Leveraging Virtual Reality to Advance the SDGs

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No longer limited to the world of gaming and entertainment, virtual reality (VR) is now providing immersive experiences involving a wide range of business sectors, from healthcare and education to aviation and defense. Usually viewed with a headset, VR is a computer-generated environment in which the viewer’s focal point is determined by the movements of their head — or even their eyes. The medium also comprises 360-degree video, which is filmed by a camera housing 180-degree forward- and rear-facing lenses that simultaneously capture everything around the device. This footage is then “stitched” together to create 360-degree footage, which can be viewed with a headset or simply on a computer or smartphone screen. When viewed on the latter two, the user’s focal point is controlled by the movement of a cursor or a finger on a touchscreen.

Boosted by growing global internet access and further fueled by the pandemic, the VR market is the fastest-growing media segment: Valued at US $17.25 billion in 2020, it is projected to reach US $184.66 billion by 2026. Even traditional media companies are experimenting with the technology, and VR documentaries using 360-degree footage have given viewers a visceral new perspective on events such as the Syrian refugee crisis and the Ebola epidemic. As media policy academic Inge Sorensen writes, “VR offers unprecedented immersive and affective ways of engaging with documentary subjects and stories and enables enhanced belgium whatsapp number dataexperiences of and insights into otherwise inaccessible worlds, lives and realities.”

VR is also starting to find applications in the social impact and global development sectors. To take one example, at the Indonesia-based R&D lab Kopernik, we’re harnessing the immersive power of 360-degree videos to document challenges faced by underserved communities, and to demonstrate how we and other organizations are working to overcome these challenges and achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We believe VR technology has the power to allow all viewers — whether they’re part of the development sector, government or civil society — to experience and gain an understanding of social and environmental challenges and solutions in a way that conventional images or videos cannot. We also believe that through these more immersive and affective experiences, viewers will be more compelled and better equipped to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs.