Leading Organisation
Duration
6 months, starting the 1st of September 2025
Location
Bodø, northern Norway, with activities in the Norwegian Sea and broader Atlantic Ocean. The project is designed for international scalability through digital distribution.
Developed in the Arctic port city of Bodø, Sea of Sounds immerses audiences in the acoustic universe of whales to reveal a hidden form of pollution—anthropogenic ocean noise. Building on a successful pilot in 2024, the project expands into a full-scale Virtual Reality (VR) based participatory experience led by Ocean Sounds and Seanergy, with partners Wevr, Nord University, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, and Go360.
Participants step into a shared VR world where whale vocalizations are heard as they would be in the wild—interrupted, masked, or distorted by shipping, sonar, and industrial activity. This emotional immersion is reinforced through:
- Interactive public workshops
- A whale exhibition (bones, photographs, interpretive panels)
- A showcase event in Bodø, followed by the event in Barcelona
Communities—including schoolchildren, tourists, scientists, and people with disabilities—become co-creators in the VR storytelling process, offering emotional and scientific reflections that shape the final experience.
The project’s long-term ambition is to provide:
- A modular digital package for educators and museums
- A powerful sensory tool for marine conservation advocacy
- Greater awareness of ocean acoustics as a public health issue for marine life
Expected Impacts:
- Awareness: Increased ocean literacy on acoustic pollution across schools, museums, and general audiences
- Empathy: Emotional resonance with whales leading to behavioral changes and conservation support
- Accessibility: Reach of 1,000+ direct participants and 100,000+ via digital media and events
- Advocacy: Informing policy dialogues and public perception of underwater noise as a conservation issue
Main Contact Persons
Ellyne Hamran <ellyne.hamran@ocean-sounds.org>
Project Leader and Biologist (Ocean Sounds, Nord University)
Leads project management and develops educational workshops and the whale exhibition. Coordinates events, contributions scientific knowledge to the VR experience, and drives public engagement, and communications.
Michal Lovecky <michal@cyanplanet.org>
XR Producer & Director, Seanergy / Wevr. He leads VR experience development, co-creation practices in design and storytelling, and distribution strategy to engage educators and the public.
Dr. Heike Vester
Lead Scientist and Biologist (Ocean Sounds, Nord University)
Leads the scientific direction ensuring accuracy in vocalization analysis and VR storylines. Project Advisor providing acoustic expertise, innovative ideas, facilitates events, aid in grant deliverables, and co-lead public engagement.
Marie Engebretsen
Assistant (Ocean Sounds, Nord University)
Master student helping facilitate events and aids in the creation of the whale exhibition, educational workshops, promoting events, and media related tasks.
Sveinung Hoset
Assistant (Ocean Sounds, Nord University)
Biologist helping facilitate events and aids in the creation of the whale exhibition (specifically preparing and creating the whale skeleton), educational workshops, and media related tasks.
Dr. Giovanna Bertella
Learning Methodologies Advisor (UiT Arctic University of Norway, Ocean Sounds)
Design and evaluate participatory methodologies that engage people in meaningful ways and promote shared learning and actions.
