Games for Change Festival: Full Schedule

Visit gamesforchange.org/festival for the full Festival website.

9:00am EDT

Welcome and Opening Remarks

Speakers

Anne Gaines

Dean of AMT & Assistant Professor of Fine Arts, The New School's Parsons School of Design

Anne Gaines, artist and educator, lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. Her paintings focus on her local surroundings to show the everyday rhythm of her urban community. Gaines actively engages urban youth in art and design college preparation, and she is a member of CACNY, the College... Read More →

Susanna Pollack

President, Games for Change

Susanna Pollack is the President of Games for Change. With a background in media and entertainment, she now leads the nationally recognized organization and produces the annual Games for Change Festival, the largest gaming event in NYC as well as the Games and Media Summit in partnership... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 9:00am - 9:15am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

9:15am EDT

Keynote - Amplius Ludo, Beyond the Horizon, with Christopher Weaver

While the universal appeal of games may satisfy our innate desire to play, the powerful dynamics that govern our behavior within them is even more interesting than the play itself. As we broaden our understanding of the subtle mechanisms that govern deep focus and situational learning, how can we apply this knowledge beyond games to other social purpose? Join Christopher Weaver, founder of Bethesda Softworks, who now teaches engineering and computational media at MIT and Wesleyan, as he discusses how games work and why they are such potent tools in areas as disparate as military simulation, childhood education, and medicine.

Speakers

Christopher Weaver

Founder and former CEO, Bethesda Softworks

Christopher Weaver, Research Scientist, MIT Comparative Media Studies, Visiting Scientist, MIT Microphotonics Center and Director of Interactive Simulation for the MIT AIM Photonics Academy. Christopher received his SM from MIT and was the initial Daltry Scholar at Wesleyan University... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 9:15am - 9:45am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Games for Learning Summit

9:45am EDT

Opening Remarks from Erik Huey

Speakers

Erik Huey

Senior Vice President for Government Affairs, Entertainment Software Association

Erik Huey is currently the Senior Vice President for Government Affairs at the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). As Senior Vice President, Erik oversees the entire federal and state government relations operations of ESA. The Entertainment Software Association is the U.S... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 9:45am - 9:55am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

10:00am EDT

Progress Report from Richard Culatta

Speakers

Richard Culatta

Chief Innovation Officer, State of Rhode Island

Thursday June 23, 2016 10:00am - 10:15am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Games for Learning Summit

10:15am EDT

Keynote - Into the Future, with Magic Leap's Graeme Devine

Magic Leap’s Chief Game Wizard Graeme Devine shares the startup’s vision for mixed reality in the classroom and making virtual objects appear in real life.

Speakers

Graeme Devine

Chief Game Wizard, Magic Leap

Graeme is a veteran game developer with more than 30 years of experience across multiple platforms, technologies, and major titles. Starting at age 16 working at Atari, Graeme has helped bring numerous games to life, including Pole Position, The 7th Guest, The 11th Hour, Quake III... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 10:15am - 10:45am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Games for Learning Summit

11:00am EDT

Failing to Change

Failure. It's not something we usually talk about in the games for change community. This is ironic, because games are all about failure—playing them involves learning from each failure we experience. In fact, you could say that game designers are failure experts!
However, when we speak of our work, we like to focus on our successes. How does this help us learn as a community? It doesn’t! This is a session about failure and what it can teach us, through a meditation on the meaning of failure in games for change and some painfully true stories from the field.

Speakers

Colleen Macklin

Founder and co-director, PETLab

Colleen Macklin is a game designer, professor in of Art, Media and Technology at Parsons School of Design, and founder/co-director of PETLab (Prototyping Education + Technology Lab), a lab that develops games for learning and social engagement. PETLab projects include disaster-preparedness... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:00am - 11:15am EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

11:00am EDT

Building School Community With Civic-Themed Hackathons

Student hackathons have been a catalyst for creativity and unity across the 18 schools in the Software Engineering Program (SEP) at the NYC Department of Education. Learn how SEP created and tailored 9 unique hackathons for thousands of students in grades 6-11, each guided by the design process to show students that coding is ubiquitous; from art to game design to community causes, there is a place in the programming world for every student that’s interested.

Speakers

Amna Siddiqui

Program Manager, NYC DoE

Amna manages all facets of communication at Eyebeam. Her primary concentration is developing permanent strategies that elevate and support the organization's mission to expose, engage, and educate the public with the novel and creative technologies being developed by Eyebeam's outstanding... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:00am - 11:15am EDT
Room 105

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

11:00am EDT

We All Want to Be in the Room Where it Happens

In the Broadway hit, Hamilton, Aaron Burr sings about a famous meeting between Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and Thomas Jefferson, “I wanna be in the room where it happens.” Gigantic Mechanic makes live-action games that combine theatrical elements, role-playing, and face-to-face interaction. Instead of running towards virtual reality and telepresence, we’ve sprinted in the opposite direction towards games that put players in the same real room to sort through issues together. In this talk, we share some of our key design insights from designing the Senate Immersion Module for the Edward M. Kennedy Institute and other live-action games that address complex issues like drones to games that facilitate imaginative play between parents and kids.

Speakers

Greg Trefry

Greg Trefry co-founded the design studio Gigantic Mechanic to create engaging experiences through real-world, physical and social play. He has made everything from live-action simulations to documentary video games for clients, ranging from museums to amusement parks to TV networks... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:00am - 11:30am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

11:00am EDT

Playing Medical Minecraft with IBM Watson

See how IBM’s Watson and their Medical Minecraft mod, co-developed with high-school teachers and students, uses cognitive computing to explore the human body.

Speakers

Stowell, Porter

Serious Games, IBM

For the past 7 years, Porter has worked with clients in retail, finance, education, sustainability, and healthcare to innovate their business models through the adoption of game mechanics. Currently, Porter is responsible for IBM’s broader serious games strategy, leading their... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:00am - 11:30am EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

11:15am EDT

Show, Don't Tell: Making Personal Games

Anna Anthropy, creator of Dys4ia once said "videogames let you set up goals for the player and make them fail toachieve them. A reader cannot fail a book. It’s an entirely different level of empathy.” This talk will explore how games have the power to communicate complex concepts through playful interactions. Using her capstone project as a case study, Independent Games Festival winner Jenny Jiao Hsia will present the design challenges she has encountered in making a personal game about dieting and body image. Lessons from this project can be applied to all kinds of games for change.

Speakers

Jenny Jiao Hsia

cuteness consultant, hexecutable

Jenny Jiao Hsia is a 21 year-old Chinese-American game developer, born and raised in New York City. She is currently finishing up her BFA in game design at the NYU Game Center and has been making games for two long years. Her capstone project is called Consume Me and it is a personal... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:15am - 11:30am EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

11:15am EDT

UX in Educational Games

Developing an engaging video game is a delicate and complex endeavor. With thousands of games and apps in the market, standing apart from the crowd is increasingly challenging, even for AAA studios with considerable resources. This situation has ramifications for how educational games can be made both attractive to their audience and likely to induce transfer from game play to real world behaviors. This talk will provide an overview of user experience (UX) practices - increasingly used for commercial games - and why these practices should be considered when designing educational games.

Speakers

Celia Hodent

Director of User Experience, Epic Games

Celia Hodent holds a PhD in cognitive psychology, initially specializing in child development. Early in her career Celia stepped aside from academic research to work with an educational toy manufacturer, VTech. Celia joined Ubisoft Paris in 2008 to help the editorial team translate... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:15am - 11:30am EDT
Room 105

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

11:30am EDT

Comedy, Games and Social Change

When we think of games about important social issues, many of us tend to assume that comedy has no place in any treatment of such serious topics. Yet, on the contrary, humor can play an important role in humanizing difficult situations and helping us feel empathy for characters. This presentation will highlight several examples of games that effectively use absurdity and silliness to tell memorable stories about living in the world as a marginalized person. You may even actually laugh at some point. Hopefully.

Speakers

Dietrich Squinkifer

Mx. Dietrich Squinkifer (Squinky) is a writer, programmer, musician, and visual artist who creates games and playable experiences about gender identity, social awkwardness, and miscellaneous silliness. They have an MFA in Digital Arts and New Media from UC Santa Cruz, and in 2015... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:30am - 11:45am EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

11:30am EDT

Co-Designing Museums of the Future

Can games and play create the motivation and mind-set for informal science learning? Come learn how the American Museum of Natural History is exploring games-based learning and hear from NYC teens helping them develop the museum-engagement mechanisms of the future.

