VR Experience Climate Change
Reality Virtually Hackathon 2019
I had the opportunity to lead a talented team to create a VR experience in Unity for the Oculus Rift,
that creates a sense of urgency to do simple things around one's home to slow climate
change.
Role: Team Lead, Second Developer
The Reality Virtually Hackathon is a wonderful event where in the course of less than three days, ideas are pitched, teams are formed, concepts developed then applications are designed, implemented, and presented to judges and the public. Additionally, workshops are provided to participants to learn new technologies. Teams are given access to equipment and advisors that they may not otherwise have access.
I was priviledged to be part of a team of talented and motivated enthusiasts. We designed and created a VR experience, with Unity for the Oculus Rift. In it the user was situated in a home and provided with the context that what they do around the home can have an impact to climate change. The user could teleport around a home and its environs, locating information buttons, that when pressed, provided information to the user. The user was able to reference a globe in one hand with polar bears on ice. As time passes in the experience, the globe flooded, and the habitat for the polar bears shrunk.
Our project was Caution: No Bear in Area, a play on the signs that are typically used to warn people of the presence of bears, now warning of no bears. Our concept was: Could we help people anywhere in the world slow global warming at home?
Responsibilities
- Pitched initial concept
- As Team Lead, coordinated the team to complete all requirements and to demonstrate completed project: Caution: No Bear in Area
- Served as second programmer
- Researched information used in the experience