Climate & Environment

Melanie (Mel) Langlotz is the founder and CEO of Geo AR Games, a game design studio that utilises augmented reality for “creating digital experiences that positively impact the world, fostering education and empowerment with simulations and serious games.”

Climate change and natural hazards are hard topics to think about. Most people understand the risks in theory, but that doesn’t mean they know what they’d actually do when those risks arrive on their doorstep.

What if every building, hospital, network and city had a mirror? A digital reflection that could show us not only how it works today, but how it could work tomorrow? That’s the promise of the Digital Twin, a virtual model that allows engineers and energy experts to test, refine and imagine without risk. It’s the difference between guessing and knowing, between reacting and anticipating.

Walking paths may seem simple, but they’re one of the most loved features in parks. They boost health, lift your mood, and now even come with digital scavenger hunts that make every step more fun.

I’m talking about the strange power of well-designed games. They don’t just tell you something’s important. They make you feel it. Every time I try a Geo AR game, I find myself pulled into a story before I even realise I’m learning anything. One minute I’m getting chased by a dinosaur or looking for the next clue, and the next, I’m caring about something I’d barely thought about before.