2019 Games for Change Festival: Full Schedule

9:45am EDT

Keynote - Extraordinary Actions Come from Ordinary Ideas

Description: In order for there to be real change in the world, we have to engage and empower ordinary people to do extraordinary things. With the right information and resources, anyone has the capacity to create impact in their community and even around the world. The next step is to bring those people together and create a network for change. Let's talk about how we're making that happen.

Speakers

Michael Strautmanis

Chief Engagement Officer, Obama Foundation

As Chief Engagement Officer, Mike oversees community affairs and strategic partnerships for the Obama Foundation. He engages with local Chicagoans on plans for the Obama Presidential Center and the Foundation’s mission to inspire, empower, and connect people to change their world... Read More →

Tuesday June 18, 2019 9:45am - 10:15am EDT
Mainstage - Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Keynote

10:15am EDT

Keynote - Build a Better Gaming Community

As games become more accessible than ever, it's imperative for the gaming communities that support them to follow suit. Join Leo Olebe, Global Director, Games Partnerships at Facebook, as he explores how healthy gaming communities are helping to build community and bring about positive change in the world.

Speakers

Leo Olebe

Global Games Partnerships, Facebook

Leo leads global games partnerships at Facebook, with teams based in Menlo Park, London and Singapore. A veteran executive with nearly 20 years of experience from management consulting to brand management and strategic partnerships, he has worked on driving strategy, business development... Read More →

Tuesday June 18, 2019 10:15am - 10:45am EDT
Mainstage - Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Keynote

12:00pm EDT

Keynote - The Ethics of Video Games

Beyond the regular (and mostly exaggerated) attacks the game industry is getting regarding addiction or violence, it is important for game developers to get a clear understanding of their ethical responsibilities as content providers, especially when designing games with a purpose beyond mere entertainment. This talk proposes to analyze what are the potential problems video games can create, more specifically regarding addiction and dark patterns (without the fear-mongering).

Speakers

Celia Hodent

Independent Game UX Consultant

Celia Hodent is recognized as a leader in the application of user experience & cognitive science in the game industry. Celia holds a PhD in psychology & has over ten years of experience in the development of UX strategy in game studios, through her work at Ubisoft, LucasArts, and... Read More →

Tuesday June 18, 2019 12:00pm - 12:20pm EDT
Mainstage - Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Keynote

2:00pm EDT

Keynote - Doing Well While Doing Good: Responsible Practices for the Mass Market

Commentators and other observers of the games industry often distinguish between “socially responsible” games and “commercial” ones. In fact, some of the most popular games have been both: commercial successes that promote good social values. Come to this speech to hear about decisions made and lessons learned during 11 years at the heart of one of the most successful franchises in entertainment.

Speakers

Don McGowan

Chief Legal Officer and Business Affairs, Pokémon Company International

Don McGowan is the Chief Legal Officer and Business Affairs of The Pokémon Company International, Inc. (TPCi), where he has been since August 2008. Among other things, in that role McGowan has spearheaded the launch of “Pokémon GO” (including TPCi’s investment into its developer... Read More →

Tuesday June 18, 2019 2:00pm - 2:20pm EDT
Mainstage - Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Keynote

5:30pm EDT

Keynote - Change Begins with Me

Join Leslie and she takes you through some deeply personal experiences that ultimately inspired her commitment to diversity. Listen to how she manifested her vision of an equitable work culture, as well as an inclusive gaming community. Learn how you too can “turn up your brightness” and make a positive social impact.

Speakers

Leslie Pirritano

Your Best Friend, AMD

Leslie Pirritano has been in various gamer and VR-related roles over the past 15 years and is officially credited as Your Best Friend at AMD. She actively works to promote diversity within the gaming and virtual reality communities and specializes in developer relations. Her role... Read More →

Tuesday June 18, 2019 5:30pm - 6:00pm EDT
Mainstage - Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Keynote

9:45am EDT

Keynote - Games Are Not Good For You

We live in what feel like particularly political times. We all want games that will change things. But are we really making the games that will impact the world? In this critical (and self-critical) talk, Eric will look at some of the pitfalls of "serious games" - and offer new models for thinking about how games can interact with spaces outside of themselves.

Speakers

Eric Zimmerman

Game Designer & Professor, NYU

Eric Zimmerman has been working as a game designer for more than 25 years. He was a co-founder with Peter Lee of the award-winning game studio Gamelab. In recent years, Eric has created game installations with architect Nathalie Pozzi for museums including the Museum of Modern Art... Read More →

Wednesday June 19, 2019 9:45am - 10:15am EDT
Mainstage - Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Keynote

2:30pm EDT

Keynote - Games for Countering Climate Change

Christine Harada is President of i(x) investments. Ms. Harada has over 20 years of success in leading government and management consulting organizations. She previously served as the Federal Chief Sustainability Officer for the United States during the Obama administration. In this role, she provided oversight for all sustainability-related initiatives across the federal government in energy, fleet, and acquisitions-game-changing improvements that added to our nation’s clean energy future.

Her successes include reducing the Federal government’s carbon footprint resulting in 18% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, a 23% reduction in energy use at Federal facilities and 177 billion gallons of water saved.

Speakers

Christine Harada

President, i(x) investments

Wednesday June 19, 2019 2:30pm - 3:00pm EDT
Mainstage - Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Keynote

3:00pm EDT

Keynote - This is Not a Game: Creating Civic Engagement on Full Frontal with Samantha Bee

For the 2018 midterms, the Samantha Bee team decided that they wanted to raise civic engagement. Turning to Gamification, the team built This is Not a Game: The Game, driving hundreds of thousands of people to participate in the midterms.

This project addressed many of the thorniest issues in building a game for change in civic participation. Join this session for a behind the scenes look at what worked, what didn't and why.

Speakers

Gabe Zichermann

CEO, Failosophy

Gabe Zichermann is an entrepreneur, author, public speaker, mentor and teacher who is best-known for his work in Gamification. His new project, Failosophy, distills the lessons of individuals and organizations that have learned to fail fast, fail better and fail more often to achieve... Read More →

Razan Ghalayini

Producer, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee

Razan Ghalayini is a Senior Field Producer and Segment Director at Full Frontal with Samantha Bee. In addition to writing and directing over 20 field pieces for the show, Razan produced This Is Not A Game: The Game.Prior to working at Full Frontal, Ghalayini had two films premiere... Read More →

Adam Werbach

CEO, Planet 10B

Werbach works between the spaces of technology and politics, serving as product manager for Samantha Bee's This is Not a Game: The Game. He formerly served as National President of the Sierra Club, and as the CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi S. He recently co-founded Yerdle, which powers... Read More →

Wednesday June 19, 2019 3:00pm - 3:20pm EDT
Mainstage - Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Keynote

6:00pm EDT

Keynote - 0 to 120 Million: Infecting the World with Games That Make You Think

Plague Inc. and Rebel Inc. have over 120 million players. Our games deal with serious and complex topics yet they are also extremely commercially successful. In this talk, I'll share our story and identify the key lessons learnt from our journey so far as well as highlighting differences between Plague Inc. and Rebel Inc.
I hope to stimulate thinking about how to combine educational/social impact games with fun, commercially successful games!

Speakers

James Vaughan

CEO & Founder, Ndemic Creations

James is the creator of Plague Inc. - a global hit with over 120 million players and one of the top five most successful paid mobile games ever.Originally a hobby, Plague Inc. has consistently remained at the top of the charts since 2012 and James was even invited to the CDC to talk... Read More →

Wednesday June 19, 2019 6:00pm - 6:30pm EDT
Mainstage - Tishman Auditorium

Civics & Social Issues, Keynote