D3315: Pest Friends: An educational board game and IPM simulation

The pest friends board game is a peer reviewed educational tool developed by our team to help farmers and pest managers experience the decision making process involved with integrated pest management (IPM). We began developing the game in 2020 and in 2023 produced 350 copies to be used in educational settings. The game takes about 1 hour to teach and play and is meant for audiences 14 years or older. The game has players take on the role of a pest manager and learn how to deal with pests by making tough decisions like what types of pesticides to use and how to support beneficial insects. The game is focused on the basics of pest management through experiential learning. The game has been played by over 500 participants. A subset of 55 individuals was surveyed about their perspective of the game in comparison to a traditional slideshow presentation on the topic. One hundred percent indicated the game was more engaging, 90% indicated they learned more through this experience. Sixty-three percent indicated that they planned to make changes to their pest management strategy following the training. Currently the game is being used at multiple institutions across the United States. Additional expansions and scenarios are in development at this time. This poster will focus on teaching audiences how the game works and its educational value for outreach, extension, higher education and other venues. There will also be some discussion about the development process and ways interested collaborators can get involved.