Green Mages: Sustainability In Action

Welcome back to Green Mages, the only article series dedicated to exploring topics and themes of environmental sustainability in Magic: The Gathering. This is part three of a mini-series looking at how Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast can leverage the scale and popularity of Magic to fight against the effects of climate change through education, awareness, and the physical deployment of funds to drive action on critical projects, all while staying true to the game, both narratively and mechanically.

In part one of the series we looked at gaming more holistically and how the immersive aspects of the medium provide a perfect platform for both education and influence. In part two of the series we looked at stories from the past 30 years of Magic where themes of environmental protection or destruction were present, illustrating how simple this integration can be. 

The final piece of this puzzle, which will be explored here in part three, is looking forward to how Wizards can take these ideas even further and use their game as a platform for enacting positive change as opposed to just simply looking for ways to reduce the impact or footprint of Magic.

Secret Lairs for Public Good

I'm currently an MBA student studying green, sustainable, and transformative business models, and one of the overarching difficulties that I run across, especially in various consumer goods industries, gaming included, is how to fund the efforts to transition to a green supply chain, improve manufacturing practices, etc. For a while now I have been stewing on the idea of utilizing exclusivity and collectability as a tool to fund this transition. Often the upfront investment for a green-transition is very high, so having a tool to augment that cost could be the difference between taking action and not. I'm confident that this is a mechanism Wizards could easily leverage to help fund a variety of sustainable initiatives.

The reason for this confidence is that there's already a vehicle in place for limited release, special edition drops: Secret Lairs. Not only is the sales vehicle in place, but Wizards has a history of using Secret Lairs as a platform for fundraising for causes they are passionate about. Black is Magic, Pride Across the Multiverse, and the various Extra Life drops are all perfect examples of this. Using Black is Magic as an example, that drop had seven cards that, "celebrat and support different expressions of Black identity " all illustrated by Black artists. A portion of the proceeds from the drop went to Black Girls CODE, an organization dedicated to helping young girls of color become future leaders in the world of STEM.

This model could be easily duplicated for a "green" or sustainability-focused drop. It's easy to imagine a drop full of cards like Lifegift, Tajuru Preserver, Titania, Protector of Argoth, and beyond. How Wizards uses the funds raised from the drop could vary widely. They could continue with the same model as used is the above examples and donate a portion of the funds to a charity focused on fighting climate change through reforestation efforts or combating biodiversity loss. Another option could be using the money as I described above as a catalyst to fund decarbonization efforts of the company internally. What this efforts looks like could take a wide range of forms, but the core concept would be using the money to decarbonize their supply chain through the adoption of green energy, supply chain distribution improvements, or beyond. 

Not only do I think this is an easy move by Wizards, but I think they NEED to do something like this to help supercharge their decarbonization efforts. 

Narratively Tied Donations

The next approach is similar but allows for a more consistent flow of funds going to a variety of sources while narratively aligning with the current set being released. 

I have long admired the non-profit 1% for the Planet. Their model is simple, companies commit to donate 1% of their sales revenue to the organization who then manage that money and donates it to a wide variety of climate change related causes. I am not advocating for Wizards or Hasbro to adopt that model, per se, but I do think that they could create their own platform to do something similar, i.e. donate a portion of set sales revenue to climate related causes.

Let's use Bloomburrow, the most recent MTG set, as a case study for what this could look like.

Bloomburrow is a world of cute forest critters. The artistic landscape is littered with flowers, trees, all varieties of life, and greenery at every turn. It's a natural world and would be a natural fit for a sales-based environmental donation program. For Bloomburrow that revenue could go to reforestation efforts, combating biodiversity loss, preventing chemical runoffs from agricultural land, the list of projects they could sponsor goes on. And all of them are thematically linked to Bloomburrow itself!

The benefits here are two-fold:

1. The organization receiving donations can drive more action in support of their cause, and

2. Wizards/Hasbro gets the marketing benefit from advertising this program in relation to the set release as well as the social benefit to provide stockholders some energy behind the growing demand for ESG action. 

It is a win-win for all involved.

Looking beyond Bloomburrow, this could apply to other worlds easily. I could imagine on a return to Strixhaven those funds get donated to students pursuing environmental education. Another return to Ravnica could include funds for improving and "greenifying" city infrastructures. If Phyrexia ever returns, we can combat Phyrexian oil in game and oil/gas in the real world. The opportunity for creativity in these donation are endless and the benefits exponential.

Art as a Force of Influence

Art and Magic are inseparably linked. For so many players, myself included, the art and story of Magic are just as if not more important than some of the mechanics of the game. Because of this, Wizards has 30+ years of stunning art at their fingertips.

Art has a powerful capacity to influence perceptions on the world, and a beautiful way for Wizards to spread influence and awareness on environmental issues would be to host art exhibitions at MagicCons displaying art centered around these themes. Part two of this series highlighted some of the world where these themes are present: the destruction as a result of The Brothers' War, the mingling of modern and and historical depicted in Kamigawa, the harmony of nature and humanity in the Selesnya Conclave.

All these could be cornerstones of this art exhibit to help people see the impact that we as humanity can have on the world as well as the potential of what the world could look like as we embrace nature as part of our lives and integrate it into all that we do. 

Planting a Future

Up to this point, I think all of the ideas presented have been very achievable. This last idea is a lot more wacky, but innovation and boundary pushing only comes from the wacky ideas.

I remember as a kid going to the local hardware store and buying seed packets of all varieties for our garden. One easy way to store those seed packets is in a card binder. The pockets, although designed to hold trading cards, works surprisingly well for seed packets. 

This got my brain stirring. What if the opposite was true? What if a trading card could be a seed packet? 

Imagine a biodegradable card (taking the place of the token slot) holding a small seed encased inside that you could take in the backyard, plant, and water and out grows a cucumber vine, a tomato plant, or a variety of wildflowers! The distribution of trading cards could be a tool to combat biodiversity loss, food scarcity, and urban heat. 

The Time for Action is Now

Obviously this last idea is out there, but I believe that's what we need in order to create a new future. A new future where nature and the planet become more a part of our lives, and companies like Hasbro/Wizards can play a part in that transition.

The first steps lie more with the starting ideas of this article. How can Wizards/Hasbro use collectability and exclusivity to reduce their footprint, but eventually the thinking needs to transition away from decreasing impact to creating positive impact, more in line with the final idea presented here. 

I am an optimist when it comes to what the future of our planet holds. I have to be in order to maintain hope, but I believe that business can revolutionize in defense of our home, and I especially believe that a company like Hasbro/Wizards can lead the way in the toys and games space. 

If anyone from Wizards is reading this, please take these ideas to heart. Please fight to lead this transition. I'm always happy to connect if you want to explore this space further. For everyone else reading this, please share these ideas within the community so we can get more eyes on what I believe to be one of the most important topics of our day. I know the footprint of our little game has a negligible impact on the planet as a whole, but the only way we will see a brighter future is if everyone, every industry, gets involved. 

Thanks for joining me for another edition of Green Mages. If you have any ideas of your own on how Wizards could innovate their game and their platform to support the environmental revolution please let me know down in the comments below, I would love to hear your thoughts!