The Interplay of Virtual Engagement and Real-World Action in Pro-Environmental Games: Towards a Conceptualisation of an Alternative Virtual Environmental Participation Model - An Analysis of Participation on Alipay Ant Forest

This research investigates the interplay between virtual and offline experiences in environmental engagement, using the online social game (OSG) Ant Forest as a case study. It explores the boundary between users’ virtual and offline engagements, arguing that these two realms are effectively blended in facilitating environmental participation through the OSG and creating measurable pro-environmental results. Employing a qualitative approach, the research argues that the roles of digital media in environmental participation extend beyond the traditional model of facilitating communication, raising awareness, and mobilising collective activism. By transferring offline pro-environmental behaviours into virtual social media capital, and then exchanging that virtual capital for real trees, the OSG offers an alternative and innovative mechanism to engage the public in environmental protection.