Join our time-travelling, multi-player simulation game and find out whether you have what it takes!

Brightly coloured letters spelling 'WOOD' as the logo for the 2026 Wood festival in Wallingford Oxfordshire

It would be great to have you in one of the teams, travelling through time to ‘Run the World’, make the changes you would like to see and watch the results.

It’s called a game and it feels like one and, then again, it’s a game where the stakes are very high.

What does it take to change the world? And what are the changes you want to see happen?

Your choices will create a model of our world from the present day into the future. Experience the interdependence in the complex systems we inhabit, travel through time to make the changes you want to see, and then watch our new world emerge in our multi-player simulation game.

‘Outdoors and unplugged’ is our favourite way to play ‘Run the World’ so we are hugely excited to be part of our first Wood Festival. We know families, friends and the whole Wood community will enjoy the game. It’s a LOT of fun and we are expecting thoughtful reflections on the outcome, with new discoveries and insights from a highly engaged Wood Festival audience.

Working outside brings extra challenges in our power-point driven, amplified world. The Global Academy team plans even more carefully for these outdoor workshops. We bring a bit more kit with us than we use in a corporate conference centre or university auditorium, but the extra effort is always worthwhile.

We don’t often get the chance to be ‘in charge’, much less ‘Run the World’ in a safe, supportive environment and the experience can be very revealing.

It’s also a lot of fun?