The board game “Melkeværet” provides valuable insight into how Norwegian farmers engage with seasonal and sub-seasonal forecasts and use them in their decision-making processes. The game, developed to enhance collaboration between farmers and weather forecast experts, aims to deepen the understanding of how weather data better can be utilized in agriculture.
Ingrid Vigna, researcher in the Norwegian Meteorological Institute is gathering information on how Norwegian farmers use seasonal forecasts and how much they trust this information. She uses a game which serves as a tool to facilitate communication between individuals with different backgrounds and expertise. In this case, it brings farmers, forecasters and researchers together.
The board game simulates a summer season in Western Norway, where each player takes on the role of a dairy farmer. The board is a calendar and the players must make decisions based on weather conditions, such as when to fertilize or harvest grass. The decisions they make affect how much grass they can produce, which in turn impacts milk production.
– During the game, decisions are entered into a model via a computer interface projected on a wall, allowing everyone to follow along. The model calculates the outcome of the players’ decisions, enabling them to see how much grass they have harvested and how much milk they have produced, Vigna explains.
How it works
The purpose of a “serious game” is not just entertainment but also educational or training purposes. For example, the game can help educate farmers about weather-related challenges and how to prepare for various weather conditions. It also provides researchers with a better understanding of how farmers think and make decisions. This gives the researchers a different perspective than data collection through interviews and questionnaires.
The project is a collaborative effort involving Climate Futures’ partners the Norwegian Meterological Institute and the Norwegian Agricultural Advisory Service (NLR):
– NLR has provided me with technical details and valuable insights into Norwegian farming conditions. If the game isn’t realistic it loses much of its purpose, Vigna says.
Work is also underway to make the data model easily accessible, allowing farmers to use it independently or in groups.
Useful feedback for the forecasters
Vigna has experienced that farmers who have tested the game have shown great interest and engagement in discussions with the forecasters:
– You can have farmers and forecasters at the same table playing the game. The forecasters will gain a better understanding of how the farmers make decisions and what’s important for them. At the same time farmers can ask forecasters questions to understand how the forecast is produced, so that they can use the forecast in a more informed way, she says.
Each game session is followed by a debriefing, where players and researchers discuss the lessons learned from the game and how they can be applied in real life.
Climate Futures is a Centre for Research-based Innovation (SFI) coordinated by NORCE.
The center works broadly, collaborating with nearly 40 partners from academia, industry, administration, and interest organizations. The projects span sectors particularly vulnerable to climate risk, such as aquaculture, agriculture, shipping, and energy, in addition to societal structures.
