About Living Play
A worldwide movement to preserve humanity's play heritage.
Our story
Two decades in the imagining.
The idea for Living Play began more than two decades ago, with a simple question: what would happen if schools around the world asked older generations to describe the games they played as children?
The answer, we came to believe, would not only be a record. It would be a return — of language, rhythm, movement and memory to the children of the next generation.
"Living Play is currently in its founding stage."
Mission
To preserve and revitalize humanity's play heritage through intergenerational research, education and active participation.
Vision
A world in which every community can preserve its play traditions and every child can discover how children elsewhere have played.
Guiding principles
Eight commitments.
- 01Play is living cultural heritage.
- 02Preservation should lead to renewed participation.
- 03Children can be researchers and cultural custodians.
- 04Communities deserve attribution and agency.
- 05Cultural context matters as much as game rules.
- 06Access, inclusion and safety are essential.
- 07Contributors should understand how their material will be used.
- 08Scholarship and lived memory should complement one another.
Ethics and consent
Documenting with care.
- Contributor consent
- Parental or guardian consent for minors
- Image and recording permissions
- Attribution preferences
- Cultural sensitivity review
- Correction or removal requests
- Privacy
- Community ownership and source acknowledgement
Public submissions are never published automatically. All submissions enter moderation before any consideration for inclusion in the archive.