VR project brings the realities of Arctic climate change in Canada to viewers

The team behind a prize-winning virtual reality project, which exposes viewers to the realities of Arctic climate change, says the technology can help people better understand the dramatic changes to the northern environment. “This [VR experience] can help people visualize that change, and how they want to respond to it.”The project, Qikiqtaruk: Arctic at Risk, allows viewers to explore Qikiqtaruk (Herschel Island), located off the Arctic coast of Yukon in the Beaufort Sea. Excerpt from Qikiqtaruk: Arctic at Risk https://www.rcinet.ca/eye-on-the-arctic/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2023/07/3D_video_visuals_of_Qikiqtaruk_credit_Qikiqtaruk_Arctic_at_Risk.mp4The idea for the project was born during the pandemic, when fieldwork on the island was suspended. For northern communities, the virtual reality project allows them to monitor the habitat in a way they wouldn’t be able to easily do otherwise. Importance of local and scientific partnershipsMyers-Smith says the rapidity of Arctic climate change can surprise even seasoned researchers like herself, but that there’s many reasons to be positive about the future.