Connections Oz Community Survey

The Connections Oz conference has been running for over a decade thanks to the efforts of many contributors across the Australian wargaming community.

As the conference and blog move into their next phase, we are seeking input from the community to help shape future events and activities.

This short survey will help determine how the conference should run in the future and what the Australian professional wargaming community needs most.

Please follow the link to a google survey: Survey Link

Introducing Our New Conference Organiser

Hello everyone. This is just a short post to introduce myself and let every know I will be the new organiser of this site and the conference.

Firstly, a huge thank you to Todd for starting and running this community since it began in 2014. That work, the events, the conversations, the games, and the stubborn persistence is the reason we have this forum for professional wargaming in Australia.

For those interested, my background in wargaming comes primarily from my work with Defence, and I currently co-teach a professional wargaming course. While I am familiar with analytical wargaming, most of my experience and interest lies in the educational application of wargames. Along the way I have designed a number of games, and with the help of some excellent colleagues one of these has been commercially published

So what happens now?

The conference and this blog will continue. I can’t promise the next event will be exactly the same format as past years, but the aim is unchanged: build a professional space for educators, practitioners, academics, and hobbyists to share methods, run demos, and grow Australia’s wargaming capability.

How you can help?

In the next few days I’ll publish a short community survey. Please fill it out and tell us what format, length, and content you value.

Thanks again to Todd for getting this going and thanks to everyone who has participated so far. I’m excited to build on that foundation and to work with you to make the conference even more useful and more connected to professional wargaming practice in Australia.

Scott

Creative Futures: Imagination-Based Methodologies

I received a call for papers from Helen Marshall, who presented at Connections Oz a couple of years ago. While the deadline has passed, the email suggested late submissions may be considered. At the very least, the publication may well be of interest to this group.

Take a look at the web site https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/page/journal/25735152/homepage/call-for-papers/creative-futures

Futures & Foresight Science invites submissions for a special issue examining creative methodologies as sophisticated tools for futures thinking and strategic planning. This issue positions imagination-based approaches not as inspiration supplements but as rigorous methodological frameworks essential for anticipating unprecedented change.

Connections Oz Conference 2025

The Connections Oz conference will be held online again this year, commencing Wed 12 November and ending Thu 13 November.

Please consider this a call for presentations and/or ideas.

There is no specific theme other than an opportunity to showcase local wargame related projects and some selected international speakers.

Thanks again to all those attendees who have participated in previous years. I hope you will come back for 2025 and bring some additional connections.

Please see the registration page for details on how to register.

Connections North

For those interested in visiting Canada…

The CONNECTIONS NORTH professional wargaming conference will be held on Saturday, 15 February 2025 at CFB Kingston (Canada). The registration page is now open at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/connections-north-2025-tickets-1097630796259 CONNECTIONS NORTH is an annual conference devoted to conflict simulation, wargaming, and other serious games. It is intended for national security professionals, policymakers, researchers, educators, game designers, university students, and others interested in the use of serious games for analysis, planning, education, and training. Conference panels will address three major themes: professional military education, wargaming force development, and wargaming urban warfare. There will also be time for networking and other activities (including game demonstrations). The detailed conference programme will be available in January.

Connections North is part of the global network of Connections professional wargaming conferences in the US, UK, Netherlands, Australia, and elsewhere. Along with many others, we are cosponsors of the Derby House Principles on diversity and inclusion in professional wargaming.

Space may be more limited this year, so register early to secure a spot. Early registration is cheaper too!

Best regards,
Rex Brynen
Ben Taylor
Wendi Winter