The use of virtual reality (VR) to depict climate change impacts is a popular strategy used by environmental, news, and political organizations to encourage pro-environmental outcomes. However, despite widespread dissemination of immersive content, climate change mitigation efforts remain tepid. In response, we present a VR simulation conveying the adverse effects of climate change in a personally-relevant fashion. The “Virtual Seafood Buffet” experience allows users to select from dozens of lifelike virtual seafood items and experience the degradation of that particular species based on projected climate change impacts. The developed simulation is proposed as an intervention designed to encourage climate change mitigation efforts. An overview of the simulation, its purpose, and directions for future research are outlined herein.

The efficacy of Virtual reality (VR) as a non-pharmacological pain remedy remains widely supported. Yet, despite robust findings establishing VR as a pain reducer, the strength of this claim is weakened by several factors, namely restricted accessibility to vulnerable subjects and variability in pain type/severity. To address these issues, we propose testing the analgesic effects of VR on volitional pain, namely pain experienced during a tattoo. Leveraging qualitative interviews with tattoo artists and customers, a 3-month on-site field experiment at a tattoo parlor was conducted. Preliminary findings support the efficacy of volitional pain as a means by which to test the analgesic effects of VR interventions. Methodological considerations and guidelines for follow-up investigations using this experimental approach are discussed.