?” 🍅🦨 You can put down your tomato soup, and instead read the latest edition of the Games Round Up blog series, International Trade, by Serious Games Initiative Intern Kristen Marcinek + Elizabeth M H Newbury to discover games that may help in understanding this skunk. Read now 📖 https://bit.ly/3SwBQyb

🎮 Grant for Game-based approaches: IES Research Grants Program | Due August 15th, 2024 | Game-based approaches from universities and non-profits that explore assessment and evaluation in education are welcome for the Institute of Education Sciences' Research Grants Program. Request for Applications: 1. Research Networks Focused on Critical Problems of Education Policy and Practice: https://lnkd.in/e2PCECc2 2. From Seedlings to Scale Grants Program: https://lnkd.in/eaXxAQuZ Please note: we are not the grant giving agency! We don't give grants at the Wilson Center. However, we are a convening organization, and as part of our work with the Federal Games Guild, we aggregate grant opportunities from our members that welcome game-based approaches for publicly available grants to support the broader community of those interested in using games for public good. More grants from across the Federal Games Guild can be found here: https://lnkd.in/e-uynfuK

In the 2024 Summer Olympics opening ceremony in Paris, perhaps only geeks flagged initially the presence of an homage to Ubisoft (a French-based video game company)'s character from Assassin's Creed Unity. At least I did. This marks at least the second consecutive time that video games have been a cultural marker and a soft power flex in the Summer Olympics opening ceremony. Tokyo's opening ceremony also featured scores from popular video games like Final Fantasy, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Chrono Trigger during the parade of nations, notably reinforcing the impact of Japan on the video game industry. With Los Angeles up next for hosting the 2028 Summer Olympics, and the recent announcement of Saudi Arabia hosting the inaugural Olympic Esports Games in 2025, I anticipate that we will see even more integration of video games into the Olympics--maybe even beyond the Opening Ceremony--in the future. References: The 2024 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony Goes Full Assassin's Creed Parkour On Paris' Rooftops https://lnkd.in/efJSf59y The Olympic opening ceremony was full of video game music https://lnkd.in/e_cj42Pi IOC announces Olympic Esports Games to be hosted in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia https://lnkd.in/eSWXqkaf

New 📝 | In this edition of the Games Round Up blog series, Kristen Marcinek and Elizabeth M H Newbury take a closer look at games that involve international trade. They discuss games from two uses cases, education-first and entertainment-first, and how these games inspire players to take that first dive into understanding international trade. Read now 📖 https://bit.ly/3SwBQyb Featuring games by: International Monetary Fund, iCivics, SIFMA Foundation, Firaxis Games, CCP Games, Paradox Interactive, Enlight, and 3 Division

Happy National Intern Day from the Wilson Center | Science and Technology Innovation Program to our incredible Interns! This summer we have the pleasure of working with: 🔬 Bolu Adesanmi, Villanova University graduate and Harvard University PHD candidate, is researching the the state of the US science enterprise and the triple helix of University-Industry-Government Relations. 🔬John Matuszewski, undergraduate student at Georgetown University Walsh School of Foreign Service, in addition to being one of our communications ghost writers, is researching how AI is being used to protect wildlife. 🔬Kristen Marcinek, Rutgers University graduate and American University Masters of Fine Arts student, is supporting the Wilson Center | Serious Games Initiative through research, writing, game development and more. 🔬Michael Cronin, an undergraduate student at Duke University, is supporting our AI portfolio and researching the state of key tech collaboration relationships for the United States. 🔬Yimang Tang, University of Maryland graduate and incoming Masters of Mechanical Engineering student Carnegie Mellon University, is supporting our space, and AI portfolio, and researching the present and future for United States-India relationship on AI, cyber, space, and emerging tech at large. Stay tuned for more amazing work from our interns! And if you are interested in applying for our fall internship, learn more here ➡ https://bit.ly/43uhicb