Green Revolution Game 
Simulating the reality of small-scale farmers
Future Agricultures Consortium plans to develop an interactive, open-source, web-based computer simulation game as an educational tool to inform and influence policy debates about the Green Revolution in Africa, including the dynamics of agrarian change and governance of agricultural science and technology. The design and implementation work for this project will be developed over a three-year time span from March 2010 to February 2013.
Although students and professionals can grasp the main issues around agricultural change from a theoretical perspective, internalising the reality of what it means to be a small-scale farmer living in a complex environment is much more difficult.
Various paper-based role-play games have been developed to simulate the dynamic challenges facing poor farmers and encourage players to test their strategies to overcome them. The computer-based version of the Greeen Revoluition Game will attempt to overcome some of the barriers experiences when playing the paper-based version, namely the requirement for all the players to be physically co-located, and often for an entire day or longer.
Examples of paper-based role-playing games
Two of the most important games are the Green Revolution Game andAfriculture, developed by Graham Chapman and others . In both participants take on the roles of women and men farmers living in a traditional village, experiencing the uncertainties and choices facing peasant producers. Within realistic constraints, they can experiment with a variety of livelihood strategies. The main aim of the games is to bring alive to participants what life is like for poor farmers living in marginal environments. Each participant is provided with models of land, people, and seed to represent a family's farm and its resources.
Each farmer makes her/his own decisions about the pattern of farming and level of investment in traditional wells and new high-yielding seeds, fertiliser and pesticide. Faced with an uncertain social and physical environment, the participants go through seasonal cycles of production, feeding the household, selling or storing any surplus crops and purchasing and applying new inputs.
Limitations of paper-based role playing games
Participants must be in the same room at the same time to play – often for a full day or more.
The impact of the games on agricultural policy and practice has been limited due to high cost and limited distribution.
Given the growth in access to Web-based services around the world and the continuing need to educate future decision makers about the challenges confronting small-scale producers at a time of rapid change, the time has come to produce an online version that combines the best elements of the games.
Expected Outcomes of Project
Creating a powerful, entertaining, open-access, Web-based simulation game to educate and inform agricultural STI policy.
Placing players in situations that promote critical thinking (e.g., problem solving under conditions of risk and uncertainty and limited information) will lead to deeper appreciation and understanding of small farmers’ situations.
Raising awareness of the normative aspects of the GR agenda by challenging players to establish positions on value-laden issues and make critical decisions involving complex ethical considerations.
Establishing a global, internet-based network that builds a community of practice, not just a community of players, capable of influencing international debates on African agriculture.
