Inaugural Lecture 21st March 4-5pm Coventry University

Inaugural Lecture 21st March 4-5pm Coventry University


Can Serious Games save lives?

The Inaugural Lecture from Prof Sara de Freitas will focus upon outlining several grand challenges that face us as a result of global economic downturn, growing population and globalisation. These challenges are exacerbated by the development of interconnected systems which are vulnerable to systematic collapse. At the same time as these real world challenges new technologies and forms such as social networks and online games are becoming more and more pervasive and are now played by increasing numbers of people. This trend towards pervasive social game play is leading to a trend known as gamification, where the use of game elements and metaphors to solve real world problems, motivate learners and raise awareness, to provide therapy and to train hard-to-reach groups is leading to a new trend where games are increasingly used to solve problems and provide engaging education and training. This lecture focuses upon flagship projects in the area of emergency management training, as illustration of the capability of games to be used to save lives and help us to become more robust and resilient in the face of the significant global challenges we face.

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