News
Successful launch of the internet game "Flótti"
Today, the web-based game "Flótti" (Flight) was launched in Vogaskóli. Students from the school and the Chairperson of the Icelandic Refugee Committee, Gudrun Ögmundsdóttir, played the Icelandic version for the first time.
Before the students played the game Hanne M. Mathisen, UNHCR Regional Office for the Baltic and Nordic countries, talked to the students about the situation of the millions of forcibly displaced people worldwide, and how the UNHCR look to school youth as special partners, as potential ambassadors for refugee rights. Gudrun Ögmundsdóttir talked about refugees in Iceland and thanked the students for their contribution to the project.
The game, called "Against all Odds" in English, is the creation of the United Nations Refugee Agency and was adapted and translated to Icelandic by the Icelandic Human Rights Center and the Icelandic Red Cross. The Icelandic version of the game is the tenth version of the game that has now been translated in 10 different languages.
Against All Odds is an online game created to increase students' awareness and knowledge about refugee situations by simulating the experiences of refugee youth.
The players must first overcome obstacles in leaving their homes in search of safety and assistance. In exile, they must cope with the difficulties of starting at a new school, not knowing the language and making new friends. The game also adresses discrimination and containes a database with information on human rights and refugee issues in different parts of the world.
The game itself is complex, challenging and, at times, confusing, much like real life refugee experiences. Along the way, players can learn more in the web facts section, where they can read stories and watch films about individual refugees. In addition to providing moving first-hand accounts, the web facts section offers a variety of other important refugee information articles and resources. Against All Odds also has a “teacher information” page. This section provides various lesson plans, learning activities, and other interesting educational resources that can be of use both inside and outside the classroom.
You can play the game at: www.flotti.org
