‘Let the children once see clearly the gross injustice of our present land system and when they grow up, if they are allowed to develop naturally, the evil will soon be remedied.’ Lizzie Magie, inventor of The Landlord’s Game, The Single Tax Review 1902, p.56

At KCL, colleagues from war studies, cultural and media studies, labour studies; historians, sociologists, social and political scientists and computing specialists have shown a keen interest in games, and some have devised tabletop games around conflicts, social class, labour and climate change as part of their research and/or pedagogic tools. Magie's words remind us that there has already been a long history of board game design, publishing and collective actions that engage in these social and political issues. This afternoon workshop will draw together designers, gamers and researchers to examine board gaming and social justice issues in research and pedagogy. Join us for game demos and an open forum, exploring next steps towards further collaborations.

Refreshments will be served.

The event is supported by the Research Impact Lead’s Team; the Department of Culture, Media and Creative Industries; Digital Humanities Games Lab.

Provisional programme:

15.00-15.30 Introduction from organisers and designers

15.30-17.00 Game demos [Thanks to the designers in attendance]

Billionaires and Guillotines https://maxhaiven.com/billionaires-and-guillotines/ (Max Haiven)

Daybreak https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/334986/daybreak (Matteo Menapace, co-designer)

Meal Deal https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/394159/meal-deal (Oliver Bates, Ben Kirman)

Molly House https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/349750/molly-house (Jo Kelly)

Seize the Power https://www.livingthings.studio/projects/stp (Tiz Creel, co-designer)

17.00-18.00 Open space. Suggested questions to explore:

• What does gaming social justice look like in different disciplines?
• How can researchers and board game designers collaborate to bring about impact on social justice?
• How do we evaluate the impact of these games on attitudes towards these issues? Indeed, what is impact in this context?
• What next? Future collaborations might include the creation of a community of practitioners, research projects, applying for further funding for these endeavours. If so, what need to be done, by whom, how and when?

After 18.00 we may move to another venue, hang out and network.

Organisers: Dr Wing-Fai Leung, Dr Rob Gallagher, Dr Paolo Ruffino, Dr Feng Zhu