Suzanne Seggerman
Encyclopedia
Suzanne Seggerman is co-founder and former president of Games for Change
(G4C), a non-profit organization
founded in 2004 focused on the use of video games for social change. G4C holds an annual festival every summer at Parsons The New School for Design
and have a listserv
, a website, and other programming related to social-issue game making. G4C has worked with the MacArthur Foundation, Microsoft
, and mTV
, and has regional groups in various cities in the U.S. and overseas. The premise behind G4C is that video games are a new and evolving cultural form and educational tool, and can and should be used to make games about important social issues.
Seggerman is also co-founder and former co-director of PETLab (Prototyping, Evaluation, Teaching and Learning), a research lab based in New York City
which is focused on the creation and assessment of games about social issues. PETLab is a collaboration between G4C and Parsons, and was funded in October 2007 by the MacArthur Foundation with a grant of $450,000. The initial grant was for creating curriculum for the creation and assessment of social issue games on Microsoft's XNA
platform and mTV's Think portal, and to work with the New York Public Library and the Boys and Girls Club in making social-issue games.
Before founding Games for Change, Seggerman was a director at new media think tank Web Lab, where she worked since its inception, with its founder Marc Weiss. While at Web Lab, she co-curated the art exhibition "Provocations", featuring social-issue games by Natalie Jeremijenko
, Natalie Bookchin
, Michael Mateas, Brody Condon
, Tamiko Thiel, and Anne-Marie-Schleiner.
Before joining Web Lab, Seggerman was a documentary filmmaker and producer, working on a number of PBS and independent films, including with as production manager on Steve Ives/ Ken Burns, "The West" and as co-producer on "Race for Life," a documentary and humanitarian aid about the environmental effects upon perinatal care in Eastern Europe after the fall of communism.
Games for Change
Games for Change is a movement and community of practice dedicated to using digital games for social change. An individual game may also be referred to as a "game for change" if it is produced by this community or shares its ideals...
(G4C), a non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
founded in 2004 focused on the use of video games for social change. G4C holds an annual festival every summer at Parsons The New School for Design
Parsons The New School for Design
Parsons The New School For Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is the art and design college of The New School university. It is located in New York City's Greenwich Village, and has produced artists and designers such as Marc Jacobs, Dean and Dan Caten, Norman Rockwell, Donna Karan, Jane...
and have a listserv
LISTSERV
LISTSERV was the first electronic mailing list software application, consisting of a set of email addresses for a group in which the sender can send one email and it will reach a variety of people...
, a website, and other programming related to social-issue game making. G4C has worked with the MacArthur Foundation, Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
, and mTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, and has regional groups in various cities in the U.S. and overseas. The premise behind G4C is that video games are a new and evolving cultural form and educational tool, and can and should be used to make games about important social issues.
Seggerman is also co-founder and former co-director of PETLab (Prototyping, Evaluation, Teaching and Learning), a research lab based in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
which is focused on the creation and assessment of games about social issues. PETLab is a collaboration between G4C and Parsons, and was funded in October 2007 by the MacArthur Foundation with a grant of $450,000. The initial grant was for creating curriculum for the creation and assessment of social issue games on Microsoft's XNA
Microsoft XNA
Microsoft XNA is a set of tools with a managed runtime environment provided by Microsoft that facilitates video game development and management. XNA attempts to free game developers from writing "repetitive boilerplate code" and to bring different aspects of game production into a single system...
platform and mTV's Think portal, and to work with the New York Public Library and the Boys and Girls Club in making social-issue games.
Before founding Games for Change, Seggerman was a director at new media think tank Web Lab, where she worked since its inception, with its founder Marc Weiss. While at Web Lab, she co-curated the art exhibition "Provocations", featuring social-issue games by Natalie Jeremijenko
Natalie Jeremijenko
Natalie Jeremijenko is an artist and engineer whose background includes studies in biochemistry, physics, neuroscience and precision engineering. She is an active member of the net.art movement, and her work primarily explores the interface between society, the environment and technology...
, Natalie Bookchin
Natalie Bookchin
Natalie Bookchin is an artist based in Los Angeles, California. She is well-known for her work in new media, and serving as the co-Director of the Photography and Media Program in the Art School at California Institute of the Arts...
, Michael Mateas, Brody Condon
Brody Condon
Brody Condon is an artist based in New York. Concerned with the aftermath of trauma and the over-identification with fantasy in contemporary culture, Condon’s work is best known for its influence on the re-purposing of existing pop cultural material to create performative situations, video, and...
, Tamiko Thiel, and Anne-Marie-Schleiner.
Before joining Web Lab, Seggerman was a documentary filmmaker and producer, working on a number of PBS and independent films, including with as production manager on Steve Ives/ Ken Burns, "The West" and as co-producer on "Race for Life," a documentary and humanitarian aid about the environmental effects upon perinatal care in Eastern Europe after the fall of communism.