Speakers

Barry Joseph

Associate Director of Digital Learning, American Museum of Natural History

Barry Joseph is Associate Director of Digital Learning at the American Museum of Natural History. Since 2000, he has developed innovative programs in the areas of youth-produced video games, mobile and augmented learning, virtual worlds, and more. At the Museum since 2012, he guides... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:30am - 11:45am EDT
Room 105

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

11:30am EDT

Big Picture: A Conversation About Neuroscience

In this conversation Dr. Kevin Ochsner, head of the Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Laboratory at Columbia University, and Asi Burak will discuss the latest opportunities and challenges in neuroscience research, including: our understanding of brain plasticity over the decades; how games could become vehicles for transformation and what other vehicles exist; how the brain deals with habits and the change of habits; how could we train the brain in specific domains and how experiences (through games) differ from reflective thinking and traditional learning.

Moderators

Asi Burak

Board Chairman, Games for Change

Asi is a veteran of the videogame and technology industries, and an award-winning executive producer and designer. For the past five years, he served as the President of Games for Change (replaced by Susanna Pollack), and he is now Chairman of the Board.He served as a strategic... Read More →

Speakers

Kevin Ochsner

Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Psychology, Columbia University

Kevin received his in Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from Harvard University and received postdoctoral training in social psychology and functional neuroimaging at Harvard and Stanford Universities. Kevin currently is Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:30am - 12:00pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

11:30am EDT

Workshop - Feats and Flops: Trailblazing the Edtech Market

Explore different sustainable business models for game developers in the learning market. Five SBIR grantees will share their personal stories of successes and challenges in bringing their learning games to education marketplace. SBIR Program Manager Ed Metz will ask the group questions about crowdfunding, partnering and licensing agreements, and working with teachers and schools. This is an interactive discussion with an audience Q&A.

Case studies presented by:

David Langendoen, Electric Funstuff
Kara Carpenter, Teachley
John Krajewski, Strange Loop Games
Victoria Van Voorhis, Second Avenue Learning
Jessica Berlinski, Personalized Learning Games

Speakers

Edward Metz

Program Manager for Small Business Innovation Research and SBIR and Education Technology Research Grants, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education

Edward (Ed) Metz is a developmental psychologist, education researcher, and program director. Since 2004, Ed has worked as a research scientist at the US Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, where he directs programs that seed fund the R&D and evaluation of... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Games for Learning Summit, Workshop

11:45am EDT

Gaming for Good: A Disruptive Innovation

Whether in the movies or in the media, gamers often are stereotyped as loners, slacktavists and introverts and linked to violent video games. However, the donation data disproves these myths. Gamers are generous, caring, team-oriented and they know how to solve problems. Gamers coming together for a common cause can change the world and be a “Life Force” for good. Over the past four years, gamers have helped to fund more than $20 million of programs for Save the Children including #GamingTuesday. You do not have to be a gamer nor a large organization to learn from gamers.

Speakers

Ettore Rossetti

Senior Director of Social Business Strategy & Innovation, Save the Children

Ettoré Rossetti is the Senior Director of Social Business Strategy & Innovation at the global nonprofit organization, Save the Children. His purview includes social media, live-streaming, charity gaming and innovative fundraising. Ettoré has been with Save the Children for 10... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:45am - 12:00pm EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

11:45am EDT

Case Study: Star Wars and Hour of Code

Go behind-the-scenes of the Star Wars: Building a Galaxy With Code tutorial for The Hour of Code 2015 and examine the challenges of building this game-style educational experience that takes students from zero programming experience to making their first computer game in one hour.

Speakers

Brendan Reville

Software Engineer, Code.org

Brendan grew up in Sydney before moving to Seattle at the height of the first dot com boom. He spent nine years as a software engineer on the Xbox team at Microsoft, before moving to Code.org where he has helped build a variety of its offerings, including the Hour of Code tutoria... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 11:45am - 12:00pm EDT
Room 105

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

12:00pm EDT

Edu-Larps: Live Roleplay in the Classroom

Learn how LARPs are used in the classroom, and how role-playing games can achieve deeper levels of engagement, intrinsic motivation, and self-confidence as students become part of the story. What advantages do these analog games have over digital learning games?

Speakers

Aaron Vanek

Thursday June 23, 2016 12:00pm - 12:15pm EDT
Room 105

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

12:00pm EDT

Democratizing Bio-Sensing Tools With OpenBCI

Joel Murphy of OpenBCI will give a "neuro-powered" talk about his company and mission and what it means to democratize in the field of brain-computer interface (BCI). Joel will wear an OpenBCI Ultracortex headset that will read his EEG (brainwaves) and EMG (muscle movements) and allow him to control the presentation and slides through it. He will showcase examples of applications that members of its growing community have created and talk about the potential applications of BCI in gaming. A volunteer from the audience will be invited to do a live demo using the headset to control a robotic hand on stage!

Speakers

Joel Murphy

President, OpenBCI

Joel Murphy is President of OpenBCI, Inc, an Open Source Hardware companyspecializing is biosensing tools. He's also co-founder of World Famous Electronics,makers of the Pulse Sensor, an open-source optical heart-rate monitor. Joel taughtPhysical Computing at Parsons from 2006 to... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 12:00pm - 12:30pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

12:15pm EDT

Case Study: The Meaning of BEEP

BrainPOP and the Institute of Play have gotten to work together in a near-ideal development process for a game-for-learning: classroom teachers working with professional designers and developers, with constant iteration and testing, leading to broad distribution by a respected brand. They’ll share lessons from this case study in collaborative development involving the classroom, including: going from paper to tablets, in-person to multiplayer online; embracing the differences between intended and actual implementation in the classroom; and from a handful of classrooms to many subject areas and millions of users.

Speakers

Scott Price

Director of Product, BrainPOP

I've been making games for learning, and playful learning and assessment, for 12 years. I can advise on:• publishing and distributing games in formal education market (schools, classrooms)• game design for classroom use• game design for learning in and out of the classroom... Read More →

Brendon Trombley

Game Designer, Institute of Play

Brendon Trombley is a game designer, educator, and adventurer living in New York City. His passions involve games, technology, learning, travel, and food, and he tries to mix and match them whenever possible (be careful when combining food and technology!). Brendon is a graduate... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 12:15pm - 12:30pm EDT
Room 105

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

1:30pm EDT

Lunch

Thursday June 23, 2016 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

1:30pm EDT

Lunch

Thursday June 23, 2016 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

1:30pm EDT

Lunch

Thursday June 23, 2016 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT
Room 104

1:30pm EDT

Lunch

Thursday June 23, 2016 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT
Room 105

2:00pm EDT

21st-Century Armageddon: Why Nuclear Weapons are Too Important NOT to Play With

What do you think of when you hear “nuclear weapons”? Action movies? Spy films? Maybe you think about history, and how nukes are a bygone issue. Or maybe you just don’t think about them at all.
In this session, Paul Carroll of the N Square collaborative will discuss how current games treat nuclear catastrophe as a backdrop to narrative, summarize the current realities of the world’s nuclear weapons status, and how with their new game Epic Orphan will be more forward-thinking on how this subject is being treated.

Speakers

Paul Carroll

Director of Programs, Ploughshare Fund and N Square

Thursday June 23, 2016 2:00pm - 2:30pm EDT
Room 105

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

2:00pm EDT

State of the Union

Join former GameSpot editor and current managing editor of Feminist Frequency Carolyn Petit as she shares her insights about the current state of the gaming industry. Drawing on her unique experiences as a visible transgender woman at a major videogame site, Carolyn will illuminate how certain limiting attitudes and ideas have become entrenched in games culture, and how we can challenge and subvert those ideas. Her talk will explore how game designers, journalists, PR people, and fans can seize the transitional moment in which we find ourselves to help foster a games culture that is truly more diverse, inclusive, and exciting for everyone.

Speakers

Carolyn Petit

Managing Editor, Feminist Frequency

I spent four years as an editor at GameSpot, where my experiences as a publicly transgender woman in the games media gave me a unique perspective on the state of games culture. My review of Grand Theft Auto V for GameSpot, which touched on issues of misogyny in the game, caused quite... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 2:00pm - 2:30pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

2:00pm EDT

Video Games as Meditation

The single most powerful technology we know for transforming consciousness and deepening happiness is an ancient one: meditation. In this talk, we analyze meditation as a game design — one played with the function of revealing and dissolving other games that are played unconsciously. Robin Arnott, the VR "technodelic" designer of SoundSelf, will demonstrate how meditation systems can be adapted to and even improved by modern videogaming technology.

