Virtual reality has advanced enormously in recent years, and one of its most striking advantages is its capacity to benefit the environment by reducing the carbon emissions associated with travel.
Emerging technologies such as the metaverse, originally from Meta (formerly Facebook), promise to transform the way people interact with and experience the world, and with that come opportunities to reduce our carbon footprint.
One of the most obvious benefits is the reduced need to travel physically. People frequently have to make journeys in order to attend meetings, conferences or events. Those journeys not only take time; they also generate greenhouse gas emissions.
With virtual reality, people can take part in these activities from the comfort of their home or workplace. That reduces air pollution, but it also eases traffic congestion and lowers demand for fossil fuels.
Beyond work, the technology would have a significant impact on all sorts of everyday situations: attending a match in your favourite sport, for instance, and feeling as though you were on the pitch without actually being there. Routine medical appointments and minor consultations are another possibility.
As well as cutting emissions, virtual reality can also help conserve natural resources. Many events and activities require large facilities to be built — conference halls, stadiums — which consume a great deal of energy and materials.
Moving such events into virtual space removes the need to build and maintain large-scale physical infrastructure. Natural resources are used more efficiently, and the result is a smaller environmental impact and less waste.
A promising technology, but not one to overuse
It is important not to overuse virtual reality, and to remember that it should not replace human interaction and empathy altogether: that connection is fundamental to wellbeing and to personal development.
Face-to-face interaction, physical contact and non-verbal communication play a crucial part in building meaningful relationships and fostering empathy. Virtual reality can offer immersive experiences, but it cannot fully replicate the complexity and richness of human interaction.
Seen through the lens of corporate social responsibility (CSR), it would not be consistent to overuse this technology when, in the process of becoming a responsible company, the social factor — society, meaning interaction — plays a fundamental role within the ESG criteria.
It is also worth noting that the technology can present technological and economic barriers for many people. Although it is advancing rapidly, gaps in access and disparities in the ability to adopt it still remain.
Not everyone has access to virtual reality devices, or to the high-speed internet connection an immersive experience requires.
Finally, it is essential not to rely on this emerging technology alone as the sole means of interaction, since doing so would exclude those who cannot reach it.
Author: Ronald Ortega
