I remember when I was in junior high, there was a web resource that allowed users to explore different types of ocean ecosystems. It was called “One Ocean” and was an educational initiative from CBC to raise awareness about diversity and the impacts of climate change on oceans. It was animated, a ‘free world’ type setup where you could roam underwater. You could explore each ecosystem and ‘collect’ a variety of species that were common in those ecosystems. When you came across a new species, you would be given information about that animal and could revisit that information at any time. I found it really engaging, and was the perfect combination of educational and fun.
Unfortunately, it seems as though the site is no longer kept up and CBC does not have any links to the resource anymore. I attempted to find some similar resources, but most are VR oriented, expensive, and require special equipment and technology. Other than that, I did find a few downloadable games, but they are more focused on gameplay rather than mixed with educational like One Ocean.
I did come across a fun resource from National Marine Sanctuaries where users can explore a specific setting in a 360 video.
Here’s a few that I watched and explored:
This one was quite sweet, and I was also able to direct my focus towards some rock outcroppings with many urchins and other tiny creatures.
In this exploration, you’re taken on a coral restoration dive in Florida. The divers have cultivated reef farms to be transplanted to places where coral bleaching has occurred, which I didn’t realize was a possibility and is really encouraging. They also are developing coral that is genetically diverse to account for climate change and natural disaster.
In this video, you are able to explore a marine sanctuary located in Hawaii, and meet some reef dwellers up close.
360 videos are incredibly fun and immersive, and I get to feel even closer to marine life. Not quite the same as the One Ocean resource, but I’m still happy to see there’s great experiences like this out there.
