Think your child is wasting oodles of time glued to those Minecraft game screens? Maybe not.

The educational component of Minecraft has attracted attention worldwide. It seems as though kids are learning a lot from this highly addictive form of entertainment.  From programming, to design, to developing killer visual/spatial acumen, Minecraft is creating a generation of high-tech students ready to take on real-world jobs—and maybe even design the next national park.

According to The Guardian, “The South Australian government is taking a more entrepreneurial approach to young gamers.” They are offering up a contest wherein primary school children will have the opportunity to design the next national park—for real.

An article from InDaily (the Adelaide Independent news) states, “’The parks they design as part of this competition might include trails for bushwalking, mountain biking or horse riding, barbecue and picnic areas, public toilets, wheelchair accessible areas, campgrounds, scenic lookouts, adventure playgrounds, interpretive trails, places to launch canoes – or something completely different,’ said Sustainability, Environment and Conservation Minister Ian Hunter.”

The criteria for judging include: design, real-world usability, and sustainability. The winning designs will help guide national park upgrades worth around $10 million.

Currently, the contest is open to class groups from fourth to seventh grade until June 12, 2015. Shortlisted entries will be uploaded to the NRAMLR YouTube channel and a winner announced in July. The winning park designers will get a government-funded excursion to the Belair National Park, where they will get to spend a day with a park ranger and participate in fun activities like playing tennis, exploring, cycling, etc.

Read the full articles here: Minecraft fans invited to design Australia’s perfect national park

Govt enlists Minecraft for youth consultation

Don’t know what Minecraft is? Check out this video.