AP Seminar EOC B 2023

Not everyone has access to natural environments. This is a public health concern because nature promotes human health and well-being by mitigating adverse environmental stressors and providing salutogenic1 experiences. Nearly two-thirds of Americans live in cities and may have less access to safe green spaces than other citizens. Americans spend over a million days every two years in hospitals where most windows look onto grayspace rather than greenspace. Over nine million adults in the United States and Europe live in assisted care facilities that have limited nearby nature. Approximately 40 million Americans are physically disabled and may struggle to go outdoors. Even people with access to nature do not always feel comfortable going outside or have sufficient time to do so. These circumstances warrant the development of technologies that facilitate more frequent interactions with the natural world. One inexpensive and convenient way to provide access to nature is 360-degree videos in virtual reality (VR). VR has been defined as “inducing targeted behavior in an organism using artificial sensory stimulation, while the organism has little or no awareness of interference” (LaValle, 2017). .... . . [R]ecent advances make it easier for people to acquire and use this technology for therapeutic uses. At least some of the benefits of nature exposure can be obtained through the visual and auditory exposure provided by all-in-one VR headsets. .... . . [Multiple theories] explain how visual exposure to natural landscapes capture people’s fascination and match human evolutionary history or personal experiences and familiarity. Numerous studies now show that 360-degree nature videos are therapeutic and improve mood within 6, 9, or 15 min. In addition to improvements in mood, cognitive functioning and physiological stress levels also show some benefit from brief 360-degree videos of nature. Nearly 200 studies have examined the human health and cognitive functioning benefits conferred by viewing still images, videos, and other simulations of nature. .... . . Simulations include replications of fictional or existing environments shown in any location (not just the laboratory) that evoke a sense of presence: the psychological presence of “being there.” The literature is not clear on whether simulations of nature serve as substitutes for real nature experienced in the outdoors. On one hand, some participants have reported no difference in energy or stress after exposure to outdoor nature versus exposure to nature videos on TV. On the other hand, real views of nature seen from windows have reduced physiological markers of stress more than virtual views of nature seen from wall-mounted TVs. VR may provide stronger beneficial effects of nature simulations than TV videos because of VR’s high level of immersion. Immersion reflects the extent to which someone perceives themselves enveloped by, included in, and interacting with an environment. Compared to less immersive technologies, VR simulations are more realistic, provide greater therapeutic benefits, and elicit more feelings of awe that are central to attention restoration theory. Ultimately, further understanding of whether simulations of nature serve as substitutes for nature is warranted, including consideration of confounding factors.

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,

And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;

Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee

And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,

Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;

There midnight’s all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,

And evening full of the linnet’s wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;

While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,

I hear it in the deep heart’s core.

Today, tourism is one of the most important economic sectors driving growth and development. It represents 10% of global GDP and 10% of global employment and is forecast to continue growing steadily. While this evolution offers vast opportunities, it also comes with great responsibilities, notably with regards to environmental impacts and climate change. The tourism sector contributes to climate change. According to the 2008 publication from UNWTO and UN Environment entitled Climate Change and Tourism—Responding to Global Challenges, the tourism sector contributed approximately 5% of all man-made CO2 emissions in 2005, with transport representing the largest component, i.e., 75% of the overall emissions of the sector (see figure 1.1). Figure 1.1: Contribution of various sub-sectors of tourism CO2 emissions, 2005 According to the previous UNWTO and UN Environment study on Climate Change and Tourism, in 2005, transport-related CO2 emissions from tourism totalled 982 million tonnes of CO2, including both overnight and same-day visitors. This represented about 18% of the total transport emissions and 3.7% of all man-made CO2 emissions (26,400 million tonnes). In 2016, eleven years later, an estimated 20 billion tourist trips were taking place. This number translates into transport-related emissions from tourism of a total of 1,597 million tonnes of CO2, with 1,371 million tonnes of CO2 accounting for all overnight stays and same-day visitors accounting for 200 million tonnes. In 2030, the total number of tourist trips is expected to reach 37.4 billion, of which 17.4 billion will be international and domestic overnight arrivals (1.8 billion international/15.6 billion domestic). Total transportrelated tourism emissions (excluding cruise) in 2030 are forecast to reach 1,998 million tonnes of CO2. This would represent 23% of the total expected transport emissions and 5.3% of the overall forecast man-made emissions (37,800 million tonnes) under IEA’s [International Energy Agency’s] current policies scenario/“baseline scenario”. All in all, from 2005 to 2016 the total transport-related emissions from tourism over the total man-made emissions grew from 3.7% to 5%, whereas from 2016 to 2030 this proportion is expected to increase to 5.3% (see figure 4.1).

Travel is a natural escape for most, but are there psychological implications of traveling to relieve—or avoid— your problems? For most people, travel is a positive means of escape. It’s natural to want a break from routine, from work, from responsibilities, and the people who drive you crazy on a daily basis. [E]scaping somewhere that’s not your home is an exciting privilege that should be taken advantage of as often as possible. “Travel and vacations are a means to reshift and reorganize identities,” states Karen Stein, a sociologist studying culture and travel and author of Getting Away from It All: Vacations and Identity. “We can use travel as a way to reexamine our priorities and devote our time and attention to identities and commitments that we, unwillingly, have to put in the background in our daily lives.” But the psychological connections to this form of escapism can be more intense for others. Many avid travelers claim they travel to “discover” themselves by being open to new experiences. But in reality, are they just running away from underlying problems they don’t want to address? “In psychology, escapism is generally defined as a desire or behavior to ignore, evade, or avoid reality,” says Dr. Carla Marie Manly, a clinical psychologist based in California. “During traumatic experiences, many individuals naturally ‘escape’ the situation mentally in order to avoid further distress and psychological harm.” “When travel is motivated by a desire to escape reality,” she adds, “to embrace a nearly fictional experience that is free of the burdens of life the experience becomes escapist in quality.” Most people know the travel-as-escape feeling in terms of fight-or-flight: the way we naturally (and physically) react when faced with conflict. Fight-or-flight involves a “carefully orchestrated yet near-instantaneous sequence of hormonal changes and physiological responses” which causes an individual to “fight the threat off” or “flee to safety.” I’m getting the hell out of here is actually a very normal message triggered for some dealing with intense emotions, situations, and experiences. And being away from home presents challenges, which can often be a distraction from the issues individuals are escaping from. Learning a new language, figuring out how to get around a city, and other survival mechanisms, are sometimes exactly what travelers need. According to Dr. Michael Brein, a psychologist with a specialty in travel, “Travel escapism that invites you to increase your feelings of self-esteem and self-confidence tends to ground you in the present and requires you to deal with virtually everything that is normally mindless back home.” For these kinds of travelers, the power to control the outcomes of seemingly non-existent issues (such as successfully ordering pad thai from a street vendor in Bangkok) makes all the difference. Travel escapists need to be completely out of their comfort zone in order to do so. “The net result is that you are, in effect, a problem-solver,” adds Dr. Brein, “dealing successfully with virtually everything you normally take for granted.”