The University of Johannesburg (UJ) Faculty of Law and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have launched Rapid Response: IHL, an innovative board game designed to make International Humanitarian Law (IHL) more accessible, practical and engaging – with the initiative already reaching colleagues in 43 countries.
The game was officially launched on 27 August 2026 during the SARChI Chair International Law Workshop: All-Africa Workshop on IHL, hosted at UJ.
Developed by UJ Law, the NRF SARChI Chair in International Law (SARCIL) and the ICRC, Rapid Response: IHL uses interactive gameplay to help participants understand and apply the rules governing armed conflict.
The game features a board, playing tokens and 90 cards containing key IHL concepts. Working in teams and against the clock, players have one minute to explain and correctly identify as many concepts as possible before advancing on the board.
The fast-paced format encourages knowledge recall, critical thinking, teamwork and discussion, while helping participants engage with humanitarian principles, protections and prohibitions.
The game is designed for use beyond the university classroom, including professional, humanitarian and civil society training. It is particularly relevant to those who may need to understand and apply IHL in real time, including military legal advisers and members of armed forces.
Shared Globally
Rapid Response: IHL has already moved beyond its UJ origins.
Following testing and refinement, including with UJ LLM students during an IHL workshop in March 2026, 60 copies were distributed at the ICRC’s Global Gathering of Professors in Geneva, reaching colleagues from 43 countries. A further 30 participants in the All Africa IHL Course received copies to take back to their respective countries.
Professor Martha Bradley, one of the UJ contributors to the project, described it as a partnership between UJ Law and the ICRC Southern Africa.
“This initiative is a truly equal partnership between UJ Law and the ICRC Southern Africa,” said Prof Bradley.
The recipients will provide feedback on how the game is used in different curricula and professional environments, helping to inform its future development and rollout.
Jean-Nicolas Paquet-Rouleau, Head of the Pretoria Regional Delegation for Southern Africa at the ICRC, said engaging young people was essential to ensuring that IHL remains relevant.
“International Humanitarian Law cannot simply be preserved as something inherited from previous generations; it must be continuously understood, discussed and put into practice,” said Paquet-Rouleau. “We should not see young people merely as future beneficiaries of IHL, but as partners who will carry it forward.”
The initiative is aligned with UJ’s 2026 focus on societal impact, demonstrating how the University is translating academic expertise and international partnerships into practical resources with relevance beyond its campuses.
The project brought together ICRC and UJ expertise, with support from UJ MakerSpace and the Faculty of Law’s Marketing, Communications and Special Projects team.
Its international reach is expected to grow, with requests already received for translations into Arabic, Portuguese and Italian. The partners are also exploring further distribution through ICRC regional delegations.
Addressing delegates at the launch, Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Alvin Botes highlighted the changing environment in which IHL must operate, including the impact of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and cyber capabilities on society and warfare.
From its development and testing at UJ to its reach across 43 countries, Rapid Response: IHL demonstrates how innovative legal education can extend beyond the classroom – strengthening understanding of the principles designed to protect human dignity during armed conflict.
