Navigating the Dualistic Impact VR has on Environmentalism and the Climate Crisis

Navigating the Dualistic Impact VR has on Environmentalism and the Climate Crisis
By
Hallie Pixley

Today, humanity faces a climate crisis induced by human activity that needs urgent and immediate attention.  Suppose this crisis fails to be addressed with intensive global action within the next decade. In that case, it will bring catastrophic and irreversible consequences for not only the natural world but humanity as well.  As the global average temperature continues to rise, various sectors of the environment will continue a trend of degradation in multiple ways, including rising sea levels, loss of biodiversity, depletion of natural resources, and extreme weather events.  The result of these environmental crises will impact our food systems and economy and severely impact infrastructure throughout the world, leaving many without homes and medical centers.  Many experts say that reducing global greenhouse gas emissions is necessary within the next ten years if we wish to reverse the damage resulting from human combustion of greenhouse gases.

Increasing awareness and environmental literacy is a key component in our efforts to reverse climate change.  In 2021, Yale University conducted a study showing a by-county average of different climate change-related beliefs, perceptions, behaviors, and levels of policy support of U.S. citizens, and the results were concerning.  This study showed that, on average, the percentage of U.S. citizens who believe in climate change came to 72%, and the percentage of U.S. citizens who believe climate change to be mostly the result of human activity came to only 57%.  This study also shows the underwhelming concern for policy change in the U.S. regarding climate change mitigation – when asked if citizens believed climate change should be a high priority for the next President and Congress, only 55% of citizens agreed.  The push on local officials and governors to do more regarding climate change is also very underwhelming, as only 57-59% of the U.S. believes their local officials could be doing more.  Policy, even at a local level, is necessary to put pressure on those higher up to make essential changes to end the climate crisis.

Active engagement in teaching about the reality of climate change is often difficult to obtain. VR will allow educators to give their students a first-hand experience of what will happen due to climate change.  Studies have shown that it is difficult for our brains to take in the reality of climate change, and Per Espen Stoknes, a Norwegian economist and psychologist, created a model of how and why this is the case.  Stoknes explains that the barriers consist of “five D’s”: distance, doom, dissonance, denial, and identity.  Within this model, he also explains that “we simply have less empathy with increased social distance” (Cornish).  As much of the climate crisis occurring today takes place outside of the English-speaking world, this argument applies to the disregard we see for climate change in the U.S. VR technology could very well bring a heightened level of empathy among the citizens of the U.S.  VR gives the user a first-hand experience of the reality of current climate disasters that hits harder than reading articles and passing by photos of the disasters of climate change, bringing an increased sense of empathy and realization.

To increase awareness and concern for climate change, we must seek to improve our environmental educational outreach, accessibility, and general methods.  The current advancements and overall interest in virtual reality hold potential for this much-needed increase in environmental education, and it is crucial, as concerned citizens, that we are aware of what VR developers have put out there with the hopes of increasing awareness of climate change and environmental degradation.  As the world of VR continues to advance, educators are diving into the benefits it will likely bring to our education systems.  Eduporium conducted a study in 2023 that looked at how students react to VR in a classroom setting, and the outcome was incredibly positive.  This study found that “AR and VR provide new angles for learning that, with proper integration, can enhance student experiences” and that “Students who learned with help from VR had higher positive emotional responses to the context.  They’d routinely state that they found the VR learning to be more engaging than ‘basic’ and ‘boring’ learning approaches” (Using virtual reality systems in education).

With the advancements we are seeing in VR technology today, understanding the current and future potential it holds for environmental education is essential.  With this understanding, we can efficiently and effectively implement this tool into our education systems and change how U.S. citizens view the climate crisis.  As of today, there are quite a few VR projects related to increasing awareness of the current climate crisis and projects related to environmental education in general, and there are no signs of stopping these advancements.  The general interconnectedness of the two worlds – VR and environmentalism – is becoming increasingly common, with people putting their energy into both disciplines.  These people can provide us with important insights into how the two connect.  An interview with Vanessa Keith, a registered architect, principal for StudioTEKA, and author of the book 2100 A Dystopian Utopia: The City After Climate Change gives us a look into the interconnectedness of the two worlds.  Keith, with the help of fellow VR and game developers, created a VR game titled Year 2180 that shares concepts from her book and was designed to increase environmental awareness.

