Climate crisis is not fun, but teaching people about the importance of climate protection can be. Games BW brings the topic closer to people in a playful way.
Minimum sustainability standards for green MfG label
Sustainability is slowly but surely arriving in every industry. That’s why the Media and Film Union Baden-Württemberg, or MfG for short, has had the topic in its repertoire for quite some time. The state’s funding body for film, culture and creative industries, for example, sets sustainable standards that creatives must meet in order to receive funding.
“There is a checklist that you use to check whether the minimum standards have been met. So you get certified and you get a label,” explains Ulrich Winchenbach at the Greentech.LIVE conference in the Impact Hub Stuttgart.
Viewers can see the Green Motion label at the end of the credits of the respective production and thereby ensure that the medium was created in a more environmentally friendly way.
Games are gaining relevance
MfG not only takes care of film productions, but is also active in areas such as music and games with MfG Kreativ. Games BW specifically promotes games productions and supports climate protection in the games industry.
This includes development with green coding, sustainable hardware and data centres as well as innovations from the industry and climate protection as content. Although the budget for games funding is currently smaller than that for film funding, it is still relatively early days.
“Games are certainly a topic for the future,” said Winchenbach.
MfG with its own stand at Gamescon 2023 in Cologne
This point can be seen at the annual Gamescon in Cologne. In 2023, the event had around 320,000 visitors. MfG was represented by three projects from Baden-Württemberg with their own stand. The games presented at the stand all showed a game-based approach to climate change.
In the E.V.I.L Climate Quest VR, for example, you fight against a corrupt organisation that exploits the planet, while the app Klima Buddy helps you measure your own carbon footprint in a playful way.
Simulation capsule Dive+ makes the consequences of climate change tangible
Particularly exciting is the Dive+ simulation capsule, which visitors to the Con were able to try out. The simulator with VR application is an immersive innovation from Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences. The aim is to make the upcoming effects of climate change more tangible.
Sensations such as sun rays, wind and cold are simulated realistically in the capsule. This makes it possible to tangibly sketch how it would feel to be in a certain place with global warming of two to three degrees Celsius.
What otherwise seems abstract and far away can be experienced and possibly contributes to making us more aware of the consequences of climate change and the relevance of quick action.
