The U.S. State Department has created an International Game Developer exchange program for the game diplomacy program. This could mean big things for the US gaming industry, along with smaller country gaming industry companies getting experience from seasoned veterans.
In the past, the U.S. State Department has made big announcements for the gaming industry, officially recognizing Esports as a competitive and professional sporting industry a few years ago. This decision lead gamers from around the world to be able to move to the US in order to compete in esports tournaments using a specific visa, instead of a complicated set of applications like in the past. This decision has helped create the esports scene in the US as it is today, with many leagues picking up international players and bringing them over to play for big-name teams and tournaments.
According to the Washington Post, the State Department is making decisions on gaming once more, looking at the industry as a chance to broaden the country’s diplomatic endeavours. This decision comes from the latest round of Stevens Initiative grants, with the department teaming up with the nonprofit Games for Change to create a new project where 2,700 students from the U.S., Bahrain, Israel, and the United Arab Emirates will take part in a virtual student exchange program. This program is centred on the development and creation of social impact video games.
This latest round of Stevens Initiative saw the Games for Change nonprofit issued 83 grants for its programs. These grants will be used to reach over 75,000 young people interested in games from the Middle East and North Africa, spanning across 18 different countries and territories in these regions, along with 47 states in the U.S, including Puerto Rico, Washington, D.C, the U.S. Virgin Islands and a tribal community in the U.S. Students from schools in New York City, Atlanta and Detroit will be paired up with overseas students in the first round of the program, lead by a teacher and work together on a shared game based on a social issue over the course of 10 weeks. “Games have a power beyond entertainment, they can be significant drivers of social impact,” said Susanna Pollack, president of Games for Change. “It’s a medium that’s universal. ... Like other forms of media, games can address important social topics and meet people where they are."
The goal behind the program is to increase the size and scope of these kinds of exchange programs, demonstrating just how effective they can be. Young people getting out into the world and developing new skills in new areas can help shape industries across the world, and make bigger partnerships between countries in the process. This program seeks to foster connections between like-minded individuals interested in game developing from both the U.S. and in the Middle East/North Africa. Games are loved around the world and help connect people every day, so it makes sense to use this as a medium to drive social impact. This is a great opportunity for younger individuals to learn important skills and develop their very first game. The people who are a part of this program may just go on to influence the gaming industry in the future, shaping the industry forever.
Source: Washington Post