2021 Edition

DAY 1 - DECEMBER 6, 2021

Immersive Storytelling & Journalism

9:00 am PST
December 6
30 minutes

Opening Event: XR Safety is a Shared Responsibility

In the opening session of XR Safety Week, world-class journalist Laurie Segall interviews the founder and CEO of XRSI, Kavya Pearlman.

Kavya Pearlman
Founder and CEO
XR Safety Initiative (XRSI)
Laurie Segall
Founder
Dot Dot Dot Media
More info
11:00 am PST
December 6
30 minutes

From topic to medium – XR for journalism

There is a long way to go before using Virtual and Augmented reality as media. Today, XR is widely considered a topic for news more than a platform, and this will require a paradigm shift. Nevertheless, there are immediate potential uses for XR in journalism. Think about data: for many decades, we’ve been dealing with […]

Adam Marton
Director, Capital News Service Digital Bureau
Philip Merrill College of Journalism, University of Maryland
Marco Magnano
Co-founder and Director of Communications
XR Safety Initiative
More info
12:00 pm PST
December 6
1 hour

It’s (not) just a game!

Are video games “just” games? The debate is probably as old as video games themselves, and probably the only correct answer is “who cares”? What’s for sure is that video games, or at least their mechanisms, are everywhere in our lives, and they can help us deal with various challenges, from education to tourism, from […]

Micaela Mantegna
Affiliate
Berkman Klein Center
Fabio Viola
Professor | Videogame Designer and Producer | Metaverse designer | Museum Innovator
Marco Magnano
Co-founder and Director of Communications
XR Safety Initiative
More info
2:00 pm PST
December 6
1 hour

Beyond gadgets: how to report about the Metaverse?

In recent months the word “Metaverse” has become one of the most used (and abused) terms in the tech industry. We’ve also heard or read that the Metaverse is going to replace the Internet and maybe we’re all supposed to live there. And we also heard that a very big corporation changed its name to […]

Tom Ffiske
Editor
The Immersive Wire
Doug Thompson
Founder
Narraio
Antony Vitillo
Cofounder
New Technology Walkers
Kavya Pearlman
Founder and CEO
XR Safety Initiative (XRSI)
Marco Magnano
Co-founder and Director of Communications
XR Safety Initiative
More info
3:15 pm PST
December 6

Immersive Storytelling: Learning from Games to Guide the Future

Join Ben Bowman for a discussion surrounding the powerful interactive storytelling approaches in video games that we have seen evolve over the past few decades to learn how we can view use their concepts to drive our storytelling in the future, and the considerations they bring for user safety and privacy in the XR space

Ben Bowman
Chief Strategy Officer
Rare Drop
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4:00 pm PST
December 6
1 hour

Virtual Perspectives, Real Outcomes

In this seminar, Laura will leverage multiple industry-based case studies of how Storytelling in XR is being used to facilitate empathy development, perspective-sharing, and human-centered problem-solving. The learning objective of the session is to better understand how to leverage storytelling in XR as a tool for solving complex problems. Prerequisite knowledge & experience in Production/Development […]

Laura E. Brown
Educational Design & Technology | Policy & Research | Immersive Media
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DAY 2 - DECEMBER 7, 2021

Child Safety

9:00 am PST
December 7
30 minutes

Immersive Digital Therapeutics and Child Safety

Lucia Pannese is CEO & Founder of Milan-based Imaginary, a leading European Serious Games development company specialing in digital health applications. Imaginary has developed a comprehensive range of games-based digital therapeutic solutions to tackle global challenges such as obesity, autism, rehabilitation, and life-changing conditions such as cystic fibrosis. Lucia’s talk will cover some case studies […]

Lucia Pannese
CEO
imaginary srl
More info
9:30 am PST
December 7
30 minutes

Safe Guarding your Child’s Mental Health within the Metaverse with MIQ (Metaverse Intelligence Quotient)

MI-Q Metaverse Intelligence Quotient The rapid proliferation of technology in our society has increased concerns around mental health. According to the research, social media increased the risk for depression, anxiety, loneliness, and self-harm. Let’s take that one step further and look at esports and the metaverse. Due to the rise of gaming and esports, a […]

Shea Richburg
Co-Founder
Future Wise Group
More info
12:00 pm PST
December 7
30 minutes

Safety in XRPT: Extended Reality Play Therapy

Extended reality has begun to blossom within numerous environments, including in the mental health treatment of children and adolescents. Applying the fundamental tenets of an approach such as play therapy, a mental health practitioner can offer highly motivating, immersive, fun, and powerful interventions within which they can connect, assess, educate, and intervene. Safety in XRPT […]

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1:00 pm PST
December 7
45 minutes

Education in the Mirror World

What it will be like to be a kid learning in the Mirror World/Metaverse? What experiences do we want our kids to have and what technological hurdles must we overcome to make them a reality?

