Paper Information
| Title | Playing with the Past to Understand the Present: The Potential of Using Nusfjord (2017) to Teach About the Complexity of Fisheries As Socio-Ecological Systems |
| Presenter(s) | Jørn Weines and Melania Borit |
| Session | Gaming and the Environment |
| Time | Saturday, October 13, 11:30a-12:30p |
| Location | Lake Ontario |
| Format | Paper Presentation |
| Description | In this study, we analyze the potential of the game Nusfjord by Uwe Rosenberg (2017) to be used as an additional learning tool for teaching about fisheries as socio-ecological systems. We build on the growing body of previous research on historical games and using games to teach history. As such, we analyze the denotative and connotative meanings of game rules, game mechanics, art work, and game components of Nusfjord in an attempt to assess their potential for transporting our students between the past reality of the Lofoten fisheries and the current reality of discussions about over-exploited fisheries and sustainable coastal and marine management.
We investigate how the game presents the history, social structures (including ethnic dimensions and gender), modernity and ecology of the Lofoten fisheries and relate it to the current understanding of fisheries as socio-ecological systems. We answer questions such as: How does the game engage with historical realities? |