About CoolCity

Inspiration through Gamification

CoolCity is a serious game designed to inspire about future perspectives using nature-based solutions.

• It can be played by 4-7 participants per game

• Multiple games can be played simultaneously

• Perfect educational tool for universities, teachers and coaches.

CoolCity is a collaborative serious game for 4-7 people to inspire how we can regenerate nature-based systems.

We can support water cycles, biodiversity and soils with nature-based solutions. Open, edible tree landscapes and water retention can be used to cool landscapes and the cities within them - hence the name CoolCity.

CoolCity has already been played at a festival, in public teaching (university context) and is also possible as a team-building measure.

Why is CoolCity needed? During heatwaves, the quality of life in cities is impaired. The heat causes people to leave these hot cities for cooler rural areas. Cooling cities must be thought out of the box, not to say out of the city. Landscapes need evaporation organs - i.e. trees, and lots of them.

About CoolCity

Marius: In October 2023, I saw a report about a heatwave in Phoenix, Arizona. A homeless man passed out on the street due to overheating and was treated in an ambulance. In the ambulance he said: ‘It has never been so hot for so long. It is an eye-opener.’ For me, it was also an eye-opener. We must take action if we don't want to experience the same situation here in a few decades' time. I have been dealing with the topic of agroforestry for several years. The time was right for me to develop CoolCity with the help of many lovely people. How can we increase water cycles, biodiversity and soil fertility again? What kind of economy is involved? What socio-ecological effects are possible and what inner work do we need to support people's behavioural change for regeneration?

Potentials: We can create water-retaining landscapes that provide more water for evaporation and transform our landscapes into open tree landscapes. In this way, we can strengthen the small and large water cycle. The open tree landscapes can serve as biodiversity bridges and at the same time support regional nutrient cycles and build up soil humus. Why aren't we doing this yet and what does inner work have to do with it? In addition to strong motivation, people also need a supportive environment and this can be created by building support through inner work (exchange and reflection on values / attitude / beliefs / human-self relationship, human-human relationship and human-nature relationship).

The game will be available offline as a print version, as well as online (online-call + whiteboard) and can be played privately for a small donation by groups of 4-7 people per team in a workshop format. Multiple teams can play in parallel.

Team-Spirit

CoolCity is run by an enthusiastic team.

Marius Müller

... is the initiator of various educational projects on the subject of ‘Nature Based Regeneration’. These include lecture series at the University of Göttingen, a study trip, CoolCity (educational game) and a peer learning campus.

Annette Flinterman

... after 30 years in the food industry (international strategy, market research, marketing), Annette has prioritised her personal interests. From 2022 to March 2024, she worked as a climate protection manager for the city of Hennef and is a permaculture teacher and climate coach. She is also on the board of Oikocredit Westdeutscher Förderkreis and is involved in Solarcamp for Future.

Julia Steinhauer

... with the desire to understand why our world is the way it is, Julia Steinhauer studied for a Bachelor's degree in International Relations. In order to find solutions to the challenges of our time, she went on to study for a Master's degree in Sustainability. During her studies, Julia discovered agroecological approaches to the future of our food and is training to become a permaculture designer. Julia wants to combine this passion with her experience in social entrepreneurship and international cooperation and works freelance as an educational consultant for sustainable development and global learning. She is currently taking part in the postgraduate programme for sustainability cooperation at the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS).

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