Preparing the Gaming Profession to Deal with Problems of the Twenty-first Century

Abstract

Solving global problems will require great foresight, concerted action across national boundaries, and profound changes in technology, culture, and economics. This conclusion is fully recognized by New Earth 21, a recent Japanese initiative to deal with climate change. I propose here a partnership between the global gaming community and the scientific and political leaders who have begun to plan the New Earth 21 initiative. Collaboration would pay dividends for both sides. Those concerned with global problems will gain access to a set of powerful tools for social research, communication, and training. Gamers would gain political and financial support for their work. They would also be confronted with the need to make long overdue changes in the conduct of their profession: standardizing and extending professional training programs, raising the quality of documentation, and developing better means for accessing the growing body of important educational games.