Speakers

Robin Arnott

Developer of SoundSelf

Robin is a game designer and interactive artist based in Austin, TX, and Black Rock City, NV. He plays with hacking perception, particularly of the boundary between self and not-self. His new VR game, SoundSelf, uses the player's intuitive identification with their voice to leverage... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 2:00pm - 2:30pm EDT
Room 104

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

2:00pm EDT

Panel - More Than Child's Play: Games for Early Learners

Play is a powerful way to engage young learners eager to explore and create. We'll explore what we've learned about the needs of early learners and creating effective age-appropriate content that supports their growth.

Moderators

Katrina Stevens

Deputy Director, U.S. DoE

Katrina Stevens, Deputy Director in the Office of Educational Technology, leads the work of Future Ready, rapid cycle tech evaluations, education innovation clusters and developer outreach. Katrina has extensive experience in multiple roles in the ed tech ecosystem: teacher, administrator... Read More →

Speakers

Sara DeWitt

Vice President, PBS KIDS Digital

Sara DeWitt leads innovative strategies to build connected educational experiences for kids of all income levels across media platforms. In her 16+ years in public media, DeWitt has led the extension of PBS KIDS content into new frontiers, from websites and mobile apps to streaming... Read More →

Ellen Doherty

Executive in Charge of Production, The Fred Rogers Company

Ellen Doherty is Executive in Charge of Production for The Fred Rogers Company, overseeing creation of television and digital content, as well as developing new properties. She is an Emmy Award-winning producer and writer with more than 20 years’ experience in children's and family... Read More →

Joe France

Game Designer, codeSpark

Joe France is a game designer who has been creating education and health games since 2009. He’s made games for teaching physics through space golf, alleviating concussions through time management, and exploring science with Marvel superheroes. He’s currently the game designer... Read More →

Ingrid Simone

Editorial Director, Toca Boca

Ingrid Simone, executive editor at Toca Magazine, joined Toca Boca in 2014, bringing a passion for quality content focused on kids, family and learning in the digital age. As a mother of two, these topics resonate with her personally and professionally. For four years, Ingrid was... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 2:00pm - 2:45pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Games for Learning Summit, Panel

2:30pm EDT

Panel - Funding Games Within the Public Sector: A Conversation Between Funders and Artists

Moderators

Erik Huey

Senior Vice President for Government Affairs, Entertainment Software Association

Speakers

Clara Fernandez-Vara

Associate Arts Professor, New York University

Clara Fernández-Vara is Associate Arts Professor at the NYU Game Center and co-founder of Fiction Control, a narrative design company. She's a game designer and writer as well as an academic, so her work for the last 10 years combines scholarship with the creation of narrative games... Read More →

Nick Fortugno

Chief Creative Officer, Playmatics

Nick Fortugno is a designer of games and interactive narrative experiences and co-founder of Playmatics. Fortugno has been lead designer on dozens of works, including leading interactive narrative design on Frankenstein AI, shown at Sundance New Frontier, and on games and experiences... Read More →

Karen Helmerson

Program Director for Electronic Media, Film & Visual Art, NYSCA

Since 2000, Ms. Helmerson has been the Program Director for Electronic Media, Film & Visual Art at the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA). Her funding supports a wide range of contemporary visual art and technology across all platforms andgenres. She has authored several... Read More →

Edward Metz

Program Manager for Small Business Innovation Research and SBIR and Education Technology Research Grants, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education

Dr. Marc Ruppel

Director, Digital Projects for the Public, National Endowment for the Humanities

Dr. Marc Ruppel is a Senior Program Officer at the National Endowment for the Humanities, Division of Public Programs. He leads the Digital Projects for the Public grant line, with a portfolio that includes the 2017 G4C Game of the Year, "Walden, a game." Marc has worked on several... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 2:30pm - 3:00pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Panel

2:30pm EDT

What's Next in Minecraft Education

Microsoft and Mojang are harnessing the best parts of Minecraft — exploration, extreme creation, and community — and working with educators to create a version of the game that stays true to the soul of Minecraft while helping teachers give their students rich and dynamic learning experiences.

Speakers

Deirdre Quarnstrom

Thursday June 23, 2016 2:30pm - 3:00pm EDT
Room 105

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

2:30pm EDT

Heal Thyself: What Makes Health Games Work?

Games have shown promise to help us survive diseases, heal psychological wounds, understand neuroscience, improve physical fitness, and guide us to a healthier life. For every such game that is an inspiring gem, there are many more that utterly fail in their intended purpose. This session showcases successes and explores the essential elements that make a health-focused game something useful, compelling, and playable. The session will also explore the failures that may have had good intentions but couldn’t cut it as a game. The lessons gleaned from those are also most valuable. Audience interaction welcomed.

Speakers

Thomas Talbot, M.D.

Principal Medical Expert, USC Institute for Creative Technologies

Dr. Talbot has been at the center of many of the nation’s major medical simulation and gaming efforts as a Defense Department gaming proponent & innovator. As Principal Medical Expert at the USC Institute for Creative Technologies, he creates virtual human interactive patients... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 2:30pm - 3:00pm EDT
Room 104

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

2:45pm EDT

Panel - From Player to Developer: Girls in Gaming

Games reflect the experiences and perspectives of those who create them. More women are playing games than ever. How can education and the gaming industry create more opportunities for women and girls to improve diversity and make better games?

Moderators

Ariella Lehrer

CEO, Legacy Games

Ariella is the CEO of Legacy Interactive/Legacy Games, founded in 1998. Since graduate school, she has been interested in concepts such as attention, memory, problem solving and constructivist theories of learning, and how these relate to the design of interactive experiences for... Read More →

Speakers

Joan Freese

RTL Project Executive Producer, Twin Cities Public Television

Joan Freese is an Emmy Award winning educational technologist at Twin Cities PBS,in St. Paul, Minnesota, focusing on projects for K-8 students, parents, and educators.She is digital producer of SciGirls, a transmedia enterprise that encourages tween girlsin STEM, and principle investigator... Read More →

Tracy Fullerton

Professor and Director, USC Game Innovation Lab

Tracy Fullerton is an award-winning experimental game designer, professor, and director of the cross-disciplinary USC Games program, a collaboration between the USC School of Cinematic Arts and the Viterbi School of Engineering. She holds the Electronic Arts Endowed Chair in Interactive... Read More →

Laila Shabir

CEO, Girls Make Games

Laila Shabir is the founder and CEO of LearnDistrict, an educational media company, and Girls Make Games (GMG), an organization that teaches game development to elementary through high school girls around the world. Laila's work at GMG has won her numerous awards, including the... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 2:45pm - 3:30pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Games for Learning Summit, Panel

3:00pm EDT

A Global Community for Global Change

Can a volunteer and collaborative approach be applied to game development and distribution? The non-profit organization Video Games Without Borders has been experimenting in this direction for more than a year, building a global community of volunteer developers and focusing on games with a positive impact on the society. Many are the challenges, especially about the productivity and the sustainability of such a model, but the feedback received so far has proven its potential and its interest among both students and experienced professionals. Let's analyze together the lessons learned through the development of the organization.

Speakers

Francesco Cavallari

Founder, Video Games Without Borders

Recently graduated in Computer Science, Francesco joined Ubisoft in 1999 and developed commercial video games for more than 15 years. As Programmer, Producer, and Production Director, he worked in several European studios and collaborated with development teams all around the world... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 3:00pm - 3:15pm EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

3:00pm EDT

Well Played: Project Syria

What makes a game good? Or bad? Or better? Building on the ETC Press books and journal and the success of live sessions, Ralph Vituccio (Asst Teaching Professor at Carnegie Mellon University) will analyze Project Syria, an immersive journalism piece, for the audience to help highlight the virtual reality experience and open up a discussion about the unique impact VR can have. The goal is to help develop and define a literacy of games and interactive media as well as a sense of their value as an experience. These sessions are not a part of the selection and jurying of the festival, instead they are purely to inspire discussion amongst festival attendees.

Speakers

Drew Davidson

Director, etc@cmu

Drew Davidson is a professor, producer and player of interactive media. His background spans academic, industry and professional worlds and he is interested in stories across texts, comics, games and other media. He is the Director of the Entertainment Technology Center at Carn... Read More →

Ralph Vituccio

Ralph Vituccio is an Associate Teaching Professor at the Entertainment Technology Center, Carnegie Mellon University. His interactive projects on racism, sexual assault and conflict management have won numerous national media awards. As an independent artist, his documentaries have... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 3:00pm - 3:30pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Across all tracks Civics & Social Issues Games for Learning Summit Neurogaming & Health

3:00pm EDT

Pro Tips for Breaking into the Education Market

With today's technologies, are we poised for a transformation of the school system or are we doomed to be mired in the traditions of the past? Learn about the challenges facing developers, educators, and administrators, and how games can provide transformative experiences in the classroom.

