Junior Explorers is a game for kids, which helps connect them with out world. Junior Explorer’s mission is rooted in the belief that you only protect something that you love and you can only love things that you are connected to. From this belief, Junior Explorers was developed as a program to develop kids’ understanding of our planet, its ecosystems and species through fun and interactive missions. Anurag Agarwal, Founder and CEO of Junior Explorers, explains that “Everybody is talking about the planet,” he says. “But nobody seems to be talking to the generation that’s going to be the most impacted. The Pope himself speaking on climate change recently asked this question: ‘What kind of world do we want to leave to those who come after us, to children who are now growing up?’” This was the reason Junior Explorers began.
The game Junior Explorers is both tangible and digital. The ‘Explorers’ are sent a package with a map and other tools they will use. Each month they get a box with a mission that they will go on. Included are cards that will tell them about the new area of the world. They will also log onto the website and follow along on their mission there.
The explorers will gain points and they can donate points during each mission. 100 points equals $1. This money is donated to conservation projects in the area that they just learned about during their mission.
The future of Junior Explorers includes building a global company. So far they have also launched in Singapore and are currently launching in Brazil. “For one, we’re planning to build physical-only products and explore retail and merchandising. The goal will be to create eco-products that kids can use so they continue to participate in the stewardship of the planet. And then we’ll be creating digital-only products too. We have a partnership with a company called Kurio — they have two million tablets in the US and they want to put a Junior Explorers app on their tablets. And eventually, we’re building this story so that every mission can be an episode of a TV series. The long term plan of the company is to become a platform that creates physical to digital experiences that we deliver across various mediums — subscription is just the first piece of it.”
Geographic literacy is the understanding the world around you. It is important for people to learn about our world so they can make better decisions, and be aware of what life is like outside of their own. This game does an incredible job teaching youth about different environments around the world. Junior Explorers is dedicated to educating and inspiring the next generation of environmental stewards.
Written by Elise Mazur, 7/31/2015