Every day, millions of young people in every country and territory around the world use Minecraft as a platform to connect, solve problems together and explore their creativity in all sorts of ways. Players can truly build whatever they imagine in Minecraft, and now, this extends to their visions for world peace.
Today we are honored to launch an immersive Minecraft learning experience at the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, Norway. The “Active Citizen” project educates young people about Nobel Peace Prize laureates past and present and fosters an understanding of the skills needed to drive positive change in the world. “Active Citizen” is now available for millions of learners around the world in Minecraft: Education Edition, a special version of Minecraft designed for use in educational settings. The game includes accompanying resources on the web for classroom use, including lesson plans and teacher discussion guides designed for students aged 8-16.
“Active Citizen” was released in a global broadcast video Tuesday, with a second broadcast airing at 10:00 am PST. The Nobel Peace Center in Oslo hosted a live launch event, as Norway’s Minister of Education Tonje Brenna and Odin Adelsten Bohmann from the Department of Culture met with local students from Kampen School. They discussed what it means to be an active citizen and play the game for the first time with members of our Minecraft Education and Microsoft Norway teams. Dignitaries from around the world including His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Wanjira Mathai, Chairperson of the Wangari Maathai Foundation, and Vidar Helgesen, Executive Director of the Nobel Foundation, have supported and participated in this groundbreaking project.
When players enter the “Active Citizen” Minecraft world, they are transported to the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, where they meet Alfred Nobel, who left most of his fortune to establish the Nobel Prize. Players then meet four Nobel Peace Prize laureates – Malala Yousafzai, Wangari Maathai, Fridtjof Nansen and the 14th Dalai Lama – to learn about their stories and help them overcome challenges as they build peace in their local communities. The game experience concludes by calling on players to identify a local cause meaningful to them and create a unique Minecraft build that represents their vision of peace. The Nobel Peace Center will curate a museum exhibition of “Active Citizen” designs featuring contributions from players all over the world.
At Mojang Studios, we are committed to building a better world through the power of play and inspiring young people to make a positive impact in their local communities. We hope that by inviting young people to meet Nobel Peace Prize laureates, learn about their lives and visit their homelands in a familiar Minecraft world, they will be inspired to take action to make the world a more peaceful place for all. We are honored to partner with the Nobel Peace Center and Games for Change to inspire action through game-based learning.
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The “Active Citizen” game and accompanying lesson plans are available for all users of Minecraft: Education Edition both in-game and on the Minecraft website. A free demo of “Active Citizen” will be available later this month. Further learning materials can be found on the Nobel Peace Center education portal.
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Source: The Official Microsoft Blog