Participatory science in virtual worlds for implementing an eco-friendly society

The Global Lab project aims to develop the infrastructure for advanced communication, collaboration, and participatory science based on the 3D Internet. Immersive virtual worlds, or the 3D Internet, refer to online three-dimensional world-like environments where people, represented as avatars, can interact naturally and intuitively with each other and with virtual objects. The 3D Internet is manifest in the popular Second Life virtual world and the recent OpenSim open source world simulator.

The Global Lab infrastructure contributes to the vision of an eco-friendly society by replacing movement by digital alternatives without sacrificing the quality of social communication. In the project, we target real-time collaboration in science and engineering among remote project partners. Furthermore, the Global Lab increases awareness of environmental issues by allowing anyone to experience the consequences of behavior choices in the environment.