Justice O'Connor to Keynote Games for Change NYC

Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Chris Crawford (original founder of the GDC), Prof. Henry Jenkins (MIT), and Prof. James Paul Gee (University of Wisconsin-Madison) are all confirmed speakers for the upcoming Games for Change NYC conference, to be held June 3 and 4. Games for Change is a conference about using video games and game technology for altruistic purposes. Conference organizers have added a special preconference beginners' workshop on June 2 called “Let The Games Begin: A 101 Workshop for Making Social Issue Games.” Registration for the workshop, which is only open to non-profits, academic institutions and government agencies, is separate from the conference registration. One of the highlights of the conference will be an Expo Night, when Microsoft and several finalists from the company's Imagine Cup competition will display the games they built; these games reflect the game-makers' responses to the task, “Imagine a world where technology enables a sustainable environment.” Another highlight will be a session called “Journalism, Games and Civic Engagement,” a panel that promises to explore issues and challenges of the emerging interest and intersection of journalism in social issue games and civic engagement. Registration is open and discounted to $200 for non-profits and academic and $150 for students ($250 otherwise).