Speakers

Sande Chen

Co-author of Serious Games: Games That Educate, Train, and Inform

Sande Chen is the co-author of Serious Games: Games That Educate, Train, and Inform. As a serious games consultant, she helps companies harness the power of video games for non-entertainment purposes. Her career as a writer, producer, and game designer has spanned over 15 years. Her... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 3:00pm - 3:30pm EDT
Room 105

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

3:15pm EDT

Exploring Art, Narrative, and Mental Health in Anamorphine

Speakers

Samantha Cook

COO, Artifact 5

Samantha Cook is a jack of all trades. She leverages her backgrounds in game production, community management, not-for-profit grant-giving at Artifact 5, where she is a co-founder and producer. She has worked in social media and community management, has a B.A. in English Literature... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 3:15pm - 3:30pm EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

3:15pm EDT

Break

Thursday June 23, 2016 3:15pm - 4:00pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

3:30pm EDT

Break

Thursday June 23, 2016 3:30pm - 4:00pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

3:30pm EDT

Break

Thursday June 23, 2016 3:30pm - 4:00pm EDT
Room 104

3:30pm EDT

Break

Thursday June 23, 2016 3:30pm - 4:00pm EDT
Room 105

4:00pm EDT

How We Bridged the Gap Between Science Fiction and Reality

In 2009, Star Wars Force Trainer and MindFlex hit the holiday season with a big splash. In the next few years, these products were covered by all kinds of popular TV and talk shows. They even made front pages on mainstream newspapers and magazines worldwide. NeuroSky shares the journey of bringing a technology that’s ahead of its time to the mainstream consumers. It took a year to build the product but almost two years to solve the challenge of bringing EEG brainwave technology to the masses. Stanley Yang discusses the ups and downs of strategic decisions before the first product launch.

Speakers

Stanley Yang

As CEO of NeuroSky, Inc., Stanley Yang leads the strategic vision and management of the company. NeuroSky, Inc. is at the forefront of body and mind monitoring and analysis. Its wearable biosensor technologies and interpretive algorithms are at the core of innovative health and wellness... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 4:00pm - 4:30pm EDT
Room 104

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

4:00pm EDT

Panel - Community of Interest: Comics for Impact

Comics & graphic novels are increasingly being accepted and adopted as effective mechanisms of social change, education, and even psychological health. Sequential art techniques can be used as powerful tools in their traditional form or when used to complement narrative in games. This panel will address the need for an organized “Comics for Impact” community of interest similar to “Games for Change” that will help create new and innovative projects and new opportunities for comic creators. Panelists will discuss the use of comics for social change, education and psychological health as well as the opportunities to use them to enhance the narrative power of games.

Moderators

Russell Shilling

Executive Director of STEM, U.S. DoE

Dr. Russell Shilling is the Executive Director of STEM at the U.S. Department ofEducation. He accepted the political appointment in 2014.Previously, Shilling served as a Navy Captain and program officer at the DefenseAdvanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) focusing on education... Read More →

Speakers

Josh Elder

Founder, Reading With Pictures

By day, Josh preaches the gospel of comics to the far corners of the globe as Founder of the educational nonprofit Reading With Pictures, as Product Manager for freemium digital comics platform POP Comics, and as Comics Ambassador for the US State Department! By night, Josh writes... Read More →

Alan Gershenfeld

President, E-Line Media

Alan is President and Co-Founder of E-Line Media, a leading publisher of games that engage, educate and empower. Alan was previously a member of the executive team that rebuilt game publisher Activision from bankruptcy into an industry leader. He has spoken on games and social impact... Read More →

Brandon Pittser

Marketing Director, Filament Games

As Marketing Director at Filament Games, Brandon applies his passion for games and learning to their content marketing practice and overall marketing strategy. He thrives on creating and sustaining a meaningful conversation with educators and developers about game-based learning... Read More →

Juliana "Jewels" Smith

Juliana "Jewels" Smith is a cultural worker, educator, organizer and writer. She is the author of (H)afrocentric, a comic featuring four disgruntled undergrads of color and their adventures at Ronald Reagan University. Smith calls (H)afrocentric a "feminist version of The Boondocks... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Room 105

Civics & Social Issues, Panel

4:00pm EDT

Industry Circle Town Hall

Games for Change is celebrating its 13th conference this year, but how close are we to transforming from a movement to a self-sustaining industry?

In this interactive Town Hall will provide an overview of what we have accomplished, and what is left to achieve to build the games for change community into a sustainable industry.

Former White House Senior Advisor for Digital Media, Mark DeLoura will frame the issue and present examples to draw on. Representatives of companies on the vanguard of building the impact games sector will highlight their efforts in supporting this transformation. And Q&A with the audience will open the session up to an important community-wide investigation of where we are as a field and what we still need to do to grow the industry and ensure that the good work that harnesses positive power of games continues to flourish for years to come.

Moderators

Mark DeLoura

Former Senior Advisor for Digital Media, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy

Mark DeLoura is a veteran technologist with a passion for computer science education and games for learning. In 2013-2014 he worked in the Obama Administration as Senior Advisor for Digital Media at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Prior to his role at the... Read More →

Speakers

Scott Price

Director of Product, BrainPOP

Jesse Schell

CEO, Schell Games

Jesse is the CEO of Schell Games, the largest game design and development company in Pennsylvania. He also serves as Distinguished Professor of the Practice of Entertainment Technology at Carnegie Mellon University. Jesse has worked on a wide variety of innovative game and simulation... Read More →

Margaret Wallace

CEO, Playmatics

Margaret Wallace is Chief Executive Officer of Playmatics, award-winning creators of digital and real-world games, virtual and real-world experiences. She was named one of Forbes “12 Women in Gaming to Watch” and, in 2014, Wallace was highlighted by Fortune as one of “10 Powerful... Read More →

Dan White

CEO, Filament Games

Dan White believes that good gameplay and good learning are complementary rather than oppositional forces. An alumnus of Cornell University and the University of Wisconsin – Madison, Dan earned an M.S. in Education Technology under seminal learning game scholars Drs. Kurt Squire... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 4:00pm - 5:00pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Across all tracks, Panel | Civics & Social Issues, Panel | Games for Learning Summit, Panel | Neurogaming & Health, Panel

4:00pm EDT

Workshop - Includification: Designing Accessible Games

A hands-on workshop about includification, the process of making sure your games can be played by more people. We'll look at games meant to support innovative learning, with universally applicable themes and lessons.

Speakers

Mark Barlet

Founder / Executive Director, The AbleGamers Charity

Mark Barlet is the Founder and Executive Director of the AbleGamers Charity. Winner of the 2012 Paul G. Hearne Leadership Award and considered one of the founding-fathers of game accessibility, Mark has used games for over a decade to breaking down the walls of social isolation that... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 4:00pm - 5:00pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Games for Learning Summit, Workshop

4:30pm EDT

Panel - From Fantasy to Empathy: Changing Game Dialogue For the Real World

In commercial games, dialogue is written to serve the player’s power fantasy — even well-intentioned games tend to reward players who put their own desires ahead of others'. But does that have to be the case? Can game dialogue actually help people build empathy and learn to communicate better? Come hear Kognito’s Seth Bleecker and Jennifer Hepler, formerly of Bioware's Dragon Age series and Star Wars: The Old Republic, discuss how Kognito has built an evidence-based conversation model, as well as games to help doctors, teachers, and parents learn how to communicate sensitively and effectively around critical topics in emotional, social, and physical health.

Speakers

Seth Bleecker

Manager, Instructional Design, Kognito Interactive

Seth designs and writes branching narrative games to teach empathy and communication skills. At Kognito, he discovered that these skills are more teachable and learnable than we might think. Ever since, he\\'s been developing simulations in an attempt to make the world a better place.When... Read More →

Jennifer Hepler

Writer and Instructional Designer, Kognito Interactive

Jennifer Brandes Hepler has worked in games for over a decade, first as a senior writer at Bioware, on the Dragon Age franchise and Star Wars: The Old Republic, then lead writer on Disruptor Beam's Game of Thrones Ascent. This year, she followed a long-time interest in psychology... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 4:30pm - 5:00pm EDT
Room 104

Neurogaming & Health, Panel

5:15pm EDT

Keynote - Games Reveal Decision Biases: Poker - a Lab for Studying Irrationality, w/ Annie Duke

When Annie abruptly changed careers from behavioral scientist to poker player, she was mindful of the challenges that kept many poker players from continually learning and improving. Along the way to becoming a champion player, she made some valuable connections between common decision-making errors and learning (or lack thereof). She will share some of what she learned and habits she formed, and how she has applied it in her non-profit, HowIDecide.org. How I Decide is particularly interested in using entertaining games to create and improve healthy habit formation for decision making in youth. They teach how to decide…not what to decide.

