ICTA-UAB researchers unveiled their new ERC-funded project, «Fostering Internet-based Values of the Environment (BIG-5),» at The Nature of Cities Festival in Berlin, Germany, from June 3 to 7.
The festival was designed to inspire, educate, and facilitate collaboration among urban nature enthusiasts. The Berlin segment offered a comprehensive multi-day experience with field trips, in-person talks, workshops, art interventions, a film festival, Farm-to-Table dinners, social events, and more. Events took place at the Atelier Gardens venue and various locations around Berlin.
Researchers Johannes Langemeyer and Fulvia Calcagni presented the BIG-5 project in a session titled “Bridging Worlds: Counteracting the Extinction of Nature Experiences through Digital Engagement” on Thursday, June 6, at the Atelier Gardens venue.
Urban societies face the challenge of the «Extinction of Experiences» of nature, with the internet’s role in enriching these experiences often underestimated. The ERC Starting Grant project «Fostering Internet-based Values of the Environment (BIG-5)», led by Johannes Langemeyer, highlights the role of the Internet and social networks in building new ways of experiencing nature, a practice that is in decline. There is a belief that this decline leads to a dwindling appreciation of nature and consequently less commitment to environmental stewardship. Langemeyer argues that the Internet becomes an enabler of experiences in nature, as well as creating natural values and fostering environmental stewardship.
The BIG-5 project will introduce Digital Relational Values (DRVs) as fundamental values in virtual communities, triggered by indirect experiences of nature. The project will track these values across five landscape types, five large social media networks, and in five European languages through qualitative and quantitative (big data) approaches in an inductive-deductive manner.
This session explored the connection between Digital Relational Values and local environmental stewardship, aiming to show how digital engagement can support local environmental efforts. The goal was to harmonize online influence with local environmental stewardship for greater impact.
