As the old saying goes - “Before you judge a man, walk a mile in his shoes.”
That’s what Sheila Kloefkorn, CEO of KEO Marketing is hoping to do with modern technology. Specifically, virtual reality.
“We are living in a really polarized society. Lots of people are staying with their tribes. Whether it’s politically, or causes they care about, or their families and their issues. We’re all really busy. We’re also bombarded by tech every day of our lives,” said Kloefkorn.
Kloefkorn launched the ‘Building Empathy Challenge’ to attract teams who can design a virtual reality empathy app. The best ideas will go to market and create the app.
“Submit ideas for how they can help using technology. Help a person try on another person’s life for about two hours,” said Kloefkorn.
It can be anything from seeing what a homeless person goes through to refugees in a war torn part of the world.
“What we know is that empathy is gained by understanding someone else’s reality. It doesn’t mean you have to change your own reality. Just by understanding it can be a platform to increase communication,” said Kloefkorn.
The deadline is June 1 for the ‘Building Empathy Challenge.’ For more information, visit herox.com/building-empathy-challenge