Our Future Environment

The other day my good friends Michael and Gregory and I were talking about zoo environments. I said something about how when I was a child I remember the school trips to the zoo and how much I loved watching the animals’ every move. I remember learning about how flamingos are less pink when they don’t have adequate nutrition and a healthy environment.

But of course, we all agreed that zoos are less than adequate for animals. Each animal is limited on space, freedom, experience. Some call them prisoners.

I am reluctant to place ‘animals in captivity’ in an evil human actions file. Partly because I’ve been to a couple of small animal sanctuaries in Arkansas for ‘retired’ circus elephants and tigers, and racing greyhounds. The people there were needed and caring and those animals were in the best place they could realistically be. But, regardless of your viewpoint on this, the question I have is how to introduce children to animals outside of their immediate environment? Beyond watching a video or reading a book, how can a child learn to appreciate their global ecology?

The conversation led to a pondering of the existence of an immersive virtual environment. Could there be a museum of sorts that would have 3D dome IMAX rooms where one would enter in a virtual Serengeti, for example, with animals running past you, realistic temperature and wind? I can imagine this existing in  museums already. I was thinking it would be an interesting new model of ecotourism. It could eliminate travel costs and infringement upon land that most ecotours can’t avoid. And, the absence of captured animals is obviously key here.

I was investigating this online and found this article: Immersive Interactive Virtual Reality in the Museum (Roussou 2001)

Article Abstract:

“The use of immersive Virtual Reality (VR) technology is a relatively recent trend enjoyed almost exclusively by the academic, military, and industrial research and development communities. However, as VR technologies mature, research is expanding from the military and scientific visualisation realm into more multidisciplinary areas, such as education, art, culture, and the humanities. As representative institutions involved in the research and presentation of these fields, museums, cultural centres, and entertainment venues may be in a better position to make use of advanced virtual reality technologies in order to investigate their educational potential while effectively shaping how they deliver public education and recreation. This paper will discuss the issues involved in using state-of-the-art interactive virtual environments in cultural public spaces by presenting the virtual environments developed for learners of all ages at the Foundation of the Hellenic World (FHW), a cultural heritage institution of informal education located in Athens.”

The author is the director and co-founder of makebelieve. Check out their portfolio.

Lastly, Aga suggested I visit the Bartlett school while I’m in London this summer. Apparently they have a virtual ‘cave’ room for any kind of uploaded environment.

The leading question from this is whether a virtual environment design organization is working/has worked with social scientists/learning theorists  to develop an immersive, interactive “zoo”?

Filed under: leisure, education, eco-tourism, future, fostering identity, goals on June 4th, 2009