Principles of International Relations in Commercial Board Games

Lauren and J. Luis will discuss how simple commercial board games can illustrate key principles of international relations.

How can professors of international relations bring their teaching to life? As the pedagogical benefits of interactive learning become increasingly clear, educators have explored exercises from simulations to staff rides to debates that can supplement more traditional learning. In this session, Lauren discusses how playing simple, commercial board games can be a useful classroom activity. Games like Diplomacy, Memoir 44, or Twilight Struggle can illuminate scholarly concepts from theories of international relations to military tactics and strategy. Lauren will discuss her experience using board games to teach introductory lessons on international relations, highlighting challenges and opportunities for scholars and practitioners aiming to integrate games into their pedagogical arsenal.

Bio:

Lauren Sukin is a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University. She studies international security, with a focus on the role of nuclear weapons in international politics. In her spare time, Lauren enjoys playing board games and convincing her dog not to eat pieces of board games. Lauren holds a Ph.D. from the Department of Political Science at Stanford University and A.B.s in political science and literary arts from Brown University.

J. Luis Rodriguez is a Stanton Nuclear Postdoctoral Fellow in the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University. He holds a Ph.D. from the Department of Political Science at Johns Hopkins University. His research studies how the Global South builds and maintains limits on the use of force in international law and organization. Luis mastered Catan during the pandemic and advises you not to discount the power of discovery cards and longest road.