During this year’s World Earth Day, leading Warsaw universities motivate people to play a climate game that helps adapt housing estates to climate change
The ‘Neighborhood with Climate’, a so-called ‘serious game’ has been tested by five housing estates in Warsaw to adapt their neighbourhoods to climate change. Currently, the game is available for free around the country. It enables residents to find out how to reduce the temperature, improve air quality, and how much rainwater has been captured.
Be careful! It works
Serious games are increasingly used as decision-support tools. The ‘Neighborhood with Climate’ game is designed to adapt the environment of a residence to climate change. One can introduce various solutions (40 in total) including rain gardens, absorption basins, climbing plants, trees, flower meadows, and special algorithms that allow us to verify the effectiveness of the solutions chosen in the estate and check whether we have reduced air temperature, improved air quality, how much rainwater has been captured, and at the same time whether those proposals will promote biodiversity and be economical to use.
Extreme weather events are particularly severe in cities and towns
The problem of climate change affects all of us nevertheless it is particularly acute for residents of cities and towns, where extreme weather events such as heat waves, torrential rains and periods of drought are particularly severe. The number and intensity of these phenomena are increasing; 2023 was the hottest year in history (according to the World Meteorological Organization). Phenomena such as tropical nights directly influence our health and life.
Act locally, change globally
We can counteract climate change by acting locally with our neighbours. The game gives instructions for improving the quality of life where you live: you play online with people from the neighbourhood in your housing estate and then implement the solutions. A few days ago we planted the Microlas [microforest] on Roosevelt Island in New York with the Manhattan residents. These solutions will be presented at an exhibition in Zodiak, the Warsaw Pavilion of Architecture. The game was designed to motivate and inspire residents to act, says dr hab. Agata Cieszewska, SGGW project leader.
The ” Neighbourhood with Climate” game was tested by residents of five Warsaw neighbourhoods with the help of experts from Warsaw universities, local leaders and even guerrilla gardeners.
Play the ‘Neighbourhood with Climate’ serious game. Download for free at www.osiedlezklimatem.pl
About the Project
The CoAdapt project – “Communities for Climate Change Action” – is benefiting from the so-called Norwegian Grants under the EEA funds. On the Polish side, the project operator is the National Center for Research and Development. Polish partners of the project are represented by scientists from leading Warsaw universities and scientific institutions: SGGW (Department of Landscape Architecture) and the University of Warsaw and we also cooperate with scientists from the Warsaw University of Technology, the Institute of Geography and Spatial Management of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the University of Gdansk. The Norwegian partners are the West Norwegian Research Institute (WNRI) and the University of Oslo. They are landscape architects and geographers climatologists, hydrologists and landscape ecologists, dendrologists, environmental engineers and architects, i.e. all those who impact shaping the environment we live in, as well as sociologists, computer scientists and game designers.
Calendar
- 15-28 April – “Osiedle z klimatem” campaign in Warsaw buses
- 25 April – Press conference and “Osiedle z klimatem” exhibition opening, at Zodiak Warsaw Pavilion of Architecture, 11.00 a.m.
- 25-26 April – “Osiedle z klimatem” workshops at Zodiak, Warsaw
- 25 April 2024, 5.00 p.m, for NGOs and leaders;
- 26 April 2024, 11.00 a.m, for civil servants and officials;
- Please send applications to the following e-mail address:
- agnieszka_sosnowska@sggw.edu.pl