Colombia Climate School interviewed Keith back in August of 2021, and she explained the workings behind VR’s ability to change human behavior and answered questions regarding accessibility and technical application to climate change.  One concern regarding the potential of VR for increasing environmental awareness is accessibility.  Keith was asked a question about where VR experiences should be delivered to maximize use, and she explained that VR should be available on a wider variety of consoles as the cost of VR headsets is not accessible for some.  This begs the question of how much VR content is available via phone or PC and whether VR through these consoles is possible.  Currently, there are headsets compatible with mobile phones available for cheap compared to the VR headsets we are seeing today – which has the potential to close off the factor of affordability.  Some of these headsets are going for as little as $10, and although they may not deliver the same quality as a higher-end headset, it is a promising start to integrating VR into classroom environments.

Within the interview, Keith also talks about the goals and desires she hopes to achieve with the making of her climate change-related VR game.  Year 2180, an MMORPG, was built to bring “scattered, environmentally conscious individuals together into a centralized space where they can engage with each other and those wanting to learn and take action” – according to a statement made within the game’s website.  This is just one of many ways we are seeing VR being used with the hopes of improving the current state of climate change.  Keith dives further into her main goals for the outcome of this game and explains that “One of the things I’ve found consistently in my research is that we don’t lack solutions to climate change, we lack political will.  At the same time, I think that people who are inventing things and people who are thinking of solutions are still in silos in different fields in different countries, so I’m really hoping that this can be a place where people can connect and share ideas.”  VR can bring people from all around the world into what feels like the same physical space, making it easy for like-minded climate activists to get together.  This ability creates a world of possibilities for the future of the climate crisis, as there are few other ways for people worldwide to connect on this level.

This fact brings up another essential detail as we think about how VR impacts the climate crisis’s future.  According to the EPA, transportation takes up about 29% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and is the most significant contributor to GHG emissions in the country.  Finding new ways to mitigate these emissions is essential to reverse climate change.  The ability of VR to bring people from all over the world into a shared space will reduce the need to travel to meet with others. The Metaverse is actively working to create applications and VR environments that will make it possible for people to engage in activity and even work, dismantling our previous methods and ideas for what the work environment looks like.  The advancement of these applications is projected to reduce emissions from the everyday work commute, as people can create a workspace “away” from their homes without ever actually leaving.  Not only are emissions from traveling expected to go down with the advancements of VR workspaces, but with sight-seeing applications as well.  The “virtual travel industry” is becoming increasingly realistic and immersive and could very well satisfy people’s desire for traveling by taking in the desired environment through virtual reality.

One example of a VR experience created to show people the visual joys of traveling and exploring the natural world is called BRINK Traveler developed by BRINK XR.  This “travel experience” allows the user to view 32 of the most breathtaking natural views in the world in full 3D.  Along with the visuals, the audio provides the user with a tour guide, giving them facts and information on whichever location they have chosen.  Many environmental-related game developers also show their commitment to helping solve the climate crisis not only through the development of these games and experiences, but donating proceeds as well.  On Earth Day of 2022, BRINK XR donated all profits from this game to environmental charity partners such as the National Parks Foundation and the Eastern Sierra Land Trust.  BRINK XR is also partnered with 1% for the Planet, which indicates that they donate 1% of their annual profits to environmental protection charities annually.

Keith brings up another hurdle environmental educators often face and how Year 2180 could help us to jump that hurdle.  This brings us back to the “five D’s” concept, specifically, the idea of doom and “apocalypse syndrome.”  Society is constantly reminded of the terrors the climate crisis will bring, making it easy for people to avoid it altogether.  Although it is difficult to think about the climate crisis in a positive setting, it is necessary to consider if we wish to make people effectively understand the impact it will have.  Keith explains that integrating climate information into an interactive VR game could relieve us of some of that doom and bring the conversation into an environment that isn’t so negative.  Keith stated, “Maybe we could get more people on board using fun because fear doesn’t seem to be working.”  With the continuous expansion of the Metaverse and VR technology in general, game developers will have opportunities to integrate climate and environmental facts into their fun games, which could likely bring education to those who wouldn’t otherwise be interested in learning.

Keith is not the only one to take the “fun” gaming approach to environmental education through VR.  Professor Isabella del Alcázar, the Global Head of Sustainability at IE University, Gonzalo Alcázar, Director of the Center for Water and Climate Adaptation and the Department of Publishing and Online Solutions at IE, worked to create Eye in the Storm.  This game begins with the player inside their home as a storm enters from a distance.  The player must interact with elements to form a very emotional storyline where the player will learn about key stakeholders in the conversation around climate change within the gameplay.  This method of intertwining education into VR games will successfully attract a new demographic to learn about environmental-related issues that otherwise may not have.  As long as the player is interested in the gameplay itself, they will play the game and learn about environmental issues inadvertently.  It is also important to note that finding ways to make education and teaching “fun” has been a practice that has proven to be highly successful.  Studies have shown that “fun is a key antecedent of informal learning” and that there are many benefits to encouraging self-taught informal learning through objectively fun activities (Tews et al.)  Although it can be difficult to imagine teaching about such a catastrophic event in a manner that is not objectively depressing, it could very well be the key to getting more people involved and interested in learning and understanding the reality of this crisis.  VR games related to the climate crisis, among other environmental issues, create the perfect medium for developers to show people the harsh reality in an enjoyable and entertaining way.

