Global Simulation Workshop comes to UW-Madison

How would you run the world? UW–Madison students will have the chance to answer that question on Saturday, Feb. 25.

Students from across campus will participate in the Global Simulation Workshop, a daylong role-playing game that simulates the next 30 years of global development.

Students will form teams representing different regions of the world, multinational corporations and global organizations. They will compete, negotiate and trade for assets such as wealth, technology and natural resources as they build the world they want to see.

This is the first time the simulation has come to the UW–Madison campus.

The program will have a facilitator from “o.s. Earth,” the organization that developed the simulation. The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in Great Hall, Memorial Union. All UW–Madison students were eligible to apply to participate, and the 100 students selected to participate were chosen by lottery.

Reporters interested in attending the event should contact Rebecca Smith, director of public relations at the UW–Madison School of Business, at (608) 263-9298 or rsmith@bus.wisc.edu.

Sachin Tuli, assistant director of the Center for International Business Education and Research at the School of Business, said the goal of the global simulation is to build critical skills and teach participants about global issues.

“The simulation will expose students to how trade, population, natural resources, policies and other factors are interrelated in the global economy,” he says. “This will help students better prepare for opportunities and challenges they will face in their careers and as citizens.”

During the last three decades, more than 350,000 people have participated in the simulation. More than 2,500 educational institutions, organizations and corporations from 35 countries have used the event.

Marilee Sushoreba, programs coordinator at International Student Services who chaired the cross-campus initiative, said the global simulation will “increase understanding of the world and how it works, and groom critical skills needed to succeed in the global work environment.”

The event is sponsored by several UW–Madison organizations, including: International Student Services, International Learning Community, Global Studies, School of Business, Model United Nations, WUD-Global Connections, and Wisconsin International Students Association.

More information is available by emailing UW–Madison International Student Services at issprograms@redgym.wisc.edu.