A brief summary of our days in Opole by Luana Stew-Pattz
After a few months of online meetings and a lot of planning, we finally met in Opole/Poland between June 21st and 24th, 2021. Those were days of very intense work, exchanges and emotions – that obviously weren’t planned. But this is the beauty of working for a cause that is so sensitive and necessary for everyone: what is planned ends up becoming just a sketch of what is actually to come.
We played a lot – if we are building a game, we need to play some also, right? We learned more about the city’s history, had the chance to eat in amazing places and get to know each other better. Without a doubt, a very rich experience for everyone. But beyond these “glory moments” we had some difficulties and tensions as well – normal things that happen when working with so many people from such different cultures and with a tight work schedule like ours. But we survived! 🙂
Between the uncertainties of how to build a fun game, with purpose and impact with not so much time and lots of ideas, we got a prototype on our 3rd day of meeting. It was a relief, but also some fears that it wasn’t good enough. Fortunately, we did a good job together and received positive feedback about the game’s potential and structure. Some aspects and questions arose after the tests, asking for some answers and improvements – what each institution will do in its country of origin with the determined target audience.
We will meet again in November in the Czech Republic, in the city of Prague. With new ideas and opinions about the game, more challenges and possibilities are coming. Which is amazing, as we want our game to be a real and valuable tool to empower girls and young women. We want them to see in themselves infinite possibilities of being and doing what they want.