Speakers

Annie Duke

Co-founder - HowIDecide.org, World Champion Poker Player

Annie Duke has won over $4 million in tournament poker. She has won a World Series of Poker bracelet, the World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions, and the NBC National Poker Heads-Up Championship. She has written four books (with a fifth on the way, about learning and decision... Read More →

Thursday June 23, 2016 5:15pm - 5:45pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Civics & Social Issues

5:45pm EDT

Keynote - Sid Meier and Susanna Pollack, in Conversation

One game that typifies the theme of engagement is Civilization. For 25 years, Sid Meier’s turn-based strategy game has been engaging gamers the world over. Sid, one of the founders of Firaxis Games, is the legendary designer behind many strategy games including Pirates!, Railroad Tycoon, and F19 Stealth Fighter but of all of his games, none has been as memorable and successful as Civilization. Join Sid and Susanna Pollack, President of Games for Change, for a fireside chat to close the first day of the G4C Festival.

Speakers

Sid Meier

Co-Founder and Director of Creative Development, Firaxis Games

Often regarded as “The Godfather of Computer Gaming,” Sid Meier is a Co-Founder and Director of Creative Development at Firaxis Games, where he and his dynamic team are responsible for delivering some of the world’s most heralded strategy games. A thirty-plus-year industry veteran... Read More →

Susanna Pollack

President, Games for Change

Thursday June 23, 2016 5:45pm - 6:15pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Civics & Social Issues

7:00pm EDT

The 2016 Games for Change Awards

Come meet and celebrate with the Games for Change community! The opening night party is a chance to meet leaders from games, social innovation, edtech, media, and more.

At the party, we'll host our Games for Change Awards Ceremony, where we announce the year's best digital games for impact and learning. Learn more about the finalist games here and vote for your favorite in the Mashable + G4C People's Choice Award.

7:00 p.m.: Doors open
7:30 - 8:30 p.m.: G4C Awards Ceremony
8:30 p.m.: Games and open bar

Attending the Games for Change Festival? Then your pass gets you in to this party! If you do not have a G4C Festival pass, you can still join us! Buy a party ticket on this page.

Moderators

Jesse Schell

CEO, Schell Games

Thursday June 23, 2016 7:00pm - 10:00pm EDT
Slate

Event

9:00am EDT

G4C for MIL in Brazil

The G4C Latin America network partners with UNESCO, the School of Communication and Arts at the University of São Paulo, the University of Paris Laboratory on Cultural Industries and Creative Arts (ICCA) and the Municipal Secretary of Human Rights and Citizenship of São Paulo to hold the "Global Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Week" in November, 2016.
This session explores the role of games in media and information projects leveraged by educational and social challenges in Latin American urban settings. The Global MIL Week will host the first General Assembly of the Global Alliance for Partnerships in Media and Information Literacy (GAPMIL) as well as the VI Latin America Games for Change Festival. Gilson Schwartz, Director of G4C Latin America, and Gabriela Vallim, Youth Coordinator at the São Paulo Prefecture, will share visions, experiences and challenges in the creation of the engaged ludic age in the peripheries of global cities. Indie games and audiovisual projects bring youth protagonism to the fore of contemporary political and social transformation. LIMITED SPACE AVAILABLE.

Friday June 24, 2016 9:00am - 10:30am EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

9:15am EDT

Welcome Remarks from Colleen Macklin

Speakers

Colleen Macklin

Founder and co-director, PETLab

Friday June 24, 2016 9:15am - 9:20am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Civics & Social Issues

9:20am EDT

Opening Remarks from Seth Andrew

Speakers

Seth Andrew

White House Senior Advisor to the USCTO, Executive Office of the President

Seth currently serves as White House Senior Advisor to the USCTO in the Executive Office of the President focused on education and civic technology. He previously served as Senior Advisor to Secretary Arne Duncan and Superintendent in Residence at the U.S. Department of Education... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 9:20am - 9:30am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Games for Learning Summit

9:30am EDT

Keynote - The Future of Virtual Reality and Education with Jesse Schell

2016 is the year of VR hype. But will any of that hype translate into meaningful advances in educational and transformational games? In this talk, Jesse Schell will give a guided tour of the next ten years of virtual reality and augmented reality development, and how it is most likely going to impact the worlds of education and gaming.

Speakers

Jesse Schell

CEO, Schell Games

Friday June 24, 2016 9:30am - 10:00am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Games for Learning Summit

10:00am EDT

Keynote - William Adams and Tracy Fullerton, in Conversation

What does it mean to design games within the humanities? Join William “Bro” Adams, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, and Tracy Fullerton, Director of the USC Game Innovation Lab, for a candid conversation about the challenges and opportunities in exploring history and culture through interactive media. Alongside discussing how the process of working in the humanities differs from (and, occasionally, aligns with) STEM-related fields, this talk will highlight the development and production of Fullerton’s NEH-funded Walden, an open-world game built from primary sources that allows audiences to play as Henry David Thoreau as he chases inspiration (and sustenance) during his first year at Walden Pond.

Speakers

William Adams

Chairman, National Endowment for the Humanities

William D. Adams is the tenth chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Adams, president of Colby College in Waterville, Maine from 2000 until his retirement on June 30, 2014, is a committed advocate for liberal arts education and brings to the Endowment a long record... Read More →

Tracy Fullerton

Professor and Director, USC Game Innovation Lab

Friday June 24, 2016 10:00am - 10:30am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Civics & Social Issues

10:45am EDT

Empathy Overload: Choice Matters

1979 Revolution creator and Grand Theft Auto veteran Navid Khonsari discusses the immense potential of connecting people through interaction and choice-making in games. In a digital landscape oversaturated by the messaging of empathy, games should ask people what they think instead of telling them. Using the recent groundbreaking release of 1979 Revolution as a case study, Khonsari unpacks a bold world vision, rewards, and pitfalls of making impact-forward, edgy, real stories into games.

Speakers

Navid Khonsari

Co-Founder, iNK Stories

Founder of the independent studio iNK Stories, Navid Khonsari is known for having developed the cinematic look and feel for groundbreaking AAA video games such as Grand Theft Auto, Max Payne, The Warriors, Midnight Club, Manhunt, Red Dead Revolver, Alan Wake, Homefront and more. Called... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 10:45am - 11:00am EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

10:45am EDT

Virtual Worlds, Real Results

Snow World is the iconic VR game that has inspired playwrights and allowed burn victims to laugh even as their wounds are scrubbed. In this talk, Ari Hollander describes 20 years of developing immersive games and VR applications that have helped minds and bodies heal and how the advent of videogames has changed people and culture, preparing them for 2017: the year that VR will change the world.

Speakers

Ari Hollander

Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, DeepStream VR

Ari Hollander is the Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of DeepStream VR, astartup company that is leveraging the massive brain-bandwidth of virtual reality torevolutionize healthcare with real-time personalized medicine. Ari has degrees inAstrophysics and Human Interface Technology... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 10:45am - 11:15am EDT
Room 105

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

10:45am EDT

Panel - Computer Science for All: Putting Students in the Driver's Seat

Dive into the #CS4All movement with a close look at what's happening in NYC. Students are learning to code and make games both in and outside of school, and what needs to happen next to make computer science a new literacy.

Moderators

Minerva Tantoco

NYC's Chief Technology Officer

Speakers

Dr. Matthew Farber

Assistant Professor, University of Northern Colorado

Matthew Farber, Ed.D., is an assistant professor of educational technology at the University of Northern Colorado, where he founded the Gaming SEL Lab. He has been invited to the White House, authored several books and papers, and is a frequent collaborator with UNESCO MGIEP and Games... Read More →

Debbie Marcus

Executive Director of Computer Science Education, NYCDOE

Debbie Marcus is the Executive Director of Computer Science Education in the NYCDOE and is leading CS4ALL, the City’s effort to expand computer science to all NYC students. A committed public school administrator, she has held several positions within the NYCDOE in the Office of... Read More →

Michael Preston

Executive Director, CSNYC

Michael Preston is the Executive Director of CSNYC, the New York City Foundation for Computer Science Education. CSNYC supports CS education in the NYC public schools through grantmaking, program evaluation and research, building capacity in the school system, and engaging partners... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 10:45am - 11:30am EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Games for Learning Summit, Panel

10:45am EDT

Panel - Rethinking Assessment: Mastery Doesn't Require a Bubble Sheet

Can games deliver a new kind of assessment in education or maybe do away with the word entirely? Assessment is how we make sure all students are receiving quality learning and help them improve, but perhaps the assessments of the future will feel more like quests or play than dreaded tests.

