Co-operative gamers are raising funds to launch Co-opoly 2.0

The second edition of Co-opoly will soon be launched and creators say it will be even better than the first one! The Toolbox for Education and Social Action is currently trying to raise funds to print the second edition of the board game, seeking support from co-ops all over the world.

“Co-opoly: The Games of Co-operatives” is not only a creative and exciting game, but it is also an educational tool. The creators of the game envisioned a unique way in which people can find out more about the co-operative movement encouraging them to put into practice co-operative principles.

The team behind the game, Andrew Stachiw and Brian Van Slyke, came up with the concept of the game completely by accident, originally looking at creative ways to educate people in co-operatives.

“We didn’t want to just tell them what co-operatives were, we wanted them to experience and practice co-operation as a way to really understand what it meant;” the team explained.
 

After three years, Co-opoly became what it is today – an interactive boardgame where the players have to co-operate to succeed. By playing Co-opoly players put their teamwork abilities to test to discover the unique benefits of co-operation.

“We are incredibly proud that we have developed a resource that allows people to learn about co-operatives through a creative, fun, and engaging process;” added the Co-opoly team.

 The first edition of the game enjoyed great success, with 1,000 copies sold to people in 20 countries. This made the Toolbox team consider printing the second version of the game in 2,000 copies, double the amount of copies printed last year.

It has proven popular with people of all ages and backgrounds from school children to co-op professionals.

Donna Balkan, Communications Manager, Canadian Co-operative Association described Co-opoly as “a dream come true."

The team explained: “We even heard from one father who said that Co-opoly has quickly become his children’s favorite game, with one of his sons stating that, ‘I think this is going to help us get along better.’”

All the components of the game are ethically made in the US by co-ops or other ethical businesses and come from sustainable resources. Furthermore, almost all of the game components are printed on recycled paper or sourced through the Sustainable Forestry Initiative. The new edition will allow the creators to lower the cost of production while keeping to their high ethical standards. 

Sponsors will receive various benefits in exchange for their support, from free copies of the game to posters and promotion of their organisation; they can even be featured in the gameplay. All contributions to Co-opoly are tax deductible.

The Co-opoly team see a bright future for the game. Through this second edition they hope to reach 20,000 people.

The Toolbox for Education and Social Action (TESA) is a worker-owned next-generation published of participatory resources for social change, helping to develop digital education resources.