The Cornell Biofuels teaching game "Race to the pump!" has been played by hundreds of children and adults from around New York state. At fairs, children returned to play again and again, while parents and teachers were excited by the clarity of information presented in the game. The game board and directions for making game pieces are available online through the Northeast Sun Grant website.
impact statement issue
The questions we receive through emails, phone, and in person at state and local fairs and conferences, indicate a need to explain several basic concepts about biofuels: What is a feedstock? What is a biofuel? How do we convert plant materials into fuels? How does the starting material influence the type of fuel produced? We needed a simple, exciting tool to explain these concepts to both children and adults from a multitude of backgrounds. We developed a fast-playing game-board teaching tool that is a fun way to invite questions and teach the "biofuels basics."
impact statement response
We developed a teaching board game to introduce the steps involved in making biofuels from plant materials. The game was first presented in public in September 2006 at the WIRED-GE NextFest event (future of GREEN pavilion) at the Javits Center in New York City, attended by about 100,000 people over a four-day period. In 2007, the game was made available to teachers on the internet and also traveled to Empire Farm Days, the New York State Fair, and several conferences and county fairs through Cornell Cooperative Extension educators.
impact statement summary
An educational board game developed at Cornell University in the Northeast Sun Grant Institute of Excellence is designed to teach students and the public the concepts and steps involved in converting various biological starting materials into biobased transportation fuels--from the farm to the fuel pump. The game also emphasizes the important benefits of research by allowing players who land on a "Cornell R&D" spot to advance more rapidly toward the goal. The biofuel pump at the end of the game states, "We all win!", reminding us of the ecological benefits to the whole planet from use of biofuels.\n\n
