City Activation Game is a board game to transform a public space in your city!
"Welcome to the City Activation Game! We believe that everyone has the right to creatively build and intervene in their cities, and we created a board game for that. Gather your neighbors, and in a few hours, create an action plan to build a more democratic, collective, fair, and fun city! Through the game, you will learn about urbanism, community engagement, and various practical tools to transform your neighborhood into what you dream it to be! Let's play?" - Karen Martini - Urbanist, Game Designer, and one of the creators of the City Activation Game
You will need to dedicate half a day per week for 4 to 6 weeks to get the project up and running in your community.
1. Print the game and learn how to play!
Choose someone to be the Master of Ceremonies and facilitate the game. This person watches the instructional video on how to play here and reads the manual here to learn how to play. Then, they download all the available materials online here and print their own City Activation Game.
2. Invite people who want to think about projects to transform their surroundings.
Make a call to include interested neighbors in the project - at this stage, it is important to gather a diverse group representing the different interests of the population affected by the project.
3. Play the game!
The game facilitates the process of recognizing, selecting, and determining the necessary steps for an action plan. During the game, people bring their emotional memories and observations of the environment, ask questions, and record insights about what could or should be in a particular space during the short, medium, or long term of implementing these tactical actions. At the end of the game, we will have an action plan for the project!
4. Put your cards into action and transform the space!
With the action plan resulting from the game, define the responsible parties for implementing each tool and create a timeline. Start with the diagnostic and engagement tool, then move on to urban communication and education, followed by activation and hands-on work, and finally, the sustainability and collaborative group. Based on the game's action plan, finalize the budget, seek donations for the necessary materials, and invite more people to participate in the project. Don't forget the grand opening when the project is completed!
5. Keep playing!
After going through this whole process, you can hold a meeting and play the game again to understand how the chosen space has changed and decide whether you want to introduce other tools to continue transforming that public space!
