Could a game of bingo change the trajectory in humanity’s quest for world peace?
The artists behind World Peace Attempt, from right here in Vancouver, say yes. They’ve created “World Peace Bingo” to do just that, and they’re calling on the people of Vancouver to give it a starting push.
World Peace Bingo is like any game of bingo, but with people’s names instead of numbers. When somebody named on the ticket tags @worldpeacebingo on social media, they get marked. If a full straight line across the board is marked, everybody wins.
The artists behind the movement hope to challenge the common perception that world peace is unrealistic or fundamentally impossible. “The fact that everyday people don’t think about world peace as a serious possibility is actually a critical part of the problem,” say the founders of the initiative. “For as long as nobody is taking the possibility of peace seriously, achieving peace won’t get a legitimate place on the global political agenda, and we won’t escape the perpetuation of war that our governments have grown comfortable with.”
“Military manufacturers donate millions of dollars to both of the major political parties, and they employ teams of lobbyists to influence government decisions—and it works. Nobody is doing a good job of lobbying to end war altogether, and that’s effectively what World Peace Bingo is hoping to do.”
World Peace Bingo
So, how does this bingo game—one that hopes to achieve world peace—actually work?
The bingo ticket includes 100 names arranged into a grid of 10 rows and 10 columns. Among them are politicians, Hollywood celebrities, musicians, acclaimed scientists, and famous sportspeople, as well as plenty of lesser-known people.
“We wanted to include some people who might not be getting thousands of emails each week competing for their attention. If we can convince some of these more accessible people that being part of an attempt to create world peace is worthwhile, hopefully they’ll get on board and some momentum can grow,” says the World Peace Attempt team.
Some well-known names on the bingo ticket include Rihanna, Cristiano Ronaldo, Joe Rogan, and Vancouver’s very own Ryan Reynolds.
Anybody can reach out to the named people to encourage them to participate. When somebody tags @WorldPeaceBingo on social media, they get marked, the bingo game gets a boost of publicity, and the community of followers grows larger and stronger. With enough support, our collective attitude toward world peace changes—and that new attitude gives rise to behavior and decision-making among leaders that better aligns us with achieving world peace.
“We’re not Miss Universe contestants or hippies. We’re normal people who want to see an end to all of the devastating wars we keep seeing, and we think this plan is worth testing out,” said their team.
“Whether it be in the short term, the medium term, or even the long term, in a civilized society, our leaders should have a plan in place to end war altogether. They don’t seem to have much of a plan right now, so we’ve done it for them.”
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As big as their goal may seem, anybody in the community can have an impact simply by following @WorldPeaceBingo on social media. “The first few hundred followers are absolutely crucial, and we’re starting from zero. We don’t have any meaningful relationships with any of the people that were named on the bingo ticket. We’re looking to gather some followers who want to get behind the attempt from the very start. The more followers we have when we start reaching out to the people who are named, the more likely it is that they’ll play along.”
Follow their initiative online
By taking a moment to follow them online, you’ll be part of an attempt by society to create world peace. The question lingers: What if this crazy idea can actually work? You can check out their website here, and connect with them on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter (X).