Board game “Participative Life”, (“Līdzdalīgā dzīve”)

Media materials:

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Creative Minds for Culture

Organisation:

Creative Minds for Culture

Country:

Latvia

About organisation:

The Association “Creative Minds for Culture” (abbreviated as CMC) is a youth non-governmental organization founded in 2014 by young people, and its goal is to promote the active civic participation of young people and students in Latvian and foreign processes. It is located in a small village and its main target group is youth with fewer opportunities. Using non-formal education methods, CMC organizes various activities on topics of interest to young people who gain valuable non-formal experience for themselves.In 2017, CMC was approved by the Ministry of Education and Science as a Youth Organization - an organization in which at least 2/3 of the members are children and young people, and there is ensured participation of young people in the board of the association.

Title of the project

Board game “Participative Life”, (“Līdzdalīgā dzīve”)

Start date:

4/10/2022

End date:

2/9/2022

Objectives:

The creation of a board game about youth participation and international participation opportunities “Līdzdalīgā dzīve” was created by young people during several activities. Its aim was to give power to young people, to ask their opinion about participation, to collect all ideas and create a game for the young people about youth participation in a creative, funny and interactive way.The activities of the project included 10 face-to-face workshops where young people from 10 different villages/cities were actively learning about youth participation, exploring the process of board game creation and sharing their ideas on what a great board game about youth participation and opportunities should look and work like. After these, 5 digital workshops took place where youngsters from previous meetings could look at the proposed design and mechanics of the game and advise adjustments. After that, the game was created and played in at least 10 events in different cities and villages. Young people were the authors of the game idea, content and testing it to improve the game.The project reached around 300 young people and the game is still available for use to anyone who wants to borrow it for their events. The game attracted the interest of other young people from different regions in Latvia and educators who are already using the game to develop understanding of youth participation in a creative and funny way. The game includes some rules from the card game “against humanity”.

Why the project was: empowering young people, adapting to changing realities, or thinking out of the box:

Project was nominated for empowering young people, because the idea of creating a board game for young people about the topic about participation and EU opportunities was put into the hands of young people during this project. It was their idea of the game, their ideas of the questions and answers and how the game should be played and they tested the game for improvement. During the process, the game became so popular that young people from different regions wanted to try it.Around 500 young people participated in 20 workshops all over the middle of Latvia dedicated to sharing ideas about the perfect board game, discussing game mechanics and putting together sketches for a board game that they themselves would like to play, as well as actually trying out the creation in the end and seeing that their ideas can really turn into something tangible with the help of local municipal youth centres and NGOs. IThis showed to youth how to empower young people and give the support to believe in their ideas and initiate how youth participation is the reality, how they can create a game for their peers and like to play it by themselves. Several youth centres and the National Agency of Youth Affairs ordered this game, so as to use it in their learning process with young people.The creation of a board game about youth participation and international participation opportunities “Līdzdalīgā dzīve” was created by young people during several activities. Its aim was to give power to young people.

How the project was inclusive:

In each workshop about participation and game creation, participants had a discussion about youth opportunities in Europe and that included also talking about the Eurodesk network, Erasmus+, European Solidarity Corps programmes etc. The game is created in Latvian language, but in the situation and solution cards it gives directions and notes to all kinds of different EU programmes for young people as well as the Eurodesk network info points locally and regionally. The game was also tested and promoted in an annual Eurodesk infopoint and regional coordinator training in the autumn of 2022, taking place in Sigulda, Latvia, as well as several other trainings and events.

Green aspect:

All the documents, publicity materials and photos created, wherever possible, were used digitally instead of printing them out. The game was printed in only few copies and they are “travelling” copies meaning that anyone who needs the game can borrow it from the organisation and use it in their own activities in order to let young people learn about participation, EU opportunities. The coffee breaks and lunches provided for the participants of each workshop were chosen to be in as green packaging as possible, giving first hand to fresh fruits and vegetables, healthy food that is not packed in plastic or paper at all. Travelling to and from workshops, the project activity coordinator used public transport like buses and trains instead of going with a car

How the project has given a European dimension to your event and ensured the visibility and promotion of Eurodesk?

In each workshop about participation and game creation, participants had a discussion about youth opportunities in Europe and that included also talking about the Eurodesk network, Erasmus+, European Solidarity Corps programmes etc. The game is created in Latvian language, but in the situation and solution cards it gives directions and notes to all kinds of different EU programmes for young people as well as the Eurodesk network info points locally and regionally. The game was also tested and promoted in an annual Eurodesk infopoint and regional coordinator training in the autumn of 2022, taking place in Sigulda, Latvia, as well as several other trainings and events.

Impact:

As a result of this project, after 20 workshops dedicated to the creation and testing of the board game, over 500 young people from all over the central part of Latvia were more educated about the topics of youth participation, EU opportunities, Eurodesk network as well as the creation process of different board games. The biggest part of this audience had never heard about such opportunities and networks, and showed a true interest in continuing exploring the topic and using some of the EU programmes to participate in them, or at least joining a local NGO.Youth workers from the area are also well informed about the possibility to use the game in their everyday work.The game was such a success that the National Agency of Youth Programs (Jaunatnes Starptautisko programmu aģentūra) in Latvia took the blueprints of the game and has printed it into 200 more exemplars to gift it to young specialists who finish their youth worker training under the Ministry of Science and Education.