As the founder and advisor of a virtual reality and social impact start-up, we know that immersive technology has the power to tell stories more authentically and create more connections between subject and viewer than other media do. That’s why, through a fortuitous combination of luck, opportunity and a fair bit of derring-do, we decided to bring this power to telling the UN’s stories. 
 

Our first film, Clouds over Sidra, which was shot in less than 48 hours in the Za’atari refugee camp in Jordan. This story took viewers on a journey through the world of a 12-year old Syrian refugee girl named Sidra. In the next year, Sidra’s straightforward, humble story of hope and survival in a bleak refugee camp made it to the UN Secretary General’s eyes, to the US Vice President’s office, and to the inside halls of the World Economic Forum in Davos. 
 

It also resonated with viewers who wanted to gain a deeper understanding of a difficult situation, and it speakers to the innate empathy that we as humans have inside of us no matter how intractable issues of conflict or disaster may seem. 
 

More encouraging, our work in bridging the worlds of humanitarian storytelling and virtual reality – bringing Clouds over Sidra outside of the VR headset – is having real-world impacts that transcend emotional engagement, showing how good immersive storytelling can drive viewers to take real action to help. 
 

Within the UN, we have partnered with UNICEF to screen an abridged version of the film through their on-street fundraisers. The data coming out of this effort has shown the immense impact VR can have on converting empathy to action. Specifically, the fundraisers that used the headset to show our film were able to double the rate that passers-by donated, from the normal 1 in 12 to an impressive 1 in 6. The amount of their donations rose as well, increasing by 10 percent from those who did not see the film. We are encouraged and humbled that we have been able to employ our work to UNICEF’s financial benefit, and we’re sure we can do much more in this respect. 
 

Similarly, in our Sidra Project partnership with Artscape, a not-for-profit urban development organization that makes space for creativity and transforms communities in Ontario, Canada, we staged Clouds over Sidra in board rooms, public venues, classrooms, and private residences for groups of 10 to 60 people. Each gathering included a screening of the film and, following the screening, project leaders moderated conversations about the refugee crisis coupled with a strong call to action on how people in the room could help.
 

According to surveys taken weeks after the experience, 95 percent of participants agreed that the experience had heightened their sense of empathy, 85 percent agreed that it made them more motivated to help, and 73 percent reported taking action to assist with local refugee resettlement efforts.
 

Less than three years later, we have evolved from using a makeshift set of GoPro cameras on a tripod to telling stories, in collaboration with our partners, using the latest technology of room-scale virtual reality. We moved from a wild idea that needed defending within the UN to a reality where we are working with partners like Steven Spielberg’s Shoah Foundation to bring viewers inside a former concentration camp to experience a Holocaust survivor’s personal story. 
 

The data from Sidra has given us the confidence to bring the power of immersive storytelling out of the UN and to a wider range of organizations. We know there are impactful stories to be told through immersive technology, and we have seen how viewers respond when they get the opportunity to become a personal witness of someone else’s story through platforms like virtual reality. 
 

Through virtual reality, we are bringing the power of being there to the worthy stories and issues that abound in our world. And slowly, but surely, we are driving change through the empathy and emotional connections that we are able to create. 

Gabo Arora is the creative advisor for UN agencies including the World Food Programme and UNICEF Innovation and the founder of LightShed, a virtual reality and social impact start-up. 
 

J.J. Stranko is an advisory Partner at LightShed leading programming and development