Presented by Limina, Fenturi, King’s College London and University of Brighton’s VWVR project | Virtual Reality is a brave new world of possibility – but who are the people building these worlds?
Equal Realities
Addressing the virtual reality gender gap
Presented by Limina, Fenturi, King’s College London and University of Brighton’s VWVR project
Tuesday 11th June, 6pm at Arnolfini, with refreshments afterwards in the Limina VR Theatre at 8pm.
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Virtual Reality is a brave new world of possibility – but who are the people building these worlds? And how can we make sure what we build reflects the population as a whole rather than a narrow group?
Limina, Fenturi and VWVR invite you to join us for Equal Realities, an evening of lively panel discussion and talks exploring the roots of the gender bias we now see in emerging technology industries, using the growth of virtual reality as a case study. From the marketing strategies of early console games to the leisure time gender gap, this event will take a broad look at the social forces at play that have led to male bias’ in home entertainment and emerging technology.
Only 14% of UK VR companies have any women directors on the board (Kings College & University of Brighton, 2019). If you are a man in the UK or US, you are almost twice as likely to have spent time in virtual reality (Global WebIndex 2019). The situation roughly reflects tech’s status quo, however it doesn’t have to be this way. The comparative newness of virtual reality offers a golden opportunity to shape the medium to reflect society’s best self, rather than its worst. As well as discussing the roots of the issue, the talks and panels will look to a sunny future to explore ways we can seize the opportunity and address the imbalance.
Speakers include:
- Limina’s CEO Catherine Allen
- Fenturi‘s COO Sam Freeth
- The University of Brighton’s Head of School of Media Helen Kennedy
- King’s College’s Head of Department, Culture, Media and Creative Industries, Dr Sarah Atkinson.
- A panel with Limina’s hosts will follow, to discuss what they do to create an inclusive environment for all genders to experience VR.
