Play Kula Like a Master
Play kula like a master with ‘the kula game’
Friday 05/04 14.30-16:00
Samuel Alexander Building, University of Manchester, Oxford Rd, Manchester M13 9PL
In ‘the kula game’ participants will explore what its like to be an elder in kula, an exchange system found in the islands of Papua New Guinea. In this interactive workshop you will be invited to take on the role of a senior kula player, trading the shell valuables bagi and mwali with others. Use your island’s unique resources to coax as many other players to share a ‘path’ with you, along which you exchange shells. Whoever ends up having the most paths at the end of the game wins!
Nathan is a PhD student at University of St Andrews. He recently finished his fieldwork on Normanby Island, Papua New Guinea in April 2023. His research looks at kula exchange, treating it as an ethos which guides the behaviour of Duau people in other contexts like mourning the dead, making money, and supporting the education of their children.
