Gamifying urban nature experiences

Abstract

Nature experiences are important drivers of environmental awareness and responsibility, as literature has shown that people who feel a greater connectedness with nature tend to be more active in conservation action. Despite this, recent studies have shown that nature contact within urban space is in decline, which has led scholars to call for novel ways to reconnect urban dwellers with nature. With this in mind, this paper explores the potential of gamification to co-create engaging and immersive experiences of urban nature, following the insight that the sensory and emotional dimensions of nature experiences are crucial for the development of nature connectedness and conservation awareness. We draw on a qualitative study on the emotional experience of a mixed-reality narrative developed for an historical botanical garden in Lisbon, in which game elements, namely treasure-hunting and rewards, are integrated into an urban nature experience. The study devised a methodology inspired by non-representational and creative methodologies, which comprised a series of performative workshops aimed to understand the emplaced emotional and sensory connections with the environment during the experience of the gamified mixed-reality narrative. Our findings allowed us to understand how gamification techniques in urban nature experiences can stimulate nature connectedness by encouraging sensory contact and appreciation of beauty, and promote environmental responsibility by emphasizing conservation issues. We conclude the paper by discussing the possibilities of further applications of gamification within the design of urban nature experiences.