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New game for kids helps teach about energy

Jonathan Buck on August 31, 2007 | 2942 Views | 2 Comments

Really fun online game available from http://electrocity.co.nz/. Kids can try to develop the city in the most efficient way in terms of energy resources. It comes from an  elecctricity company in NZ. As the blurb states:

"ElectroCity was developed to increase public awareness – particularly among students – of the basic "common knowledge" of these topics. That is, the general terms and concepts of the industry and the dilemmas that go along with them. Our goal is not to provide students with a sophisticated understanding of the controversies in the various energy debates. Rather, our goal is to spark an interest and lay an unbiased foundation for later learning. We set out to make a game that was fun and educational. A game that gave kids something different to do in class and share with their parents. And a game that was clearly designed and built in New Zealand. ElectroCity is proudly brought to you by Genesis Energy. Genesis Energy is a leading generator and retailer of energy in New Zealand. It generates electricity from a range of sources including gas, coal, wind and water. Genesis Energy has also launched Schoolgen, a programme which provides selected schools in New Zealand with the ability to generate a portion of their electricity from a renewable energy source. At the same time, Schoolgen aims to educate and raise awareness amongst students, teachers and parents about renewable energy, electricity generation and energy efficiency."

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2 Comments

Photo #1 by Hans De Keulenaer on September 5, 2007 at 11:15 p.m.

This is a great game, and highly addictive. I yet have to build a city of more than 200,000.

Another one in this category is Chevron's Energyville.  Now you have to provide for the energy needs (not just electricity) for a city of 3.9 million until 2030. The game is a bit simpler (less variables) to play, but as a result, it probably does not such a good job at demonstrating the tradeoffs.

#2 by Maria Odessa on August 3, 2010 at 8:07 p.m.

It is great to introduce children to the concept of energy conservation and how to reduce their carbon footprint. When they grow older they will be more in tuned with the energy debates and will possibly have the solutions to solve it.

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