Future Meme
Futurist Arists
Super Reality
More info
3:45 pm PST
December 7
1 hour

The Future of Child Safety in XR & the need for Metaverse IQ Workshop

Join Shea Richburg and Raulvin Coke Co-founders of Future Wise Group for a workshop on The Future of Child Mental Health in the Metaverse. During the session, the founders will discuss the importance of maintaining positive mental health by establishing what they have coined as Metaverse IQ or MIQ. The mini presentation will be followed […]

Shea Richburg
Co-Founder
Future Wise Group
Raulvin Coke
CEO
Futurewise Media & Consulting Group
More info
11:00 am PST
December 8
1.5 hours

Avatars, virtual harassment, and XR safety challenges in Higher-Education

Over the next few years, XR is bound to significantly impact higher education by changing how students learn, supporting new modes of distributed/hybrid learning experiences at scale, and developing empathy. This adaption will also result in the education community facing a new set of critical security, privacy, safety, and ethical challenges. Our panel discussion will […]

Maya Georgieva
Director, Education Futures and The XReality Center
The New School
Ricky LaFosse
Compliance and Policy Lead for Academic Innovation
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Didier Contis
Director Technology Services College of Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology
Jeremy Nelson
Director of XR Initiative
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Thomas Lewis
Developer Relations Advocacy Lead
Microsoft
April Speight
Spatial Computing Lead
Microsoft
More info
3:00 pm PST
December 8
1 hour

Evangelizing Diverse Communities to the Metaverse

The industries that form the foundation of the Metaverse, gaming and XR, have historically neglected their women and minority audiences. Now that the Metaverse is here, we all need to come together and make this industry and our future more inclusive, diverse and equitable. Our panel speakers bring their perspective on these issues and solutions, […]

Saskia Fairfull
Industry Engagement Consultant
Torrens University Australia
Nico Fara
Founder
Queendom
Stephanie Orme
Visiting Assistant Professor of Communication and Media Studies
Emmanuel College
Miguel Sanchez
Co-Founder
Metabronx
More info
5:00 pm PST
December 8

Game Changers of VR Sports: Inclusion From All Perspectives

The panelists will discuss their roles from starting out as competitive players to becoming leaders in one of the biggest competitive communities in VR. Brett, of Better Than Unicorns, will moderate the panelist as they discuss their thought process and innovative ways of creating diverse and inclusive opportunities, as well as addressing toxic behavior often […]

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6:00 pm PST
December 8
1 hour

Game Changers of VR Sports: Accountability & Safety in Competitive Leagues

Accountability & Safety in Competitive Leagues: It’s not just a game when it comes to ensuring a safe and fair league in VR sports. On this panel, the leading organizers of six different VR leagues will share ways they protect their communities while upholding the integrity and the spirit of competition. Learn from more structured […]

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DAY 4 - DECEMBER 9, 2021

Medical XR & Immersive Healthcare

9:00 am PST
December 9

The Promise, Opportunities, and Risk of Medical XR

The future landscape of Medical Extended Reality will enable enormous breakthroughs in our ability to provide access to healthcare, to treat and diagnose people, and provide immersive tools for medical education. It also provides unprecedented access to the most sensitive data that can be collected. What are the promises of Medical XR, and how might […]

Divya Chander
XRSI Advisor, Senior Nonresident Fellow Atlantic Council, Senior Fellow Stimson Center, Chair Neuroscience Singularity University
XRSI | Atlantic Council, Stimson Center, Singularity University
More info
9:30 am PST
December 9
30 minutes

Healthcare Simulation and Training

Medical education is undergoing a paradigm shift accelerated by the pandemic to adapt existing curricula to accommodate XR. The talk will discuss how training, simulation, and remote collaboration could potentially be disrupted.

Shafi Ahmed
Chief Medical Officer
Medical Realities
More info
10:00 am PST
December 9
30 minutes

Accelerating the adoption of XR to support health care education in England within NHS

The use of Extended Reality (XR) technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) have become an invaluable part of the delivery of education and training in healthcare during the Covid-19 pandemic.Clinical experiences and clinical placements are an essential part of medical and clinical training in the United Kingdom. Many of these physical […]

Neil A Ralph
Head of Technology Enhanced Learning, Directorate of Digital, Innovation and Transformation
Health Education England
More info
10:30 am PST
December 9
1 hour

Creating a world-class ecosystem for XR in the NHS

Following the launch of the Growing Value of XR in the Healthcare Report, the UK has begun developing a united strategy for deploying XR across the NHS. Join the discussion and hear from expert representatives who will share the existing activity across the UK, plans for further strategic development, and opportunities for global collaboration.

