M. Małachowska, T. Otulak, Be Here Now
A new ritual of regeneration
Be Here Now is a game consisting of 30 cards – each of them is a designed interpersonal interaction. The game “activates all sensory channels and allows for analog regeneration. The tasks are extremely simple, but rarely anyone can perform them.”
Be Here Now is an innovative card game designed by Magdalena Małachowska and Teresa Otulak – researchers and designers working at the intersection of design, economics, art, and science. The goal of the game is not competition, but regeneration, deepening relationships, and activating human resources through the experience of “here and now.”
It does not use screens, rankings, or points. Instead, it invites laughter, community, touch, movement, eye contact, listening, storytelling, and discovering the joy of being together – without technology.
The game is a tool that restores what we have lost in the world of digital acceleration: contact, mindfulness, rest, and vital energy.
The game is the result of an original research project conducted at five major design and art festivals in Europe (Venice Biennale, Vienna Design Week, Dutch Design Week, Holitopia, Gdynia Design Days). The researchers explored the contemporary understanding of energy-physical, social, emotional, environmental-and how design can influence our ability to regenerate.
The key conclusion was groundbreaking: in order for people to care about electricity and planetary energy, they must first learn to care for their own vital energy.
The game became a tool for transformation – from technological acceleration to conscious pause.
A game that doesn't want to win – only to connect
“Life is not a game to be won. It is play. And play is the oldest form of regeneration for humans and communities”
“Our cards activate everything we already have within us – our senses, intuition, body memory. It's about returning to joy that costs nothing.”
The researchers and designers based it on research conducted during European art and design festivals, analyzing how modern people regain energy and a sense of purpose. Based on the collected data, a deck of cards was created that activates emotions and the body, triggering natural regeneration mechanisms. Each card is an invitation to action: to talk, move, look into the eyes, experience the touch of objects, and even silence – everything that builds real relationships and brings a person back to the “here and now.”
The game is used in education, business, culture, and therapeutic environments. It helps build trust in teams, break down communication barriers, and stimulate creativity. In the Living Lab space, it acts as a tool for designing the future – not one based on technology and consumption, but on well-being, regeneration, and community. The zycienazywo.pl website emphasizes that the game is a social-design experience that can be scaled depending on the context: from small meetings, through workshops, to public events. The available materials explain how the game can be used as a tool for facilitation, personal development, social animation, and working with emotions.
“Be Here Now” is therefore not just a game-it is a form of contemporary regenerative ritual that rebuilds the ability to be mindful and present. Each encounter with the cards is a unique experience of immersion in a relationship: with oneself, with another person, and with one's surroundings. The game restores agency, integrates the senses, and reminds us that true energy does not come from technology, but from life lived authentically.
It does not use screens, rankings, or points. Instead, it invites laughter, community, touch, movement, eye contact, listening, storytelling, and discovering the joy of being together – without technology.
The game is a tool that restores what we have lost in the world of digital acceleration: contact, mindfulness, rest, and vital energy.
The game is the result of an original research project conducted at five major design and art festivals in Europe (Venice Biennale, Vienna Design Week, Dutch Design Week, Holitopia, Gdynia Design Days). The researchers explored the contemporary understanding of energy-physical, social, emotional, environmental-and how design can influence our ability to regenerate.
The key conclusion was groundbreaking: in order for people to care about electricity and planetary energy, they must first learn to care for their own vital energy.
The game became a tool for transformation – from technological acceleration to conscious pause.
A game that doesn't want to win – only to connect
“Life is not a game to be won. It is play. And play is the oldest form of regeneration for humans and communities”
- Teresa Otulak, for Notes for 6 Weeks
“Our cards activate everything we already have within us – our senses, intuition, body memory. It's about returning to joy that costs nothing.”
- Magdalena Małachowska, for Notes na 6 Tygodni
The researchers and designers based it on research conducted during European art and design festivals, analyzing how modern people regain energy and a sense of purpose. Based on the collected data, a deck of cards was created that activates emotions and the body, triggering natural regeneration mechanisms. Each card is an invitation to action: to talk, move, look into the eyes, experience the touch of objects, and even silence – everything that builds real relationships and brings a person back to the “here and now.”
The game is used in education, business, culture, and therapeutic environments. It helps build trust in teams, break down communication barriers, and stimulate creativity. In the Living Lab space, it acts as a tool for designing the future – not one based on technology and consumption, but on well-being, regeneration, and community. The zycienazywo.pl website emphasizes that the game is a social-design experience that can be scaled depending on the context: from small meetings, through workshops, to public events. The available materials explain how the game can be used as a tool for facilitation, personal development, social animation, and working with emotions.
“Be Here Now” is therefore not just a game-it is a form of contemporary regenerative ritual that rebuilds the ability to be mindful and present. Each encounter with the cards is a unique experience of immersion in a relationship: with oneself, with another person, and with one's surroundings. The game restores agency, integrates the senses, and reminds us that true energy does not come from technology, but from life lived authentically.
