From Gameplay to Green Choices: Paper Goes Green, a Board Game for Fostering Life Cycle Thinking and Sustainable Consumption

Yu-Jie Chang (), Tai-Yi Yu (), Yu-Kai Lin and Yi-Chen Lin
Additional contact information
Yu-Jie Chang: Department of Earth and Life Science, University of Taipei, Taipei 100, Taiwan
Tai-Yi Yu: Department of Information Applications, Finance and Insurance, Ming Chuan University, Taipei 111, Taiwan
Yu-Kai Lin: Department of Health and Welfare, University of Taipei, Taipei 100, Taiwan
Yi-Chen Lin: Department of Earth and Life Science, University of Taipei, Taipei 100, Taiwan

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 21, 1-18

Abstract: Public understanding of complex sustainability concepts like life cycle assessment (LCA) is crucial for promoting environmentally responsible consumption yet remains a significant educational challenge. This study introduces and evaluates Paper Goes Green, a competitive board game designed to make abstract LCA principles tangible and personally relevant. The game simulates the paper production chain, compelling players to make strategic decisions about resource allocation, production pathways (conventional vs. green), and waste management to fulfill paper orders. Through a single-group pre-test/post-test design with 85 participants (25 environmental educators and 60 public members), the game’s efficacy was assessed. Paired-sample t -tests revealed significant improvements in participants’ perceived knowledge of green chemistry/LCA (pre-game mean 2.05, post-game 3.24 on a 5-point scale, p < 0.001), pro-environmental attitudes (3.38 to 4.22, p < 0.001), and behavioral intentions toward green consumption (3.97 to 4.44, p < 0.001). These gains correspond to medium-to-large effect sizes (Cohen’s d = 0.94 for knowledge, 0.70 for attitude, 0.71 for behavior), indicating substantial practical impact. Qualitative feedback further highlighted the game’s engaging and thought-provoking nature. Notably, specific design features—such as immediate feedback, player control, and interactivity—were identified as key contributors to learning, fostering systems thinking in players. These findings suggest that Paper Goes Green is a promising educational tool for translating complex environmental science into an engaging, impactful learning experience. The game effectively bridges the gap between abstract concepts and real-world consumer choices, fostering life cycle thinking and empowering players to make greener choices in their daily lives.

Keywords: sustainability education; game-based learning; life cycle assessment (LCA); systems thinking; serious game; pro-environmental behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/21/9571/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/21/9571/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:21:p:9571-:d:1781232

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().