UN to use Minecraft for urban development

Swedish gaming company Mojang has teamed up with the UN to facilitate sustainable urban development.

Using Mojang founder Marcus ‘Notch’ Persson’s legendary Minecraft, the ‘Block by Block’ program gives those without architectural training the ability to express their vision of the future of housing.

The program follows in the footsteps of Mina Kvarter, an initiative within Sweden to use minecraft to modernize apartment complexes built in the 60’s to facilitate rapid urban growth.

The goal of the partnership with UN habitat is to give youth a chance to participate in the urban planning process.

"Minecraft has turned out to be the perfect tool to facilitate this process," reads the announcement on the Mojang blog.

"The three-year partnership will support UN-Habitat’s Sustainable Urban Development Network to upgrade 300 public spaces by 2016. The first pilot project in Kibera one of Nairobi’s informal settlements is already in the planning phase."

Mojang is the main financial partner for Block by Block.