Speakers

James Collins

Internal Liaison, Office of Educational Technology, U.S. DoE

James works in the Office of Educational Technology at the Department of Education. He works across the Department to support new technology initiatives and game-based learning work. Prior to joining OET, James worked to advance game-based learning and interactive media at the Smithsonian... Read More →

Kristen DiCerbo

Vice President, Learning Research and Design, Pearson

Kristen is the Vice-President of Education Research at Pearson, working to integrate learning science research into digital products. Her personal research program centers around game-based assessment, specifically the collaborative design of games as both learning and assessment... Read More →

John Krajewski

Founder and CEO, Strange Loop Games

John Krajewski is founder and CEO of Strange Loop Games, creating games that connect entertainment and education. His background is the console games industry, having worked at EA and Midway before founding Strange Loop. He is currently the designer of the Department of Education... Read More →

Abby Speight

Product Director, Zynga.org

Abby leads Zynga.org’s product work, focusing on leveraging games for social impact. In partnership with Zynga studios, she raises funds for, and awareness of, nonprofits through charitable features. As the lead of Studio G, she manages Zynga.org’s partnership with UCSF to build... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 10:45am - 11:30am EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Games for Learning Summit, Workshop

10:45am EDT

Meet the Industry Circle

Speakers

Nick Fortugno

Chief Creative Officer, Playmatics

Jennifer Javornik

VP of Business Development, Filament Games

Jennifer Javornik is a seasoned executive who specializes in new business development, partnership management, revenue growth, and operational efficiency. She is currently the Vice President of Sales for Filament Games where she works with companies, organizations, and individuals... Read More →

Steve Ji

Project Manager and Learning Engineer, BrainPOP

Steve Ji started at BrainPOP in 2015, and now manages GameUp, BrainPOP's free online collection of more than 100 educational games. He also conducts various user testing and research projects. Steve recently finished his master's program in Digital Media Design for Learning at NYU... Read More →

Allisyn Levy

VP, Product Lead, BrainPOP

Since joining BrainPOP in 2007, Allisyn Levy has played an integral role in the creation, launch, and continued development of BrainPOP Educators, our online professional community. Now, as Vice President, GameUp, she leads outreach efforts for BrainPOP's online learning games portal... Read More →

Jesse Schell

CEO, Schell Games

Jill Sciulli

Sr Director of Marketing, Schell Games

Jill Sciulli is Director of Marketing at Schell Games, a full-service game design and development company that specializes in creating transformational games and innovative, interactive experiences. In this role she is responsible for the company's strategic marketing efforts, as... Read More →

Margaret Wallace

CEO, Playmatics

Dan White

CEO, Filament Games

Jake Witherell

COO, Schell Games

Jake Witherell is Chief Operating Officer of Schell Games, where he oversees Finance, Marketing, Legal, Human Resources, IT, and Administration. He manages both the day-to-day activities and the strategic efforts of the company. Jake is also instrumental in business development efforts... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 10:45am - 11:45am EDT
Faculty Lounge

Networking, Workshop

11:00am EDT

Workshop - Transformational Experiences

An overview of how Games for Change has a focus on the art, science and design of making media that matters. Attendees can explore experiences that span learning, health, training, social impact, civics and more; that are made through games and other media like animation, location-based installations, augmented reality, mobile devices, robotics, interactive performances, transmedia storytelling, etc.
Transformational experiences happen through well-designed media with the potential to impact our lives in meaningful ways. Through several sessions at the G4C Festival, we can see how this occurs across different topics, media, groups and contexts, and how to apply methodical techniques to discover fundamental principles and best practices in order to design and assess the experiences that a user, player, or guest can have. These sessions help illustrate the expressive potential of meaningful media to provide dynamic transformational experiences that enhance how we engage in the world.

Speakers

Drew Davidson

Director, etc@cmu

Friday June 24, 2016 11:00am - 11:15am EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Workshop

11:15am EDT

Is Hacking the Brain The Future of Gaming?

Explore this question through the user experiences of Palmer's latest neurogame Syncself 2 and the R&D process of Futureself & Riot. Palmer will share her personal experience and insights, having traveled with her work internationally and the insights revealed from participants themselves. She will also reference a few significant immersive gaming experiences to explore how the field is moving towards self-development.

Speakers

Karen Palmer

C.E.O., Interactive Film Ltd

Karen is an award winning Film Director/Digital Artist. Her work fuses immersive storytelling technologies with film. She is an international speaker on her unique form of storytelling. Including being a keynote speaker at DiGRA 2015 Academic Digital Games Conference Germany and speaker... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 11:15am - 11:30am EDT
Room 105

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

11:30am EDT

How To Be Better at Sex (in Video Games)

Artist, scholar, and writer Robert Yang wants to talk about sex. Most people think sexual intercourse is important, and games should explore important topics, but most design methodologies for making videogames are breathtakingly terrible for depicting sex. In this talk, we will consider current popular attitudes about sex in games, common critiques, and better ways to do it all.

Speakers

Robert Yang

Robert Yang is an indie game developer, academic, and writer, based in New York City. He regularly teaches game development and design within NYU Game Center at New York University, IDM at NYU Poly School of Engineering, and MFADT at Parsons the New School for Design.

Friday June 24, 2016 11:30am - 12:00pm EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

11:30am EDT

Climate Challenge: A Live Pitch Event

Join us for the conclusion of our Climate Challenge: PoLAR, Autodesk and Games for Change will award a prize of $10,000 for the best digital game that helps audiences understand and respond to climate change in their everyday lives. 4 Finalists will be featured in a live onstage pitch session followed by live judging and announcement of winner.

Moderators

Marguerite Dibble

CEO, Game Theory

Marguerite Dibble, CEO of GameTheory, spends her day making games fit into lots of funny shaped boxes and thinking about behavioral motivation about as much as your typical super villain.

Speakers

Ira Fay

CEO, Fay Games

Ira Fay is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Game Design at Hampshire College and is the CEO of Fay Games, a studio primarily focused on games for educational impact. He previously co-founded the Game Design and Development program at Quinnipiac University, where he was... Read More →

Stephanie Pfirman

Professor of Environmental Science, Barnard

Stephanie Pfirman leads the multi-institutional Polar Learning and Responding: Climate Change Education Partnership that is co-sponsoring the Games for Change Climate Challenge. An Arctic sea ice scientist and environmental educator, she is Hirschorn Professor of Environmental Science... Read More →

Gavin Schmidt

Director of the NASA Goddard institute for Space Studies in New York and climate scientist working on understanding past, present and future climate change. Winner of the inaugural Climate Prize in 2011. TED talk in 2014.

Friday June 24, 2016 11:30am - 12:15pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Across all tracks

11:30am EDT

Panel - Rewiring the Brain: Anxiety Treatment Through Gameplay

What if a casual game could be used to treat clinical anxiety? Seeing the Good Side, developed by American University's Game Lab in collaboration with researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), leverages a common game genre, hidden object puzzles, to provide a "gaming regimen" for children with anxiety. Through careful research and close collaboration with NIH, the design team realized that key aspects of hidden-object puzzles closely mimic the NIH's innovative but repetitive neurological training program. The gaming regimen will be evaluated in a clinical trial later this year.

Speakers

Lindsay Grace

Director and Associate Professor, American University Game Lab

Lindsay Grace is a professor, game designer, programmer, and artist. Lindsay is an associate professor at American University and founding director of the American University Game Lab and Studio. His game designs have received numerous awards and he has published more than 50 papers... Read More →

Robert Hone

David Pagliaccio

Postdoctoral Fellow, National Institute of Mental Health

David Pagliaccio, Ph.D. is a postdoctoral fellow in the Emotion & Development Branch at the National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Pagliaccio completed his Ph.D. in Neuroscience at Washington University in St. Louis with Dr. Deanna Barch examining stress and depression effects on... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 11:30am - 12:15pm EDT
Room 105

Neurogaming & Health, Panel

11:30am EDT

Workshop - Gamifying the Classroom: Where the Student Becomes the Hero, with Classcraft

Learn firsthand how a role-playing game can foster stronger student collaboration and classroom management from the creators of Classcraft. This game-making workshop will introduce participants to the core mechanics that make a game engaging in the classroom.

