In November 2022, I joined the facilitation team of MORE – Training the Trainers, a week-long international course held in Gródek, Poland. Organized by the Fundacja Wspierania Edukacji i Rozwoju “Innowatorium”, the training aimed to equip educators and youth workers with deeper competences in conflict resolution—using the MORE simulation game as both a learning experience and an educational tool.
This training marked an important step in the evolution of MORE (Mediation on Responsibilities and Exploitation), our role-playing game designed to teach conflict management through experiential learning, negotiation, and intercultural understanding. While previous activities focused on piloting the game with youth, this training was specifically for educators, trainers, and youth workers who wanted to learn how to facilitate it themselves.
The 30 participants came from seven European countries—Poland, Spain, Cyprus, Austria, Lithuania, and Hungary—representing a variety of roles in schools, NGOs, youth centers, and community initiatives. What united them was a shared interest in strengthening young people’s soft skills, especially when it comes to navigating tension, disagreement, and diversity.
The training blended playful team-building, deep reflection, and structured facilitation practice. We opened with energizers like “Save the King” and “Lion in the Savannah”, followed by group processes to map our expectations and agree on shared rules for our learning space. We introduced the Youthpass Mandala to help participants track their learning, and explored real-life national conflict cases to ground our discussions in context.
Then came the heart of the experience: playing MORE. Participants took on roles in a fictional yet realistic migration crisis scenario, stepping into the shoes of stakeholders like governments, NGOs, and local communities. Through debate, dilemma, and negotiation, they experienced firsthand how emotions, assumptions, and power dynamics shape conflict—and how communication, empathy, and structure can help transform it.
We also integrated tools like Non-Violent Communication and MEDIANOS—a support activity for reflection and evaluation of the MORE process. These sessions helped participants not only understand the game content but also build the confidence to facilitate it themselves.
The final outcome was more than just a successful training week. After the activity, participants brought MORE back to their countries and tested it locally. In total, the tool was played with over 80 young people across six countries, guided by youth workers who had just completed the training. This marked the beginning of a growing network of certified MORE facilitators across Europe—committed to fostering constructive dialogue and peaceful conflict transformation in their communities.
Gródek offered the perfect atmosphere for such learning: surrounded by nature, far from distractions, and rich in personal and professional exchange. MORE – Training the Trainers wasn’t just a workshop. It was the seed of a new community of practice—one that believes conflict can be faced, understood, and even used as a force for growth.
Learn more about the game at www.moreconflictmanagement.com
