THE BOARD GAME
Money Smarts is a board game that helps Indigenous youth learn about financial literacy through a multiplayer experience.
All art and content was created with Indigenous entrepreneurs and artists.
The game teaches 12 to 17 year olds from Indigenous communities the fundamentals of financial literacy, going beyond the singular focus on individual wealth accumulation. We want to empower the players and give them the confidence to have successful financial journeys of their own in real life.
GAME MECHANICS
To learn budgeting and money management, players need to evaluate what are the best choices and behaviours to achieve the personal goal they chose at the beginning of the game.
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Players can acquire the cards they want (such as renting an apartment or going on a trip) not by randomly drawing them, but by selecting them from the entire deck, thus learning, through repetition, to gauge their needs and wants.
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For more complex financial concepts, the game features traditional trivia questions, coupled with a unique mechanic that rewards players with game progression. This highlights the idea that success in achieving financial goals is not a matter of chance, but rather a matter of making informed decisions.
INDIGINOUS VALUES
Money Smarts goes beyond financial management, challenging individual ownership with Indigenous and community-based mechanics. It urges players to pursue collective goals, trade, and value mutual aid, emphasizing sharing and exchange inherent in Indigenous communities. Additionally, the game's artwork, created by Indigenous artists, was also a way of allowing Indigenous players to see themselves in the game.
WINNING THE GAME
Money Smarts offers diverse paths to financial success, challenging the individualistic focus of Western societies. Winning doesn't hinge on being the wealthiest; instead, players earn badges based on their choices, emphasizing community engagement, needs versus wants analysis, and career goals as avenues to success.
