Welcome
to the CNN
ECOSPHERE
A real-time view of the global discussion on sustainability around the Rio+20 Earth Summit.

The plants in the ECOSPHERE grow from your tweets tagged with #RIO20.
Use your twitter login to plant a thought - and watch the international conversation grow.
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Welcome
to the CNN
ECOSPHERE
A real-time view of the global discussion on sustainability around the Rio+20 Earth Summit.

You are now viewing the live stream of the ECOSPHERE visualization.

To explore and interact with the full 3D experience you will need to upgrade your web browser to support webGL. We recommend downloading the latest version of Google Chrome or Firefox. Safari users can also enter the ECOSPHERE by enabling webGL in their preferences.
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Learn More about the project
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About

World leaders are about to meet at the United Nations RIO+20 Earth Summit on Sustainable Development to make crucial decisions for the future of our planet. Add your voice to the global discussion.

Plant a thought. Watch it grow.

The CNN ECOSPHERE is a real-time Twitter Visualizer that aggregates tweets tagged with #RIO20 and then orders them into specific topics or discussions.

Each submitted tweet stimulates growth in individual topic plants causing some plants to grow larger or faster than others depending on how the conversation is evolving. Similar tweets are grouped together on branches forming conversations, while new thoughts are planted as seeds waiting to grow.

Join the global discussion on sustainability and bring your voice to the airwaves. Join CNN International for daily coverage of the RIO+20 Earth Summit where the ECOSPHERE will highlight #RIO20 contributions from around the world in their program “Road to Rio: A Green City Journey”. Visit www.cnn.com/roadtorio for more details.

The CNN #COP17 ECOSPHERE Project

In November 2011 the ECOSPHERE followed the global climate change discussion around the UN COP17 Conference in Durban. The project has been archived and you can still explore the visualization at www.cnn-ecosphere.com/cop17

Making-of #COP17 ECOSPHERE

A digital tool inspired by the plant world and based on the laws of nature. Learn about the engine behind the ECOSPHERE from the international project team.

Early Prototype

See the early testing stages of the project. Watch project developers work with early models and develop the growth algorithm at the core of the ECOSPHERE.

Contributors

The ECOSPHERE was conceived and developed by Heimat-Berlin and MINIVEGAS Studios. A project from CNN International for its coverage of the Rio+20 - United Nations Earth Summit on Sustainable Development. For further information please contact us at cnnja@cnn.com