From VR to DNA View Online [[link removed]] | Subscribe now [[link removed]]Powered byKnow better. Do better.Climate. Change.News from the ground, in a warming world

By Laurie Goering | Climate Change Editor

Future vision

It's 2040 in Miami, and a powerful hurricane has swamped the low-lying city. You stand alone under a dark, foreboding sky, chest-high waves sloshing around you, an abandoned car one of the few objects visible in the expanse of water.

The harrowing scene is from an immersive virtual reality game [[link removed]] developed by the Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center to give policymakers a visceral sense of what their decisions on climate change today could mean in the future, for better or worse.

Climate experts have long struggled to help people see and genuinely grasp likely scenarios as the planet changes, both the dystopian and positive. But virtual reality - particularly games that put controllers in users' hands, letting them make decisions and see the consequences - are changing that.

"People don't realise what their city will be like in 2040 if they don't implement climate solutions," said Nidhi Upadhyaya, of the Arsht-Rockefeller center. But using virtual reality, "we can get them to see what's going to happen."

She hopes that if games [[link removed]] can make the future tangible, they can become a major impetus for faster climate action - one reason the center is working to share expertise to build more of them [[link removed]].

An image of a flooded Miami in 2040 from a virtual reality video game developed for the Adrienne Arsht–Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center. Adrienne Arsht–Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center/Handout via Thomson Reuters Foundation

DNA tracking

A smart bit of technology is also helping researchers better protect nature.

By filtering river water in Peru, for instance, and pulling out DNA samples [[link removed]], scientists have discovered where elusive manatees are living - giving new incentives for conservation of the river.

As countries at the COP15 U.N. biodiversity talks [[link removed]] in Montreal negotiate a global pact to stem nature losses, such technology could help pinpoint where protections are needed, and track if they are being achieved.

That's crucial with up to 1 million of Earth's estimated 8 million plant, insect and animal species at risk of extinction, many within decades, scientists say.

"All of a sudden now you can know whether things are getting better or not - and that's just not been possible before," said Katie Critchlow, the CEO of NatureMetrics, which developed the DNA filtering system.

Scientists from monitoring company NatureMetrics collect water to then capture traces of DNA to identify local wildlife species, in The Trossachs National Park, Scotland. October 20, 2021. NatureMetrics/Handout via Thomson Reuters Foundation

Carbon underground

A growing ability to estimate the amount of carbon stored in soils [[link removed]] is also giving farmers a new financial incentive to adopt climate-smart, environmentally friendly agricultural practices, like tilling the soil less, planting cover crops and rotating pastures more frequently.

So far, payments for changing farm procedures to boost the amount of carbon absorbed into the soil are fairly small - just a fraction of the earnings from growing crops like soy and maize - and big questions remain about how effective soils can be in storing carbon for the long run.

But changing farm practices could potentially capture and store up to 250 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually in the United States - or 4% of the nation's emissions - the National Academy of Sciences found in 2019.

For now, "it's like a gold rush. People are trying to figure it out, but there's not a lot of clear structure and knowledge," said Matthew Houser of the University of Maryland.

Efforts to find new jobs for young people in India's oldest coalfield [[link removed]] are also struggling, with many youth still hoping for unlikely miracles, such as their online videos going viral.

"This generation is more aware of what is happening across the world. They have access to the internet and realise the potential outside coal. The biggest challenge would be to find alternatives for them," said Ajay Kumar Rastogi, the chair of India's first Sustainable Just Transition Taskforce.

See you next week,

Laurie

This week's top picks At COP15, U.S. is pushing key nature goals from the sidelines [[link removed]]

The United States wants a key role at COP15 biodiversity talks in Montreal and to go beyond the 30 by 30 nature protection pledge

Can a new EU law stop firms selling goods linked to deforestation? [[link removed]]

A European Union law blocking imports of several commodities – from coffee to timber - to protect forests hailed as 'historic'

New EU anti-deforestation law falls short, indigenous leaders say [[link removed]]

European Union's move to curb imports linked to forest destruction lacks measures to strengthen indigenous rights, activists warn

Global nature pact in doubt as COP15 talks seek breakthrough [[link removed]]

As COP15 biodiversity talks begin in Montreal, experts warn disagreements over oceans and finance could derail hopes for an ambitious agreement

Climate change virtual reality games offer visceral view of future [[link removed]]

Climate change futures can be hard to grasp, but immersive VR gaming is putting people there, and may drive better policy

Read all of our coverage here [[link removed]] Editor's pick Children of India's burning coalfields dream of a fire-free future [[link removed]]

Coal workers hope education can help the next generation win cleaner, healthier jobs in Jharia, an Indian region long wedded to dirty, dangerous coal mining. But plenty of obstacles remain to moving on from coal, even in a region with the country’s first Sustainable Just Transition Taskforce.

[[link removed]]Discover more Nature [[link removed]] Climate Risks [[link removed]] Net Zero [[link removed]] Just Transition [[link removed]] Climate Justice [[link removed]] Green Cities [[link removed]] Thank you for reading!

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