Li Cheng (Dolly) Chong
5th Year Medical Student
University of Leeds
Abison Logeswaran
XR Digital Health Fellow
NHS-HEE
Richard Price
Learning Technologies Advisor
Health Education England
Neesa Mangalaparathy
Programme delivery lead
NHSX
Sarah Ticho
Co-founder
XR Health Alliance
More info
12:30 pm PST
December 9
1 hour

Physiotherapy, Psychotherapy, and beyond

In whatever form, therapy should ultimately be focused on giving back autonomy and self-determination to people. Does XR encourage more active participation in therapy as opposed to more passive forms of treatment? What are the advantages, limits, and risks of using immersive technologies as part of treatment, and to what degree can they safely replace […]

Valentino Megale
CEO
Softcare Studios
Derek V Nielsen
Director of Product
AppliedVR
Oliver D’adda
Physiotherapist & VR Developer
XRehab
More info
3:00 pm PST
December 9
30 minutes

With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility

With all of the capabilities of XR – stopping pain, replacing LSD treatments, physically healing, there is the capacity to cause great harm. Any developer with Unity could potentially misuse XR either intentionally or unintentionally. In this talk, we explore ways that developers could harm patients with this powerful medium in order to understand how […]

Kavya Pearlman
Founder and CEO
XR Safety Initiative (XRSI)
Mohamed Khamis
XRSI Advisor | Associate Professor
XRSI | University of Glasgow
More info

DAY 5 - DECEMBER 10, 2021

Privacy & Safety
Digital Human Rights Day

5:00 am PST
December 10
1 hour

Privacy and Ethics overview on the Metaverse

in partnership with APEE – Associação Portuguesa de Ética Empresarial The panelists will foster a discussion over the ethical challenges for individuals and companies in the Metaverse. PARTICIPANTS Luis Bravo MartinsCMO @ KIT-AR, Immersive tech author, speaker Gil Davide Mário Parra da SilvaPresident at APEE

More info
8:00 am PST
December 10
1 hour

Gremlins and Guardrails: What’s next for the Metaverse?

The Metaverse poses a set of unique challenges to traditional rules-based frameworks for technology management and oversight. In this panel, three leading practitioners – from the areas of law, emerging technologies and national security, and risk management, respectively – discuss key issues and drivers for Metaverse adoption to optimize safety and soundness. Gremlins will never […]

Thomas A. Campbell
Founder & CEO
FutureGrasp
Karen E. Silverman
CEO/Founder
The Cantellus Group
Damien Weldon
Founder & President
The Molybdenum
More info
9:00 am PST
December 10
3 hours

RoundTable – Understanding the impact of XR Data Collection on Human Rights, Work, Education and Commerce

Hosted and directed by XRSI On December 10, we mark 73rd International Human Rights Day and celebrate the fifth and final day of XR Safety Week. On that day, we will join a wide and global community of stakeholders to take an essential step toward safety to build brave new virtual worlds by hosting a […]

Kavya Pearlman
Founder and CEO
XR Safety Initiative (XRSI)
Kristina Podnar
XRSI Advisor | Digital Policy Consultant
XRSI | NativeTrust Consulting, LLC
More info
12:00 pm PST
December 10
1 hour

Building Human Rights Into Metaverse

This event is organized by Electronic Frontier Foundation and Access Now in honor of International Human Rights Day as part of XR Safety Week. For International Human Rights Day, EFF and AccessNow are bringing together experts and stakeholders in the fields of XR and the human rights community to address the unique risks and challenges the development of these technologies […]

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3:00 pm PST
December 10

Virtual Citizens Forum

XRSI, Meta, Microsoft, and MRC are co-hosting the very first Virtual Citizen’s Forum. The forum is meant to empower creators, artists, developers, and all virtual citizens to share their success stories, their concerns, and challenges and seek real-world solutions by connecting with specific individuals and organizations that are able to address the concerns as well […]

Kavya Pearlman
Founder and CEO
XR Safety Initiative (XRSI)
Kristina Podnar
XRSI Advisor | Digital Policy Consultant
XRSI | NativeTrust Consulting, LLC
Kent Bye
Producer
Voices of VR podcast
Rochelle M Nadhiri
Reality Labs Policy
Meta
Brian D. Wassom
XRSI Advisor | Partner
XRSI | Warner Norcross + Judd LLP
Oz Sultan
Board member
XRSI
Dr. Dalya Perez
Senior Program Manager For Diversity and Inclusion of Mixed Reality
Microsoft
Chyna McRae
Senior Program Manager
Microsoft
Ethan W Crank
Chief Metaverse Officer
GiB Games
Scott F. Butler
Mathew Kerbis
Founder
Law In The Metaverse
Dennis “Fox” Bonilla
Chief Technology Officer
Baltu Technologies Inc
More info
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