Speakers

Classcraft

CEO, Classcraft

Devin Young

Chief Creative Officer, Classcraft

Devin Young is a co-founder and chief creative officer of Classcraft. Based in NYC and with an extensive background in creative strategy, branding, graphic, UX and UI design, he has worked with a diverse array of global brands and startups including Chanel, Intel, Microsoft, The Future... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 11:30am - 12:45pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

12:15pm EDT

Lunch

Friday June 24, 2016 12:15pm - 1:30pm EDT
Room 104

12:15pm EDT

Lunch

Friday June 24, 2016 12:15pm - 1:30pm EDT
Room 105

12:45pm EDT

Lunch

Friday June 24, 2016 12:45pm - 1:30pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

1:00pm EDT

Lunch

Friday June 24, 2016 1:00pm - 1:30pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

1:30pm EDT

Well Played: That Dragon, Cancer

What makes a game good? Or bad? Or better? Building on the ETC Press books and journal and the success of live sessions, NICK FORTUGNO will play a That Dragon Cancer to help analyze the gameplay experience and open up a discussion about the unique impact games can have. The goal is to help develop and define a literacy of games as well as a sense of their value as an experience. These sessions are not a part of the selection and jurying of the festival game entries, instead they are purely to inspire discussion amongst festival attendees.

Speakers

Drew Davidson

Director, etc@cmu

Nick Fortugno

Chief Creative Officer, Playmatics

Friday June 24, 2016 1:30pm - 2:00pm EDT
Room 104

Across all tracks Civics & Social Issues Games for Learning Summit Neurogaming & Health

1:30pm EDT

Panel - Community of Interest: Violence and Games

Since the coin-op era, mainstream media have been obsessed with the alleged link between video games and violence. But decades of research have often shown that something entirely different is happening in the minds of players. This panel brings together a researcher, a games journalist and a psychologist who specializes in treating adolescents. They’ll offer their perspectives on this fraught topic and look for a path forward.

Moderators

Greg Toppo

Author, The Game Believes in You

Greg Toppo is is the author of The Game Believes In You: How Digital Play Can Make Our Kids Smarter (St. Martin’s Press, 2015) and a journalist with nearly 25 years of experience, most of it covering education. A graduate of St. John’s College in Santa Fe, N.M., he taught in both... Read More →

Speakers

Brian Crecente

Founding Editor and Executive Editor, Polygon

Brian Crecente is a founding editor and the executive editor for Polygon. The former editor-in-chief of Kotaku, Crecente was educated at the University of Maryland, College Park. He began his career as a journalist with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He covered crime and public safety... Read More →

Patrick Markey

Director of the Interpersonal Research Lab, Villanova University

Dr. Patrick Markey is a Professor of Psychology, the Director of the Interpersonal Research Laboratory at Villanova University, and a former President of the Society for Interpersonal Theory and Research. He is widely recognized as an expert on how violent video games affect our behavior... Read More →

Eric Schleifer

Dr. Schleifer has been working with teens, tweens, and their parents on gaming-related issues for over 15 years in private practice. He wrote his doctoral thesis on the long and short-term effects of video games on children, and is currently working on a book to help parents use video... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 1:30pm - 2:15pm EDT
Room 105

Civics & Social Issues, Panel

1:30pm EDT

Panel - How Technology Empowers: VR in the Classroom

Is VR the ultimate in immersive learning? What’s real and what’s just hype? Hear how VR is re-imagining the classroom experience, helping teachers deliver content, and expanding the scope of learning.

Speakers

Colum Elliott-Kelly

Head of Education, Blippar

Colum Elliott-Kelly joined Blippar, the world's foremost augmented reality platform, to lead a dedicated strategic initiative into education. Since launching in January 2015, Blippar for Education has set up an extensive four stage international pilot program to build and improve... Read More →

Chet Faliszek

Writer for Valve & VR Evangelist, Valve

Developer at Valve.

Jennie Magiera

Chief Program Officer, EdTechTeam

Jennie Magiera is the Chief Program Officer for EdTechTeam, focusing on diversity and equity in education. Previously, she was the Chief Innovation Officer Des Plaines Public School District 62, the Digital Learning Coordinator for the Academy for Urban School Leadership and a Chicago... Read More →

Jonathan Rochelle

Director, Product Management, Google for Education

Jonathan Rochelle (aka JR) is Director of Product Management at Google and a co-founder of Google Docs and Google Drive, including other apps in that suite such as Google Sheets, Slides, Forms, Apps Script and Google Fonts. Jonathan is now responsible for Google Apps for Education... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 1:30pm - 2:15pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Games for Learning Summit, Panel

1:30pm EDT

Speed Networking

Speed Networking gives you an opportunity to network with leaders in the game world and experts in social change. Meet someone new, after five minutes the gong rings, and you’re off to a new connection.

Online reseveration is required. Sign up here!

Friday June 24, 2016 1:30pm - 2:15pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Networking

2:15pm EDT

The White House Call: Games for Grand Challenges

Games can help solve some of the most daunting challenges our society faces – and the Federal Government has recognized the need for utilizing games to address education, scientific discovery, climate change, and more. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy has helped drive this work, but change is afoot in the games industry and new technologies and ideas are emerging that will reshape what’s possible and effective. Come to learn about what the Federal Government is doing with games and how you can get involved, stay for the conversation about what we need to do next.

Speakers

Erik Martin

Policy Advisor, White House Office of Science and Technology

Erik Martin serves as a Policy Advisor at the White House Office of Science and Technology, division for Tech and Innovation, where he focuses on education policy, government innovation, international development, digital media, and youth engagement. He was previously a Digital... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 2:15pm - 2:45pm EDT
Room 105

Games for Learning Summit

2:15pm EDT

The Quest to Save the Human Brain

There are over 47 million people living with dementia worldwide with a new case discovered every 3 seconds. There are currently no treatments that slow or stop the progress of a disease that robs those we love of their ability to share in our most precious moments. Alongside scientists, developers, and dementia experts, Deutsche Telekom has developed a game capable of significantly advancing our understanding of the human brain. They have created the world’s largest crowdsourced database benchmarking human spatial navigation, helping bring scientists one step closer to developing new diagnostic tests for dementia.

Speakers

Wolfgang Kampbartold

VP of International Marketing Communications, Deutsche Telekom

Wolfgang Kampbartold is Vice President of International Marketing Communications at Deutsche Telekom AG. In his current role Kampbartold has overseen the creation of a number of award winning campaigns, all of which have sought to bring tangibility to Deutsche Telekom brand claim... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 2:15pm - 2:45pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

2:30pm EDT

Speed Networking for Students

Parsons students, we've got a Speed Networking session just for you!

You’ll have an opportunity to network with leaders in gaming and social change. Sit down with your first expert, then after 5 minutes the bell rings and you’re off to make a new connection.

Space is limited and online reservation is required. Sign up here..

Friday June 24, 2016 2:30pm - 3:00pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Networking

2:45pm EDT

Reaching New Audiences with Interactive Stories: The Power of Genre

Sam Barlow was the creator of the critically acclaimed digital police procedural Her Story and is currently directing an interactive reboot of War Games at Interlude in New York. Here he explores how telling stories within popular genres can pull in new audiences and enhance interactivity. Taking in notable examples that have looked outside traditional games for their inspiration he then looks to the future of interactive storytelling.

Speakers

Sam Barlow

Writer and Designer of Her Story

Sam Barlow is a BAFTA Award winning game director and writer who has been making games since his cult 1999's title, Aisle. Barlow has an extensive history of making games that create deep personal connections with their players. With Silent Hill: Shattered Memories he created a classic... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 2:45pm - 3:00pm EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

2:45pm EDT

How the Science of Game Design Can Inform the Science of Games for Change

A walk through Valve’s game design process, and how best practices from the creation of games for entertainment can be applied to games for change. In particular, Ambinder will describe how Valve applies the scientific method and iterates through the game design hypotheses. He will provide examples of psychological science that Valve applied, and discuss its emphasis on measuring the behavioral impact of their designs. This talk will serve as an argument for a focus on the ‘game’ side of the equation before the ‘change’ side as a necessary prerequisite to succeed at both.

