American University

American University, in collaboration with the District of Columbia Public Library will train libraries in 25 cities and towns to serve as hubs for making neighborhood games and facilitating storytelling for community engagement. The experiences will include scavenger hunts for local murals, audio tours/story walks, and interactive public art experiences like “texting with a sculpture.” This project offers libraries the tools, training, and templates they need for DIY storytelling to cross the digital divide, bringing together digital collections and technology, with residents themselves as makers. Over two years, residents will make hundreds of free games—no coding skills needed. The games are made with Hive Mechanic, a game engine for neighborhoods. With this project, libraries will leverage their expertise in media literacy and local information to help democratize civic play, amplify hidden voices, and engage new audiences in public space. The project will result in training materials, game templates, and free authoring tools for libraries to use with their communities.