Agog Strengthens Field of Immersive Media for Good with $6.5M in Early Grants and New Open Call for Climate-Impact Projects

New call for proposals offers up to $1M in grants to support creators and nonprofits using immersive media to drive climate action and civic engagement

LOS ANGELES, May 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Agog: The Immersive Media Institute, a philanthropic organization focused on extended reality (XR) for social good, announced today that it has distributed nearly $6.5 million in grants to date, supporting creators, nonprofits, and field-building efforts that use immersive media to deepen public understanding of urgent social and environmental challenges. Agog is now opening its support to a wider pool of creators through its first public open call, offering up to $1 million for climate-focused immersive storytelling and projects.

Since publicly launching in 2024, Agog has worked to strengthen the ecosystem for immersive storytelling by funding projects, supporting creator labs and development programs, partnering with nonprofits, and bringing together artists, technologists, and cultural leaders. The open call reflects a deepening of Agog's investment in exploring how immersive media can bring climate stories to life in more immediate, experiential ways.

"After more than three decades working as a journalist focused on climate change, I believe immersive storytelling is a powerful way to help people connect with what's happening now — and imagine and build what a better future could be," said Chip Giller, co-founder and executive director of Agog and founder of climate news organization Grist. "Immersive media represents a step change in communications. These technologies put you in the story itself, allowing you to experience it viscerally as a participant. Using them, you can travel to Greenland to experience melting ice sheets, visit low-lying islands in the Pacific threatened by sea-level rise, or even embody a tree growing from a seed to a towering old growth. It's wild — and the changes in these media are happening fast. We hope this open call encourages more people to learn about immersive media and put it to use in the fight for a livable climate."

"Climate change is a challenge so immense that it can be hard to grasp, even as it affects every one of us," said Wendy Schmidt, co-founder of Agog. "Immersive storytelling has the ability to bring the effects of climate change — whether it's melting glaciers, raging storms, or disappearing coastlines — not only before our eyes but all around us, reaching all of our senses. As Agog deepens its focus on climate storytelling, we hope that this powerful technology can, by helping us all experience these changes, spur us to action for our communities and our planet."

Agog's grantmaking supports immersive impact storytelling across climate change, racial equity, Indigenous knowledge, and journalism, alongside broader ecosystem investments. Climate-focused projects include "Out of the Ashes," a virtual reconstruction of communities impacted by the Los Angeles wildfires. Work in racial equity includes support for wider distribution of "The Book of Distance," a critically acclaimed virtual reality (VR) documentary exploring memory, migration, and state-sanctioned racism. Agog has also invested in Indigenous-led storytelling through projects like "OurWorlds" and a funding initiative with the Indigenous Screen Office, supporting community-led narratives, language revitalization, and land-based knowledge. In journalism, Agog has supported efforts like the Experiential Journalism Lab at the Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley Journalism, training emerging reporters to develop immersive, experience-driven forms of storytelling grounded in rigorous reporting.

Beyond individual projects, Agog has invested in the infrastructure that allows this work to grow — from creator labs and residencies with partners like PHI, Black Public Media, and Electric South to incubators such as WORLDING and Reality Hack at MIT, in addition to wider distribution initiatives. Together, these efforts support projects from concept to audience engagement and impact.

"Immersive media has the power to have a generational impact on our society, the land, and humanity," said idris brewster, founder of Agog grantee Kinfolk Tech. "Agog has recognized the power of and need for this technology, and its support has made this kind of storytelling possible for Kinfolk Tech and many other creators and organizations."
 

A New Phase: Climate Futures + Immersive Media Open Call

Agog's 2026 open call, Climate Futures + Immersive Media, supports projects that use immersive media to engage people more deeply in climate issues and expand pathways for participation and action.

The initiative invites proposals from XR creators and mission-driven organizations new to immersive media, with a focus on projects that move audiences from awareness to action. The review committee will consist of Agog leadership and climate and XR experts, including Myriam Achard, chief of new media partnerships and PR at PHI; Jerome Foster II, sustainability and social impact consultant; Anthony Leiserowitz, Ph.D., director of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication; and Jacqueline Patterson, founder and executive director of The Chisholm Legacy Project.

Areas of interest for the open call include:

• Climate storytelling and civic participation
• Community power and resilience
• Access, equity, and climate justice
• Planetary connection and well-being
• Future-building and world design

The open call will support projects across a range of stages and formats, from early concept to more developed work. Agog is particularly interested in projects that use smart glasses, augmented reality, spatial sound, and mixed reality to help people experience climate challenges and solutions in more immediate, embodied ways. Agog will award grants in denominations ranging from $25,000 to $200,000. In addition to funding, selected projects may receive mentorship and opportunities for partnership and distribution.

Applications close June 12. agog.org/opencall2026/ 

Agog: The Immersive Media Institute

Agog: The Immersive Media Institute is a philanthropic organization founded by Chip Giller and Wendy Schmidt that is dedicated to helping creators and nonprofit leaders use extended reality — including virtual, augmented, and mixed reality — to imagine and build a more connected, just, and compassionate world. Agog operates as a field builder and creative partner, supporting immersive storytellers whose work addresses urgent social and environmental challenges.

CONTACT: Alex Capriotti
[email protected]

SOURCE Agog: The Immersive Media Institute