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

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.