Immersed Reality”: VR Exhibition and Lessons about resilience and local action for recovery from Climate Disasters from Latin America

This panel features Immersed Reality, an immersive VR experience directed and produced by Sara Ramos, documenting the 2024 floods in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, when over 600,000 people lost their homes due to unprecedented flooding, with water levels exceeding 4 meters for over a month.

The experience offers a unique perspective on the disaster and local resilience. Alongside Junior Torres, president of CUFA RS (Central Union of Favelas – Central Única das Favelas do Rio Grande do Sul), an organization that has played a key role in supporting underserved communities, and Colombian researcher Andrea Ramirez from the United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS), who will discuss urban resilience practices in Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina through the Transformative Urban Coalitions project.

We will also have as a panelist, Syed Jazib, is a media practitioner and climate communication strategist with roots in the Himalayan region of Kashmir. Focused on harnessing media and cultural narratives, Jazib’s work amplifies marginalised voices to promote sustainable practices and climate justice. Drawing from his firsthand experience with his region’s radical environmental changes, he will discuss how media and cultural narratives can bridge the gap between local actions and global climate solutions.

Moderated by Leonardo Menezes, curator and expert in the intersection of media, culture, climate and innovation, this session will explore how immersive media can drive impact in crisis response, and also foster dialogue on state reconstruction, economic recovery, public policies, governance during crises, and coordinated actions and knowledge integration to address climate change impacts with a socially inclusive approach.