Along with creating fun and interactive VR games related to environmental issues, there are also VR simulation experiences created to show the general public the harsh reality of environmental degradation.  This takes an entirely opposite approach to educating about urgent environmental issues and intends to allow people to experience the worst of our ecological impacts first-hand.  As previously mentioned, much of the general public is not currently living in areas that are experiencing the direct consequences of our poor ecological treatment. With VR technology, we can now immerse ourselves in these environments and visually experience the harsh reality as much as we can without physically being there.  This breaks the barrier of the “distance” issue humanity experiences while thinking about how people are being affected by climate change.  In other words, it is easy for those living in Burlington, Vermont, for example, to neglect that people in third-world countries are experiencing health and safety issues due to environmental misuse of the North.

Erika Woolsey, a marine biologist, and technologist, and cofounder of the Hydrous, a nonprofit devoted to ocean education, was featured in a TED Talk and speaks on how to make people care about the environment that people do not have the opportunity to see or experience.  Specifically, within this talk, Woolsey speaks on the topic of coral bleaching.  Woolsey begins by explaining that she had been working with coral reefs for years and saw firsthand the negative impact of coral bleaching not only on the reefs themselves but the ecosystem these reefs were inhabiting as well.  She then explains how she did not see much of an increase in public understanding of the impacts of the publication of reports highlighting the damage caused by coral bleaching.  Woolsey explains that “Virtual reality and ocean environments are a match made in heaven,” and through the Hydrous, she and her team worked diligently to create a 360-degree VR film and interactive learning modules to show people the reality of climate change and coral bleaching in hopes of “inspiring ocean empathy.”  This nonprofit has raised lots of awareness on the matter, and is endorsed by the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.

In April of 2022, Meta highlighted some projects created to immerse people in these spaces who are experiencing the worst of the climate crisis and negative environmental impacts.  One of the many projects showcased in this report included a VR experience titled Mist over Beijing.  This experience tells the true story of Doctor Zhu, a renowned Chinese master of medicine, and his health issues resulting from Beijing’s intense pollution.  Using photos and videos of the pollution in Beijing, immersive VR, and ambisonic sound, Zhu and his former student put on a dialogue about Zhu’s battle with lung cancer.  Zhu found that his lung cancer is directly tied to the pollution crisis in China – pollution so bad that babies are not permitted to go outdoors on bad days unless it is under severe circumstances.  This story will evoke emotion from the user by showing both the reality of pollution in China and a true and personal emotional narrative by a man who is no longer with us due to this pollution.  This personal story will give the user a solid example of the human impacts our environmental mistreatment can have, making it connect on a human level.

It is clear that VR developers have taken the initiative to raise awareness of major environmental issues.  One significant thing commonly heard amongst environmental educators is the idea that we, as individuals, do not have enough impact to make real change towards the climate crisis.  To tackle this common misconception, The UN Environment Programme partnered with the Sony PlayStation platform “Dreams” to create a game titled Meet Your Carbon Footprint: a game that demonstrates the impact on the climate that one person can have in their lifetime.  The immersive game displays a giant ball of light as one’s carbon footprint and shows the impact one’s everyday decisions may have on the environment.  It puts the user in scenarios that the average person lives every day, such as breakfast and working at a computer desk, and demonstrates how the small decisions that go into these everyday events have a much more significant impact than one may imagine.  As many other game developers have stated, Martin Nebelong, the lead illustrator of this game, explains that VR was a perfect medium for him to tell the story properly and that “As an artist, [he] wanted to design a beautiful and sometimes frightening experience that shows the true scale of our emissions and the impacts we should expect to see. This is not possible in two dimensions” (Experience your carbon footprint in VR).

