1. Harnesses the power of games to empower, engage and educate you

2. USAID Initiative
Innovations for Youth Capacity and Engagement, “IYCE”, is an initiative funded by the United States Agency for
International Development (USAID) that strengthens youth programs by developing tools and effective models
utilizing the power of innovative technology, including serious games, to empower, engage and educate
youth and assist them in their transition to adulthood.
IYCE meets young people where they are, capturing their interest with gaming and other new media that they
consider relevant, interesting and ‘cool’. This venue offers a safe, fun, and challenging space where youth can
develop the skills necessary to become more engaged, responsible, and productive citizens.IYCE targets youth
in the regions in which USAID operates, including the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Eurasia, and Latin
America and the Caribbean.
Through IYCE, USAID is forging unique public-private alliances to bring together the ICT and Gaming worlds
with the world of international development in order to creatively address critical youth development
challenges.
Photo credit: KaarliSundsmo, USAID

3. IYCE Pilot Program
IYCEis being piloted in Jordan and, if successful, will be expanded to other
countries in the region and beyond. Jordan was selected given the numerous
youth engagement initiatives, the Government of Jordan’s interest in and
support for youth development as well as the expansion of Information
Communications Technology (ICT) within the country, and USAID/Jordan’s
leadership on and support for innovative youth programming.
Why being piloted in Jordan?

4. IYCE Target Audience
Today’s youth number and the largest
generation to transition to adulthood
Youth aged 10-24
represent 30% or
more of the
population of many
developing
countries
This can be destabilizing if youth’s needs are
neglected, particularly those related to
education, work opportunities, and having a
voice in their communities
1.77 billion
In regions such as
the Middle East,
nearly 70%of the
population is under
the age of 30
IYCE is being piloted in Jordan
and, if successful, will be
expanded to other countries in
the region and beyond.
Youth targeted is between
ages 15-24
IYCE Pilot Program

5. Around the globe, amidst challenging circumstances, youth have harnessed and
demonstrated the power of socialmedia to connect with each other
and express themselves bringing about social and economic changes

6. http://www.activyouth.com/events/25-upcoming/320-youth-for-change-phase-iii-20102011-.html
Can social games help empower youth todevelop the skills, passion and knowledge
to build vibrant 21st. century societies? We think so!

7. Imagine if a social city-building game was rigorously optimized for fun, engagement, viral
propagation and for developing an understanding of building vibrant societies.

8. Why Social Games?
AppData: April, 2013
Social city-building games are one of the worlds fastest growing gamegenres with
hundreds of millions of players globally …
These social games are fun, engaging and rigorously optimized every week for viral propagation & free to play conversion
Top 3 city building Facebook Games:
Rank by: Monthly Active Users (MAU)
1.CityVille
2.CastleVille
3.Social Empires
10,247,130
8,544,732
6,000,000
Reference image: CityVille

9. Social Game: Our City
IYCE Pilot Game: Our City Concept overview
• City building Facebook game
• Our City will be localized to Jordanian context both in art and content
• Players will focus on building and managing a healthy and vibrant city
• Micro-engagement models will provide opportunities to advance
more rapidly in the game by interacting with mini-games, videos,
online content and surveys that are linked to digital content from IYCE
partner NGOs
• Real-world/Virtual-world integrations: real world activities such as
volunteering opportunities which will be offered by partnering NGOs
to engage deeper and accelerate game play
• Mobile component: through mobile plug-ins such as reminders and
updates, players will be able connect and engage with the game while
being away from their PC. Also, a mobile function will provide a
check-in mechanism to integrate into the game players’ participation
in real-world activities

10. Social Game: Our City
The game will focus on the challenges of
building a vibrantcity and will help the
player understand the systemsthat must be
managed to grow and manage a city. Players
will face concrete challenges, such as energy
shortages, diminishing access to water, a
growing population, and a challenging
economic environment, for which they will
develop appropriate solutions.
Note: the game will not focus on building the specific governing
models and infrastructure
IYCE Pilot Game: Our City Concept overview

11. Social Game: Our City
IYCE Learning and Impact Objectives
 Increase importance of a sense of community.
Compete, collaborate, socialize, and connect
with other players
 Fixing problems and solving conflicts as
important learning mechanics in the game
 Strong social mechanics as part of quests
structure: sharing, reciprocity, gift-giving,
community development, player reputation
level, friendly competition
 The player should have the opportunity to
make bad decisions. Since the best instruction
is through failure
Youth understand the
components of a healthy city and
increases capacity for Systems
Thinking
Youth make decisions around
those components from a civic
perspective fostering effective civic
engagement
Youth understand how they
can apply what they learn in the
game to help make a difference in
the real world
1.
2.
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12. Team
Executive Producer
E-Line Media is a
publisher of game-based
learning products and
services that engage,
educate and
empower, helping to
prepare youth for lives
and careers in the 21st
century.
E-Line works with leading
foundations, academics,
nonprofits and
government agencies to
harness the power of
games for learning, health
and social impact.
Implementing Partner
Nethope Alliance, which is
an alliance of corporate
partners, foundations,
and thirty-three of the
largest international
NGOs engaged in
humanitarian and
development assistance.
NetHope enables
humanitarian
organizations to better
serve the developing
world through smarter
use of technology.
Funding Partner
The U.S. Agency for
International
Development (USAID) is
an independent agency
that provides economic,
development and
humanitarian assistance
around the world in
support of the foreign
policy goals of the United
States.
www.elinemedia.comwww.nethope.orgwww.usaid.gov
IYCE Pilot Program
In-Country Manager
Al-Nasher is a full-service
advertising; public
relations and marketing
agency specialized in the
development of
advertising, marketing
and new media strategies,
with more than 20 years
of experience. Al Nasher
has been implementing
participatory programs
that allow civil society
organizations and the
public to direct their
community’s
development.
www.socialgameuniverse.com
Game Developer
Social Game Universe is a
Toronto-based social
games innovator founded
in 2009 by veteran digital
media entrepreneur and
game designer Nathon
Gunn and backed by
powerhouse media and
finance visionaries.
www.enasher.com