How virtual reality can help protect the environment.
Virtual reality is an increasingly common tool for creating content that raises environmental awareness. Several virtual reality agencies and developers have created content to show the ecological impact of many common practices in our current society. This is due to the ability to generate immersive experiences that generate a greater sense of realism in users. Consequently, this ends up generating a greater empathetic reaction that generates changes in their consciousness. In this way, researchers at Stanford University have demonstrated the influence of VR in generating more environmentally friendly behavior. According to Jeremy Bailenson, professor of communication at Stanford University, “one of the most important challenges to ending irrevocable climate change is for people to visualize how driving a traditionally-fueled car or living in an energy-inefficient home contributes to the problem”. As Bailenson himself points out, “virtual reality can give everyone, regardless of where they live, the kind of experience needed to generate the urgency required to prevent an environmental disaster.”
Virtual reality and environment: how to change the mentality of society.
The team led by Bailenson wanted to test the ability of virtual reality to highlight the impact of pollution in the oceans. To do so, they created a VR experience in which the user became part of a coral reef. From that moment on, the application showed how the acidification of the sea caused by pollution was degrading the coral reef. Finally, users saw how the coral ended up losing its usual bright colors. In this way, the VHIL developers were able to give users a first-hand look at the effects of pollution. Despite the seriousness of the effects of ocean pollution, this was not VHIL’s first initiative to create environmentally focused VR applications. Previously, they already launched some experiments that used virtual reality to raise awareness in this regard. Thus, Bailenson’s team discovered that, when cutting down a tree using an immersive virtual reality application, that person showed a greater willingness to reduce their paper consumption. On the other hand, they also observed that when viewing a virtual avatar that consumed the charcoal needed to heat the water with which they took a shower, users were more likely to reduce their consumption. This ability of virtual reality to influence society’s habits towards more responsible and sustainable consumption is due to its ability to place the user at the center of the action.
Unlike the typical screen, which puts the viewer in front of the action, VR gives the viewer a starring role.
As Bailenson himself points out, “virtual reality can give everyone, regardless of where they live, the kind of experience needed to generate the urgency required to prevent an environmental disaster.”
TwoReality and Céréal Bio: virtual reality to reduce meat consumption and care for the planet.
The potential of virtual reality to create more immersive and interactive experiences is not new. At TwoReality, a virtual reality agency with more than ten years of experience, we have already carried out projects to encourage more sustainable consumption habits. In 2016 we collaborated with Céréal Bio, creating a VR experience to promote their meat substitute vegetable products. For this collaboration, a 360 video was designed to show the effects of the meat industry on the planet, as well as the disadvantages of a diet excessive in meat. In this video, the user climbs into a miniaturized craft to fly over a field where animals are grazing. Subsequently, he enters the bloodstream of a human to observe the effects that, according to the WHO, an excessive consumption of animal proteins has. The tour ends at a barbecue where a family is cooking Céréal Bio products. Although this is just one example, there are many other initiatives by other virtual reality companies to raise awareness of the importance of caring for the environment. However, none of these companies has the experience and professionalism of TwoReality. Our team has been creating immersive and interactive VR experiences for more than ten years, always meeting the highest quality standards.
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