research & impact research & impact research & impact

We're committed to ethical research, data analysis, and open dissemination on cooperative operating models in Canada's interactive digital arts sector. All research conducted by Baby Ghosts is published freely for the public benefit. This work comprises:

Current projects

• National Network: training 25 mentors across 4 hubs and publishing 4 region-specific toolkits under CC BY-SA.
• a national study and white paper on the efficacy of incubators/accelerators for sustainable creative practices in partnership with academic institutions and researchers
• Flywheel: our impact measurement framework that blends longitudinal surveys with alumni follow-ups, financial management, and program analysis
• coop.love: a forthcoming space for the cooperative game development movement, with free and open-source resources including how-tos and guides, facilitator guides, by-law samples, finance models, templates, toolkits, and a directory of co-ops around the world.

2022 Funding Barriers report

This 2022 research by Weird Ghosts explored barriers for Canadian game developers through community surveys and interviews. The findings helped shape Baby Ghosts' approach to cooperative education and support. Read the report.

Weird Ghosts found significant disparities in access, particularly for marginalized creatives, with cascading effects across the sector. Baby Ghosts continues to build on these findings through our ongoing research and programming.