Collaborate or Collapse

Purpose and learning objectives

• Simulate climate-related crises.
• Promote cross-border collaboration.
• Teach concepts such as resilience, crisis management and sustainability.
• Develop skills in systems thinking, negotiation and critical reflection.

Target groups

Professionals working in local and regional administration and crisis and preparedness organisations (e.g., involved in urban planning and climate change adaptation), including public officials and politicians. Also suitable for university students specialising in these sectors and the general public. The game is recommended for participants aged 16 and over.

Game structure

The game consists of three rounds (each round = 12 years) and includes three phases: 

1. Pre-phase: Resources are distributed and cards related to governance, policies and demographics are drawn.
2. Prevention phase: Players analyse risks, discuss measures, negotiate across borders and decide on actions.
3. Crisis phase: A climate-related event occurs. Players respond and communicate with the public

Game mechanics – win or lose

• The game is cooperative – players work together to beat the game.
• The game master assesses the players’ efforts and awards points.
• The goal is to retain as many points as possible. If the score reaches zero, the game ends for everyone.
• Dice rolls introduce elements of chance.
   

The game is in the prototype phase and is part of a project funded by the EU Interreg Sweden–Norway prgramme, sub-region Central Scandinavia. Read more about INCREDILAB here.