The Emerging Technologies Lab delivers residencies, workshops and develops work, enabling Atlantic Fellows to strengthen their equity missions. We’re delighted to share three Fellow-led XR projects incubated by the Lab that are now creating ripples in the world; being used as advocacy tools, winning awards and exhibiting at leading cultural institutions.
.jpg)
“Girl, Earth, Fire, Time” is an animated VR experience that charts a path toward reversing the human-made systems that have resulted in the atrocities we know as genocides. This VR work is a major collaborative exercise drawing on the expertise of Atlantic Fellows from across the world.
The idea was born in 2021, when Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Dana Mashoian Walrath, and Atlantic Fellow for Racial Equity, Dylan Valley, met for the first time in a breakout room of Atlantic Institute’s virtual webinar, “Being Human When Digital.” With Dana’s disaster comic, “The Book of Genocides,” as its base, they continued to collaborate through the Institute's residencies, online and in person around the world for the years since, weaving in feedback from Atlantic Fellows globally. With particular championing from Atlantic Fellows Esther Mwema, and Neo Muyanga, a stunning score from Atlantic Fellow Bongiwe Lusizi and invaluable tech support from Atlantic Fellow Nasser Eledroos, the piece is ready to be shown worldwide, propelled by its recent success as recipient of an Honorary Mention in the Ars Electronica Award for Digital Humanity.
Adekemi Adeniyan is an Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity whose illustrated children's book, “ The Girl Who Found Her Smile,” sparked an oral health movement in Nigeria. Its global potential was unlocked in collaboration with Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity in South East Asia, Alfredo Matugas Coro II, when they translated it into multiple languages.
In collaboration with the XR Lab, the reach of the book was expanded further, into an interactive, educational VR experience. The Ekiti State Ministry of Innovation showcased the project at its inaugural Healthy Futures event, engaging more than 160 children. Following the completion of her work in the Lab, Adekemi received the 2025 Roux Prize, recognizing her innovation in this area and her pioneering efforts to reduce oral health disparities in underserved communities.
“The Hope Gap XR” is an immersive storytelling platform exploring how we rebuild belief in reparative and collective futures. Created by Atlantic Fellow for Racial Equity, Dela Wilson, the initiative helps audiences experience — not just imagine — social transformation.
Drawing on Dela's experiential learning alongside Māori Fellows and their ongoing pursuit of reparative justice, and developed through the Atlantic Institute’s XR Lab in partnership with GRX Immersive Labs, “The Hope Gap XR” makes complex policy and systems change tangible, embodied and emotionally resonant.
It has been presented internationally, and referenced in lectures by Dr. Ruha Benjamin, a leading scholar of race, technology and social justice. “The Hope Gap XR” has been exhibited at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, and recently secured funding from Agog: The Immersive Media Institute to expand its immersive experiences and public installations.
