Master of Disaster: Can a board game help Philippines face next catastrophe?
In a library in the Philippines, dice rattle on the surface of a board before coming to a stop, putting one of its players straight into the path of a powerful typhoon. The teenagers huddled around the table leap into action, shouting instructions and acting out the correct strategies for just one of the potential…
The teenagers huddled around the table leap into action, shouting instructions and acting out the correct strategies for just one of the potential catastrophes laid out in the board game called Master of Disaster.
With fewer than half of Filipinos estimated to have undertaken disaster drills or to own a first aid kit, the game aims to boost lagging preparedness in a country ranked the most disaster-prone on earth for four years running.
“[It] features disasters we’ve been experiencing in real life for the past few months and years,” said 17-year-old Ansherina Agasen, adding that flooding routinely upends life in her hometown of Valenzuela, north of Manila.
Sitting in the arc of intense seismic activity called the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, the Philippines endures daily earthquakes and is hit by an average of 20 typhoons each year.
