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World Without Oil
Game URL: worldwithoutoil.org
Developer: Writerguy LLA
Non-Profit:
Release Date: March 2, 2007
Project Lead: Ken Eklund
Funding Sources: Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Sponsors/In-kind donations: ITVS, Electic Shadows, Independent LEnse
Budget:
Overall: 100,000
Secured:
Brief Description
WORLD WITHOUT OIL invited people worldwide to contribute “collective imagination” to confront a real-world issue: the risk our thirst for oil poses to our economy, climate and quality of life. It’s a milestone in the use of games as democratic, collaborative platforms for exploring possible futures and sparking future-changing action.
Full Description
“If you want to change the future, play with it first” STEFANIE OLSEN, C|NET World Without Oil simulated the first 32 weeks of a global oil crisis. It established a citizen “nerve center” at www.worldwithoutoil.org to track events and share solutions. Anybody could play by creating a personal story – an email or phone call, blog post, video, whatever – that chronicled the imagined reality of their life in the crisis. The WWO site links all these stories. The game encouraged excellence with awards and recognition for authentic and intriguing stories. “A huge, twisting network of news, strategy, activism, and personal expression” NINA SIMON, MUSEUM 2.0 When WWO concluded on June 1, 2007, its 1,500 stories painted a detailed picture of an oil-poor future. Hundreds of thousands have viewed these chronicles, and high school students relive the experience via WWO lesson plans. “Astonishing quality – the players revealed the heart of a complex subject” FRANÇOIS GUITÉ, RELIEF By playing it ‘for real’, WWO evoked collective intelligence and the wisdom of crowds. Players worked together to gain grassroots insights into the forces and outcomes. Their solutions – acts that mold communities, slash wasteful consumption and create more “elastic” lives – stand as vibrant antidotes to official paralysis on energy. “Act as if. Live it. Weave us into a possible future” EVELYN RODRIGUEZ – CROSSROADS DISPATCHES By creating a nonpartisan game framework, WWO sparked timely peer learning about oil. By “rousing our democratic imagination,” WWO fostered deep engagement and changed people’s lives.
Target Audience: The pulic at large, worldwide
Social Issues Addressed: environment, Energy,
Purpose:
Metrics:
How? 1. blog buzz and press. 2. Unique visitors to website
What outcomes have been measured? 1. Extensive blog buss and press worldwide. Very high name recogniztion and concept clickthrough in affiliated communities.
Press Coverage:
http://www.worlwithoutoil.org/metabuss.htm
Press Release URL: http://itvs.org/pressroom/press_detail.php?pressId=6535
Public Contact Information
Name: Ken Eklund
Email: writerguy@writerguy.com
Press Contact Name: Ken Eklund
Press Contact Email: wwo@writerguy.com
Game Tags: alternate reality game, ARG, serious alternate reality game, SARG, world without oil, worldwithoutoil, wwo, oil crisis, 2008 oil crisis, oil shock, peak oil, oil shortage, collective intelligence, collective imagination, crowdsourced narrative, game, simulation, thought experiment, historical pre-enactment, isthisnotagame?, writerguy, ken eklund, jane mcgonigal, energy policy, serious game, game for change, itvs
Where you can play this game: The game's meta pages begin at http://worldwithoutoil.org The game was an event that ran from its announcement on March 2, 2007, to its conclusion on June 1, 2007. The most focused play began with the onset of the crisis, on April 30, 2007. The game archive begins at Week One: http://worldwithoutoil.org/default.aspx?week=1 Teachers can custom shape WWO lessons to create a WWO mini-crisis in the classroom. http://worldwithoutoil.org/metateachers.htm
