CHALLENGE

GLOBE Protocol Games

Learning about science can be a fun experience! Games that focus on science and environmental issues can create opportunities for players to develop their interests and gain knowledge while engaging with each other in a fun way. Your challenge is to create a game that integrates Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program protocols to help players understand the world around them, develop awareness of one or more local or global environmental topics (e.g., urbanization, water pollution, drought, heat waves, flooding), investigate their local community using GLOBE protocols, or learn scientific principles.

Background

The GLOBE (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment) Program is an international science and education program that focuses on promoting scientific literacy and building connections between people passionate about the environment. GLOBE has three primary goals: (1) increasing environmental awareness, (2) contributing to increased scientific understanding of Earth, and (3) supporting improved student achievement in science and mathematics. Operating in more than 125 countries, GLOBE provides information about approximately 40 different protocols (or ways of taking environmental observations) that provide hands-on learning opportunities to learn about Earth’s pedosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. A foundational resource of the GLOBE Program is the Teacher’s Guide, which provides background and context on each protocol, data collection methodologies, and associated learning activities. Whether your interest lies in snowfall, the water cycle, mosquitoes, the carbon cycle, or changes in land cover – there is likely a GLOBE protocol that applies! Many of the environmental issues facing local and global communities are dynamic and interconnected. For this reason, many of the GLOBE protocols have been bundled together to address topics such as agriculture, soil, weather, and urban environments. Each bundle provides additional resources such as relevant scientific background information and case study examples to guide learners’ understanding of these multidisciplinary topics.

Objectives

The objective of this challenge is to develop a game that integrates GLOBE Program protocols to help players understand and engage with their local or global environment and further develop their environmental awareness. Is there an environmental issue affecting people in your local community? Do you have an interest in a particular global environmental challenge? Your game could help others understand or resolve it! Think about how to help players understand the scientific principles reflected in the GLOBE protocols or bundles. Will you create a graphic-based game, an interactive storyboard, or something else? Each of the GLOBE protocols and bundles includes associated scientific background information and data collection methodologies. The GLOBE community has also collected more than 200+ million data points across the world since 1995. Don’t forget there could also be NASA assets that are closely aligned with each GLOBE protocol or bundle. How could you use these various resources to develop your game? You can develop a game based on any of the GLOBE protocols or protocol bundles, and how your game works is entirely up to you. We are looking to you for inspiration to help motivate learning about local and global environmental issues!

Potential Considerations

You may (but are not required to) consider the following:

• Your target audience can be primary, middle, secondary (high school), or adult learners. It would be a bonus if your game could be played by multiple age groups.
• Your game could be appropriate for use in formal classrooms or informal educational settings. For example, it could be used to foster improved engagement in local and regional schools or informal educational settings such as libraries and nature centers.
• You could create a story board about how GLOBE protocols address environmental issues affecting communities around the world.
• Your game could include interactive components that reflect aspects of individual GLOBE protocols and bundles.
• You could create a game that tells a story based on the data that has already been collected by GLOBE participants from around the world.
• You could consider incorporating community resilience and stewardship aspects into your game or storyboard, or your game could inspire players to find a solution to a specific environmental problem.