About the Extreme Heat Series
As the world faces deadly heat, the Climate Resilience Center and Minecraft are challenging students around the world to overcome the threat of global warming virtually and in real-life!
The Minecraft Extreme Heat Series can teach students about heat resilience in an engaging, innovative way. The Climate Resilience Center’s Global Chief Heat Officer Eleni Myrivili and our gaming team of experts worked with Minecraft Education and Rewrite Edu to embed climate resilience content in the game. Players can take away real-world solutions to the climate crisis.
Through in-game scenarios, players learn to recognize the symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke and how to respond with simple solutions like electric fans and hydration. Additionally, students can learn about urban climate policy solutions. As they play, students learn that parks, reflective surfaces, and shade structures can reduce temperatures.
Through our collaboration, we developed two games—Heat Wave Survival and Power Grid Hero—and launched a Build Challenge! The games and challenge help students take actionable steps both in game and in real-life to respond to rising temperatures.
Why Minecraft?
Minecraft Education is a game-based platform that helps educators bring their curriculum alive through gameplay and technology.
Students can explore builds and digital worlds to understand real-world topics, including the climate crisis.
Through dedicated challenges and innovative climate resource kits, Minecraft is advancing the conversation in classrooms around the world.
The Minecraft games building climate resilience
Teaching resilience with the heat dragon
In Minecraft: Heat Wave Survival, players learn how to protect their village from the notorious Heat Dragon. The dragon is a visual representation of heat, helping students around the world understand that extreme heat is a clear and present danger.
The game is different from Minecraft’s other survival modes in that players must head to real-world locations to unlock the secrets of fighting the heat dragon. Players travel from Greece to Nigeria to learn how to protect themselves and their communities from extreme heat. At the end of the experience, players win the ability to play other survival Minecraft adventures with a ‘heat meter’ mechanic that shows them when it’s getting too hot!
The power of minigames
Power Grid Hero is a Minecraft game mode that puts you in charge of supplying power for a growing community.
The Climate Resilience Center’s gaming expert Shayne Hayes created the minigame for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition. It also features heat waves as an additional challenge and learning opportunity for players.
Through the game, players can learn how energy is generated, protect their community from climate change, and build resilience.
Inviting students to be a part of the solution
The Climate Resilience Center designed a build challenge series for the Minecraft Education platform. The challenges help students understand the dangers of extreme heat and the opportunities to protect themselves from it.
Teachers around the world can bring this exciting challenge into their classrooms to help their students dive deeper into climate resilience and apply their newfound skills.
Special thanks
The Minecraft Extreme Heat Series was developed with the support of several organizations and individuals. A special thanks to the teams and individuals who provided feedback on Minecraft: Heat Wave Survival and completed our climate justice survey: Climate Resilient Communities, Samantha Nuno (Climate Resolve), and Susie Garcia.
