Will VR Bring World Peace or Just "Empathy Tourism"?

Will VR Bring World Peace or Just "Empathy Tourism"?
AP Photo/Elise Amendola

You are standing on a street in Syria when suddenly an explosion is heard, body parts are flying everywhere and you run for cover. You're in Gaza, experiencing the reality of a Palestinian woman who has lost her sons in an Israel Defense Forces attack. You're in Nepal, spending a few hours alongside a teenage girl who's trying to rehabilitate her life following the earthquake. You're standing in line with homeless people in Los Angeles. You're a black man. You're a woman who's being subjected to a sexual attack. Then you take off the virtual reality goggles.

A growing group of artists, social activists and human rights organizations maintain that virtual reality technology, which allows the creation of a environment using pictures and sound, can save the world – or at least improve it.

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