Speakers

Mike Ambinder

Senior experimental psychologist, Valve

Mike Ambinder is a senior experimental psychologist at Valve who joined the company in 2008. He has a PhD in Experimental Psychology (with an emphasis on visual cognition) from the University of Illinois, and a BA in Computer Science and Psychology from Yale University. His work at... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 2:45pm - 3:00pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

3:00pm EDT

Break

Friday June 24, 2016 3:00pm - 4:00pm EDT
Room 104

3:00pm EDT

Break

Friday June 24, 2016 3:00pm - 4:00pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

3:00pm EDT

Break

Friday June 24, 2016 3:00pm - 4:00pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

3:00pm EDT

Break

Friday June 24, 2016 3:00pm - 4:00pm EDT
Room 105

3:15pm EDT

Give Me Your Gun: An Interactive Theater Experience

Join the student team from the Entertainment Technology Center at Carnegie Mellon University for the debut of their theatrical game experience. Use your mobile device to direct improv actors in this live role-playing game experience and help drive an interactive conversation on gun violence.

Friday June 24, 2016 3:15pm - 4:00pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Event

4:00pm EDT

Games Bridging the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and Beyond

Justin Hefter, the CEO of Bandura Games, shares lessons learned from observing the gameplay of hundreds of Israeli and Palestinian youth, and how these lessons can help developers build games to bridge ethnic, religious and racial conflicts.

Speakers

Justin Hefter

Founder and CEO, Bandura Games

Justin Hefter is the founder and CEO of Bandura Games, a mobile game company started by an American, Israeli, and Palestinian team. Bandura Games uses mobile games as the medium for creating connections and empathy for people of diverse backgrounds from around the world. Prior to... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 4:00pm - 4:15pm EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

4:00pm EDT

Increasing Social Impact: Tools to Design Across Sectors

For two years, the #GameImpact project investigated sources of failure in articulating game impact. Our first results (published last year) showed the fault lines -- especially across sub-fields. Now we introduce and debate several “thinking tools” for executive producers, lead designers and funders. Here are strategies to avoid the holes between research and design, between impact and intention.

Speakers

Asi Burak

Board Chairman, Games for Change

Colleen Macklin

Founder and co-director, PETLab

Benjamin Stokes

Assistant Prof., American University

Benjamin Stokes is a civic media scholar and designer at American University in the School of Communication and Game Lab. His designs for cities have introduced neighbors, retold local history, and rebuilt payphones. Previously, Benjamin co-founded Games for Change, the movement hub... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 4:00pm - 4:30pm EDT
Room 105

Across all tracks Civics & Social Issues Games for Learning Summit Neurogaming & Health

4:00pm EDT

Applying Game Technologies Across Disciplines with Unity

Unity Technologies is working with educational institutions worldwide to help foster innovative learning and exploration in variety of areas including gaming, architecture, and virtual reality. This session will highlight innovative practices and programs in research and workforce development.

Speakers

Megan Stewart

Head of Global Education, Unity Technologies

As the Head of Global Education at Unity Technologies, Megan and her team work with schools, universities, and governments to support the use of Unity for research, learning, and workforce skills. With more than 18 years of experience in the education industry, Megan has extensive... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 4:00pm - 4:30pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

4:00pm EDT

Live Recording of the Games for Learning Podcast hosted by Filament Games

A live recording. Guests TBD.

Speakers

Brandon Pittser

Marketing Director, Filament Games

Friday June 24, 2016 4:00pm - 5:00pm EDT
Starr Foundation Hall

Games for Learning Summit, Talk

4:15pm EDT

Extra Life: Play Games, Heal Kids, and Get Involved in Your Community

Speakers

Mandy McKenna

President, Extra Life NYC Guild

Mandy is President of the Extra Life NYC Guild, where she leads a group of dedicated volunteers who spread the word about Extra Life, and recruit new Extra Life participants around New York City. She has been a community volunteer in various capacities throughout all of her life... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 4:15pm - 4:30pm EDT
Room 104

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

4:30pm EDT

Games and Governance: Designing Games with International Organizations

At the Engagement Lab, students, staff and faculty design games (digital and analog) for local social impact in the developing world. Learn about the challenges and opportunities of co-designing with development and humanitarian organizations, such as UNICEF and the Red Cross, in such a way that has immediate benefit to players and builds capacity for the organization. With special guests from UNDP Egypt.

Speakers

Eric Gordon

Founder and Executive Director, The Engagement Lab @ Emerson College

Eric Gordon is a game designer and scholar focused on civic engagement, learning, and play. He is an associate professor at Emerson College and the founder and executive director of the Engagement Lab (http://elab.emerson.edu). He is also a faculty associate at the Berkman Center... Read More →

Gazbia Sorour

UNDP Egypt

Gazbia Sorour works in the United Nations Development Programme in Egypt with the Innovation for Development Team. She graduated from the American University in Cairo with a degree in Political Science and History. During her time in UNDP Egypt. She was one of the founders of the... Read More →

Sherif El Tokali

UNDP Egypt

Sherif El Tokali is Assistant Resident Representative at the United NationsDevelopment Programme (UNDP) Egypt Country Office and the Innovation forDevelopment Team Leader. Tokali joined UNDP Egypt in 1991 and has been workingon promoting the Information and Communications Technology... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 4:30pm - 5:00pm EDT
Room 105

Civics & Social Issues, Talk

4:30pm EDT

Making Fitness Fun for Three Million People

Staying physically active and exercising every day isn’t easy — if it was, everyone would do it. But by creating a range of smartphone fitness games that are fun and exciting, Six to Start has motivated over 3 million people to exercise more. We’ll explore the design and development process behind our biggest games — Zombies, Run!, The Walk, and 7 Minute Superhero Workout — along with the crucial business decisions that have made the company a sustainable success.

Speakers

Adrian Hon

CEO and Co-Founder, Six to Start

Adrian Hon is co-founder and CEO at Six to Start, creators of gamelike stories and story-like games including the world's bestselling smartphone fitness game, Zombies, Run! with over two million players. Six to Start's clients have included Disney, the BBC, Channel 4, and Penguin... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 4:30pm - 5:00pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

Neurogaming & Health, Talk

5:15pm EDT

Keynote - Digital Medicine: The Quest for the First FDA-Approved Game, with Dr. Adam Gazzaley

Innovative neuroscientist, Adam Gazzaley, will describe an approach developed in his lab that uses custom-designed video games to achieve meaningful and sustainable cognitive enhancement, as well the next stage of his research program, which uses video games integrated with technological innovations in software (e.g., brain computer interface algorithms, GPU computing) and hardware (e.g., virtual reality headsets, motion capture, mobile EEG) to create personalized closed loop systems. He will share with you his journey from the basic science research that inspired these translational efforts, to the founding of Akili Interactive Labs, to their latest quest for the first FDA-approved action video game.

Speakers

Adam Gazzaley

Neuroscientist, Co-founder, Akili Interactive Labs

Adam Gazzaley, M.D., Ph.D. is Professor in Neurology, Physiology and Psychiatry at the UC San Francisco, and the Founding Director of the Neuroscience Imaging Center, Neuroscape Lab and the Gazzaley Lab. His lab explores mechanisms of neuroplasticity and designs, develops and validates... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 5:15pm - 5:45pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Neurogaming & Health

5:45pm EDT

Keynote - Robin Hunicke on the Importance of Playfulness and Joy in Learning Games

What on Earth did we get wrong to make so many educational games that feel so terribly, well, not fun! And how do we make sure delight, emotional depth, and wonder are restored to games for learning? Perhaps some of our core beliefs about games for learning can be challenges in a healthy, inspiring, even playful way.

Speakers

Robin Hunicke

Co-Founder, Funomena LLC

Robin Hunicke is the CEO & Co-Founder of the San Francisco studio Funomena, which makes experimental VR (Luna), AR (Woorld) and console (Wattam) experiences. She has been designing, making and teaching about games for over 12 years (Journey, Boom Blox, MySims, TheSims2). A designer... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 5:45pm - 6:15pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

A Keynote Games for Learning Summit

6:15pm EDT

Closing remarks from G4C President, Susanna Pollack

Speakers

Susanna Pollack

President, Games for Change

Friday June 24, 2016 6:15pm - 6:30pm EDT
Tishman Auditorium

7:00pm EDT

G4C Festival Happy Hour with Game-Based Learning NYC

We welcome you to enjoy post-festival drinks and networking at a happy hour nearby. Festival goers and Game-Based Learning NYC Meetup members can meet, make friends, and discuss our industry and the newest impact games.

This is a cash bar event with drink specials for attendees, so RSVP for free here!

Friday June 24, 2016 7:00pm - 9:00pm EDT
Le Midi

Networking