About PSTW
A crisis-driven strategy simulation that puts you in the seat of a philanthropic strategist — where every decision carries weight and every trade-off matters.
From Workshop Exercise to Something Larger
PSTW started as a workshop exercise for a conference. A way to get participants thinking about philanthropy differently — not through slides and panels, but through lived, simulated experience.
What happened next surprised us. The exercise quickly revealed itself as something much larger: a tool with the potential to shift how the philanthropic community thinks about and practices strategy. Not through theory, but through the act of making hard choices under pressure and seeing where they lead.
The central question: “A lot of things are happening to the world — can Philanthropy save it?”
Six Crises. Three Dimensions. Hard Choices.
Players step into the role of a philanthropic strategist. You have resources — more than what you need — and a world that desperately needs your help. But the world won't wait, and you can't do everything.
Over six rounds, crises emerge across education, health, economics, housing, food, and natural disasters. Each one demands a response. Each one forces a choice.
Direct Service
Immediate impact for people in need. Fast, tangible, but does it last?
Systemic Change
Transform the systems that create problems. Slower, but reaches deeper.
Civic Infrastructure
Strengthen the institutions that hold society together. The invisible scaffolding.
Environment
Protect the planet that sustains everything else. Long game, highest stakes.
Every choice has real trade-offs. Spend on direct service and people benefit now — but the underlying systems continue to erode. Invest in systemic change and you might not see results for years. The game makes these tensions visible in ways that reports and strategy documents never can.
Tensions, Choices, and What We Give Up
At its heart, PSTW is about the tensions inherent in philanthropic work. How do we approach this work in the world? What do we prioritize? And perhaps most importantly — what do we give up?
These trade-offs are never easy. In the day-to-day reality of philanthropy, they're often hard to conceive and even harder to see clearly. Strategy documents flatten them. Boardroom discussions abstract them. But when you're sitting in front of a crisis with limited resources and a ticking clock, the tension becomes visceral.
That's what this game does. It brings the trade-offs to life — not as theoretical exercises, but as felt experiences. Players walk away with sharper instincts, new perspectives, and a deeper understanding of why philanthropic strategy is both so important and so difficult.
Where Worlds Collide
PSTW draws from unexpected places. The language of crisis and forecasting from Asimov's Foundation series. The clarity and urgency of mission-control interfaces. The warmth and charm of games like Stardew Valley that make complex systems feel inviting. The tactile satisfaction of board games you want to pick up and play.
The result is something with its own character — playful enough to draw people in, serious enough to earn their respect, and insightful enough to shift how they operate. A place of curiosity and wonder, built around one of the most consequential questions of our time.
Credits
Created By
Santhosh Ramdoss and Emily Williams, with input from the Gary Community Ventures team
First Prototyped At
The Confluence Philanthropy practitioners gathering in Asheville, March 2026