The Office of American Spaces (ECA/A/M) will, in consultation with the Office of Agricultural Policy (EB/TPN/AGP), support the continuation and further development of a virtual exchange program that enhances the understanding of the use of biotechnology in agriculture. Pursuant to a contract between ECA/A/M and CONTRACTOR, the contractor will execute a virtual program to facilitate an international exchange that focuses on international agricultural issues and the role of biotechnology to overcome persistent global challenges, including climate change. Employing Minecraft, a critically acclaimed video game with open-source programming and used to develop multiple esports challenges, teams of participants will interface with a modified Minecraft world and compete between groups via U.S. diplomatic and consular posts (post). The goal of the game is to create agricultural systems that mimic real-world production, trade, and environmental conditions. In addition to the interactive Esport challenges, the virtual outreach program will include information videos presented by experts, international virtual exchanges among participants, and direct interaction between participants and experts. This virtual outreach program will promote STEM/STEAM careers and topics, helping foreign audiences to better understand and engage with concepts that underlie agricultural sustainability, which supports U.S. agricultural policy. In order to identify posts that would be best suited to engage in the virtual outreach program, CONTRACTOR will deliver a one-to-two-page agenda that details the timeline and specific outreach topics that will be covered throughout the virtual outreach program no later than 10 days after award. The objectives outlined in the agenda will provide a basis for the selection of interested posts and serve as the first deliverable in the contract. After receiving the deliverable, ECA/A/M and EB/AGP will identify at least three posts that will participate in the program and will notify CONTRACTOR of the Government's decision no later than December 30, 2021. ECA will then place the selected posts in direct contact with CONTRACTOR and will continue to facilitate the implementation and execution of the virtual outreach program. DELIVERABLES: Deliver a one- to two-page agenda that details the timeline and specific outreach topics to be covered throughout the virtual outreach program. Execute at least four live - Food for Thought 1-hr sessions in coordination with the Department of State, facilitated by experts (e.g., water conservation, biotechnology, game development) in the field in order to promote concepts and careers in agricultural biotechnology and climate change and streamed on the CONTRACTOR platform and YouTube livestreams. Expand upon the existing Farmcraft world model to develop additional challenges and/or biomes in order to explore the role of agricultural biotechnology and other tools in overcoming modeled real-world challenges, including the effects of climate change, such as: Using NPCs to provide essential and stimulating information regarding climate change science and its impact on agricultural systems; Altering the way the environmental variables work in the game to reflect real-world consequences of climate change on agriculture (e.g., high temperatures reduce water retention in the soil, increased rain causes flooding); Increasing the cost of and need to apply inputs due to the worsening effects of climate change; Modeling the effects of standard agricultural practices on soil health and greenhouse gas emissions; Exploring the different traits that can be introduced into crops using biotechnology (e.g., herbicide-tolerance, insect-resistance, water conservation, flooding resilience, crop size). Execute an 8-16 week competition streamed on the CONTRACTOR platform and YouTube livestreams that takes place in a specifically designed Minecraft biome world, which enables participants to compete in challenges for developing the best farming designs that emphasize crop yields, the appropriate use of biotechnology, impacts of climate change, and sustainability. Execute virtual exchange opportunities where students can tap into their talent apart from their competitive teams. This enables students with diverse interests in different sectors to learn new skills, expand their knowledge, interact with participants from different countries, and gain real experience in potential future career opportunities. Opportunities will incorporate biotechnology and climate change topics. Execute student/educator ambassador virtual summit(s), where participants present their knowledge, learning, and explore the contributions of others in the tournament. The ambassador alumni program will act as a program retention tool to deepen skills and connections between participants and promote mutual understanding. Manage communication servers and forums for teams/communities throughout the project to exchange ideas and enable direct communication between participants. Provide marketing, communications and social media marketing tools (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, and visual collaterals, such as graphics and video). Deliver recognition and digital certifications for tournament winners and virtual exchange opportunity participants. Provide professional, regional trainers (or coordinators) to create regional networks of participants and alumni to increase exchange opportunities between participants within those regions, promote mutual understanding, and enhance their understanding of local agriculture challenges. Regional networks could be matched to State Department regions to assist with engagement with Embassies. The State Department regions are: Western Hemisphere, Europe, sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa, East Asia and Pacific, and South Central Asia, can adjust regions based on participating countries. Incorporate real time simultaneous head-to-head scrimmages between teams utilizing Minecraft Education Make and Model worlds. Regional competitions could be organized by regional trainers. Incorporate and integrate mini-games and/or related programs already in existence (e.g. Minecraft's Sustainability City, crop breeding) into the overall project, using education-based incentives to encourage their use. Conduct pre- and post-program surveys to participants to understand the impact of the program activities. Should adjust the survey from Season 1 to match Season 2 areas of inquiry. Provide Minecraft Education Edition licenses to teams without access to software. Compile a summary of the program that highlights the strengths of the program and to what extent the outreach objectives were met.
