Teleport tothe Planet's Lungs ?
Capturing the Amazon in 360° and Why It Matters
Virtual reality has long promised a democratized form of digital teleportation, providing access to places we might never otherwise visit and making the unreachable a vivid reality. A couple of years ago, I started working with governments in the US and France on creating a career simulator to help kids virtually visit work environments. Originally this venture was designed to open doors to new professional experiences without leaving the classroom. However, I could never have anticipated that this very concept of virtual exploration would eventually take me to the Amazon rainforest, immersing me in the lush expanses of the Earth’s compromised lungs.
“Destroying the rainforest for economic gain is like burning a Renaissance painting to cook a meal.”
The mission French government ("France Travail") gave me before the expedition was overwhelmingly straightforward: to create 7 experiential modules to digitize the natural and cultural heritage of the French Amazon, along with the diverse traditional skills and competencies that contribute to making this region of the world so unique. The goal is to both preserve and raise awareness about this invaluable ecosystem of arboreal life and artisan abilities for their flagship VR initiative called Yookan Guyane. The Amazon Rainforest is universally recognized as a biodiversity haven, oftentimes visible from space as a green block on our blue globe. But who among us will actually travel there to witness the world's largest natural carbon sink firsthand? VR might be their best bet.
Following roughly 6.5 vaccinations and two preliminary visits to the Pasteur Institute in Paris, my die-hard team and I felt somewhat equipped to launch into this new design project: ready, set, digitize!
Counteracting "Nature Blindness" with Immersive Visualization
"Nature blindness," a term that describes the growing disconnect between humans and the natural environment, manifests as a lack of awareness and concern about critical environmental issues. This detachment is often due to limited direct interactions with nature, exacerbated by urban living and digital distractions. Without firsthand experiences, many people find it challenging to appreciate the urgency of environmental conservation or understand the complexities of ecosystems.
To combat this, our VR project offers a compelling solution by leveraging technology to bridge the current rift between humans and nature. Through the use of immersive 360° visuals and dynamic 3D simulations, the project allows users to engage deeply with various natural ecosystems from anywhere in the world. This immersive experience isn't just about observing—it's about feeling present in these settings without physically being there, which we refer to as "(tele)presence".
"Place illusion and plausibility can lead to realistic behaviour in immersive virtual environments.”
Pr. Mel Slater / Professor and VR Researcher
By experiencing these simulations, users gain a more concrete understanding of how environmental changes directly affect the world we live in. This engagement aims to transform abstract concepts into tangible realities, thereby fostering a greater sense of responsibility and urgency to act. The Amazon rainforest ceases to be some distant land; it is right "here" and "now".
The project not only educates but also empowers users with the knowledge to make informed decisions about environmental issues, encouraging a proactive approach to conservation and sustainability. In essence, by diminishing the barrier of "nature blindness," this VR initiative cultivates a more informed and connected generation, equipped to tackle today's environmental challenges with a renewed perspective and vigor.
Building an Immaterial Vault to Preserve the Cultures of the Amazon
From the moment we stepped into French Guiana to start our Amazonian project, it was evident that we were dealing with more than environmental conservation; the local culture was inseparable from the natural surroundings. Our assignment from the French government was to craft digital assets that would preserve and showcase Tembé art of the Bushinengue community, an esteemed part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. This brought us to Cayenne to work with the renowned tembé artist Antoine Dinguiou who introduced us to this part of the Amazon cultural heritage.
Originally, it was a coded language invented by African populations who rebelled against slave traders in Suriname and found refuge in the Amazon forest. The interlacing of geometric shapes, decipherable only by initiates, allowed their ancestors to communicate among themselves without being understood by their oppressors, enabling them to live as free men and women in the forest. Each pattern and color carries a specific meaning: here a pledge of loyalty, there a promise of fertility, and further a pact of cooperation, encoded in a tangle of shapes. Nothing is left to chance: under the high patronage of customary chiefs, guardians of the culture, they meticulously organize this network of curves and meanings down to the millimeter.
Armed with a ruler and compass from the age of 8, Antoine Dinguiou learned from his elders to master the codes of this visual grammar, whose geometric secrets are passed down from generation to generation. As became abundantly clear when we created first-person-perspective media of Antoine Dinguiou's daily work, precision and attention to detail are at the heart of the tembé artist's work, while patience and concentration are constant allies in creating works that respect their ancestral codes.
Channeling Ancestral Wisdom for Our Digital Age
M. Dinguiou is currently dedicating his energies to increasing recognition of Tembé art among a wider audience, thus his keen interest in leading us in the creation of interactive modules showcasing his ancestral skills. This is merely the beginning: our aim is not only to safeguard the skills inherited from past generations but also to propel Tembé art forward, highlighting its pioneering nature through our immersive modules.
"There are students who take exams and choose Tembé as an option, so I will be there and we will be there.”
Antoine Dinguiou / Tembé Artist and Bushinengué Community Leader
While it may appear as a niche activity specific to the community along the Maroni River, Tembé art in reality serves as a precursor to modern cryptography -- a significant matter in our era of relentless digital surveillance. Sheltered within the Amazon forest from slavery's atrocities, Antoine Dinguiou's ancestors carved out their freedom centuries ago, and in so doing invented a coded graphic language that offers timeless lessons on the unconditional value of privacy and the inherent freedom it brings for future generations. While deep within the planet's lungs, we discovered a visionary community that breathed digital wisdom into our lives, and for this, we are eternally thankful.
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