This game also shows how VR can be used without access to a headset created strictly for VR purposes.  As previously mentioned, accessibility is an essential factor to consider when considering the potential of using VR to teach about environmental issues.  This game is available to use on headsets like the Oculus, but it is also available for 360-degree viewing on YouTube.  Most up-to-date smartphones allow users to move their phones to view an entire 360-degree video, and there are even DIY VR headsets one can make to feel more immersed in the experience.  Along with Meet Your Carbon Footprint, the UN Environment Programme also created a 360-degree YouTube video titled What impact do you have on the planet? That shows the user a visual representation of the average personal use of limited resources in various countries such as water and metal ores.  This 3D representation of resource use shows the user something difficult to perceive in 2D and really puts it into perspective.  Along with this visual representation, a narrator is explaining the impacts of this use on the environment and what will happen if our resource use is not cut back.  Utilization of VR and 360-degree videos for the sake of showing individual impact will have the ability to hit the user on a level that is harder and more impactful than a stagnant 2-D video experience.

The use of VR within the realm of environmentalism does not stop here, though.  Along with showing people the current impacts of climate change and a visualization of how an individual may have more impact than they think, VR is also used for scientific research and to understand future climate change impacts better.  One case where this is being used today is within the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.  In this study, researchers use VR, AI, and AR with their current basis of contemporary scientific data to help them visualize future impacts on the coastal areas of Mauritius and surrounding islands.  These islands are considered priority areas for the UN, and the overall goal of this project is to create an immersive simulation that is easily understandable for education and disaster preparedness.  Using VR as a way for climate scientists to visualize future impacts is a new and promising implementation, and not many projects have used VR in this way.  This project was created in June of 2023 and is projected to be completed in June of 2024.  That being said, data on how successful this project is has not yet been found.

Along with using VR to help climate scientists visualize future impacts, VR has also been used to create simulations for potential conservation and environmental protection efforts.  Liz Trumper, Head of Growth at CIRCUS, explains in a report regarding how VR can help climate change that by creating virtual simulations relating to potential conservation efforts, park rangers, and conservationists will be able to “monitor and protect wildlife and natural habitats in real-time, without physically entering the area and disrupting the ecosystem” (Trumper).  Trumper also explains within this article that waste reduction is another sector that VR technology has the potential to tackle.  Physical prototypes that are necessary for many businesses to visualize whatever design they create lead to a large amount of waste, and VR provides a space for these prototypes to be created that requires no physical materials.

Within this topic of waste reduction through VR, manufacturers are looking towards sustainable manufacturing as a means of reaching carbon reduction goals.  Sustainable manufacturing is a holistic approach to reducing the many environmental impacts that traditional manufacturing often has while still positively affecting the economy.  According to a study conducted by McKinsey, a resilient sustainability strategy can reduce overall costs and improve a company’s operating profits by 60% (Henisz et al.), and VR technology has been found to help aid a company in this process.  Companies of all different kinds can use VR to implement sustainable manufacturing and production processes into their business.  The many benefits of using VR for this purpose include virtual prototyping, remote collaboration, virtual maintenance, and virtual training and education (Redfearn).

After analyzing the benefits VR technology brings to the table regarding raising environmental awareness, increasing environmental literacy, and even bringing carbon emissions and waste down from businesses, it is essential to look at the negative impacts VR technology may have on the environment. This will give us a level head while considering the best sustainability approach with this emerging technology.  The advancement of VR technology is only going to continue to increase, so being aware of the negative impacts will allow us to understand what could be done to mitigate whatever impacts there may be.   It is clear that this technology brings a lot to the table concerning environmental education and reducing emissions from waste and transportation, but there are concerns regarding the manufacturing of VR devices, the energy requirements to run metaverse-like experiences, e-waste, plastic use, and more.

With the heightened production of electronically advanced headsets, it is clear that nonrenewable minerals are being used in production at high rates.  Gold, silver, and copper are just a few of the non-renewable resources used within these products, and if extracted and disregarded unsustainably, we will eventually find ourselves in a position where there is none left to use.  It is unavoidable that producers do not use these ecologically harmful materials to produce VR headsets, and as technology advances to include features such as tracking hands, the need for these materials for production increases.  According to an article published by AR Post, “experts have recommended that virtual reality technology producers use recycled gold and other metals and plastics to reduce the environmental impact of their product… though there is far to go” (Jaehnig).

