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Mingyue Chen (*This Is Not A Drill* Fellow), Annie Li, Henry Haoyu Wang, Leo Ji, RJ Sun, Marjorie Yang

Rising, 2022
Arduino Uno, RFID, Button, FastLed Strips, Tent

The sea level of New York has risen 9 inches since 1950 due to global carbon emissions, and New York adds to global warming as the third-largest carbon emitting city. In 2019, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the Lower Manhattan Coastal Resiliency Project. At the beginning of 2022, Rutgers professor Jason Barr proposed an expansion of New York City--"New Mannahatta"--as a single solution to expensive real estate and increasing issues of global warming-related climate threats.

Rising is a collaborative, interactive experience based on a real-world environmental crisis. This project includes scientific modeling, interactive installations, and card games. The interactive installation features animated projections and procedural lighting which includes visuals that change based on the projected climate data for New York City and the polar regions from 2022 to 2050. The audience--the MicroSociety--can participate in the experience through a card game and social class role play. During the gameplay, the participants are guided to choose activities to combat global warming or prioritize individual benefit. The installation's visuals change based on the MicroSociety's carbon emissions.

By interacting with Rising, participants get a basic understanding of environmental issues and see two decades of scientific prediction in New York and the polar regions. They also experience real-time climate change and are faced with the dilemma of choosing between protecting the environment and personal interests. Designed as a collaborative experience, Rising participants are prompted to work together to save the environment.