Kars Alfrink

(Dear rebooters, I'm sad to say I won't be attending this year's edition. Enjoy yourselves!)

In his independent practice (leapfrog.nl), Kars Alfrink straddles the line between interaction- and game design. He thinks play is a crucial characteristic of any meaningful user experience and pursues projects that allow him to investigate this concept. Kars has designed social web applications, casual mobile games and multi-touch systems.

Currently, he is focusing his work in the area of applied urban games. Kars works with organizations to develop games that take place in public space, engage people physically, and are socially relevant. Amongst other things, these games are used to encourage citizenship and cultural participation.

Furthermore, Kars teaches at the Utrecht School of the Arts (www.hku.nl), where he is currently mentoring a group of students who are pursuing a European Media Master of Arts in game design and development.

He is also the initiator and co organizer of This happened – Utrecht (thishappened.org/utrecht), a series of lectures dedicated to the stories behind interaction design.

In his spare time, Kars practices a traditional Japanese martial art, and tries to keep up with geek culture.