The head manufacturers of VR technologies and products must be responsibly sourcing minerals not only for sustainability purposes, but human rights purposes as well.  One of the most devastating environmental and human-rights events occurring in this world today is the conflict mineral crisis happening in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  Conflict minerals consist of four main minerals – tantalum, tin, tungsten, and gold – and are actively sought for technological production.  These minerals may be extracted from various places around the world, but the DRC has an abundance of these minerals.  Due to the poor state of the government and lack of political power in the DRC, over 50% of the mines that hold this abundance of these much-needed minerals are controlled by rebel and militia groups.  These groups use extreme violence, such as rape and murder, to keep control of these mines, making it the most unsafe place to be in the world for women and children (Conflict minerals in the congo).  Efforts have been made to prevent companies from purchasing minerals sourced from the Congo, not to promote the inhumane acts.  For example, within Section 1502 of the Dodd Frank Wall Street Reform Act, there is a requirement for companies to trace and audit their supply chains to ensure they are not funding these violent groups.  Unfortunately, there is no guideline for companies to follow regarding this, which has led to most not being held accountable.  This makes it difficult to track which companies are using mineral sources inhumanely and unsustainably unless a company is diligent in its efforts to come out with mineral sourcing reports.

In this case, it is important to look to the leader of VR technologies.  Meta, one of the leading companies in the world of VR, has come out with statements expressing their commitment to responsibly sourcing their minerals.  Meta has published an annual conflict minerals report for the last five years and continues to do so.  Their most recent report from 2022 indicates that they maintain a Conflict Minerals Working Policy and have a Conflict Minerals Working Group comprised of members from their sustainability, finance, supply chain, and legal departments.  The report highlights the guidelines that they follow to avoid the use of conflict minerals, including establishing strong company management systems, identifying and assessing risks in the supply chain, designing and implementing strategies to respond to identified risks, carrying out independent third-party audits of supply chain due diligence at identified points in the supply chain, and finally report on supply chain due diligence.  The report highlights several other factors that go into Meta’s overall relationship with using conflict minerals and is very detailed.  It is also mentioned in the report that “necessary conflict minerals” are used in their products as needed.  That being said, successfully tracking and avoiding the use of conflict minerals altogether is an incredibly difficult task that is nearly unachievable in today’s world, but it is clear that Meta is doing what it can to be transparent about its use of these minerals and taking the necessary steps to avoid it as much as possible.

Another factor that must be considered as we think about the environmental impacts of VR technology is the energy usage that goes into manufacturing.  As platforms like the Metaverse continue to advance and become more complex, the energy required to keep these platforms running is becoming a leading concern for environmentalists.  According to an article published by TechTarget, it was said that “getting a true picture of the Metaverse’s environmental impact is not possible due to the lack of a single Metaverse model, the rapidity with which technologies are developing, and the lack of insight into the environmental costs of these technologies” (Pratt). As Meta, as previously stated, is the leading contributor to the future of VR technology, it is disheartening to note that there is a general lack of environmental statements made by the company, considering the impact they unavoidably have on the environment.  Transparency of these leading companies’ environmental impacts and a clear desire to mitigate negative environmental impacts as much as possible is an essential piece in our global efforts to fight climate change and must be required to meet the U.S.’s goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. Although there is this lack of transparency from Meta, researchers have been looking into estimating the impacts of VR platforms like the Metaverse on the environment.  It is clear that energy consumption will increase with an increase in the complexity of these platforms and hardware systems.  Lancaster University researchers even estimate in a 2020 study that “if 30% of gamers move to cloud gaming platforms by 2030, there will be a 30% increase in carbon emissions” (Pratt).

There is also concern surrounding the amount of e-waste VR headsets are said to produce and the environmental impacts of this e-waste.  When electronics are not disposed of properly, precious minerals go to waste, and toxic substances such as mercury are released into the environment.  These substances pose serious environmental and human health impacts.  Much of this waste is often exported outside of the U.S., greatly affecting the places they are shipped to, including Mexico, Taiwan, China, and Pakistan (Campbell and Christensen).  It is also important to note that only about 17.4% of global e-waste is recorded as properly collected, treated, and recycled (The growing environmental risks of e-waste).  Considering the amount of resources and electronics that make up just one VR setup, it is no surprise that environmentalists are concerned about where it may end up when they inevitably reach the end of their lives or are no longer in use.  Increased demand for electronic recycling companies is an environmentalist’s response to this concern as we navigate the future of how VR will contribute to increased e-waste (Harrison).

In conclusion, VR is a technology that is advancing rapidly and does not appear to be slowing down any time soon.  Rather than rejecting this technology due to the environmental impacts it may bring, environmentalists must be diligent in harnessing the potential that it brings to the table for the future of environmentalism, as many areas of environmentalism could benefit from all that VR technology has to offer – especially when it comes to environmental education and literacy.  That being said, it is also essential that we, as environmentalists, hold companies and businesses accountable for the environmental impact that they have.  Reaching the U.S.’s net-zero emissions goal by 2050 will require full transparency and care from big corporations that contribute most to carbon emissions, among other environmental impacts.

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