App To create a diverse and inclusive, sustainable and maintainable family orientated product that encourages virtual outdoor exploration, simulation and engagement with the environment through a self-guided trail available to download free online from the comfort of your own home on Apple and Android.

Experiences within the App

• Where in the World Am I Experience
• Newry Walking Trail
• Belfast Walking Trail

Where in the World Am I Experience?

The app experience will be available to use in a range of languages and promote diversity, cultural awareness and understanding with additional features such as health & wellbeing messages and education and learning opportunities through quiz questions. The content will compliment the NI Executive Together: Building United Community (T:buc) Strategy key priorities  –

• Our children & young people,
• Our safe community,
• Our shared community and
• Our cultural community

It will support and adhere to the delivery of T:buc Good Relations Plans (developed to support shared housing schemes) under a range of ‘Bridging’ themes –

• Art & culture,
• Education, training and learning,
• Health & wellbeing and
• Advice and advocacy

The Where in the World Am I Experience will deliver a virtual experience during and after Covid 19 that can be utilised by anyone via a free downloadable app. It will provide a virtual opportunity to promote good relations through a range of cultural experiences and increasing understanding in the context of cultural awareness. This will include implementation of a new culturally focused experience with trails from local tourist and heritage sites, local community attractions within the 5 mile radius in and around the Shared Development’s in Belfast, Dungannon & Coleraine. It will include the option to view and experience other countries and cultures of those ethnic minority groups now living in Northern Ireland all of which represent the diversity of the society we currently live in. Exposure to these will increase knowledge, understanding and promote acceptance of other cultures through food, dance, cultural dress, information and augmented reality experiences.

This product is adaptable, and innovative using great designs to - compliment the existing heritage and tourist attractions and areas of scenic beauty, including countries around the world taking in a range of elements to include –

• Location;
• Local history;
• Cuisine; and
• Dress, dance and lifestyles

It will allow users a virtual experience of those areas and cultures and it will promote good relations through providing cultural awareness and better understanding for users with additional information on the T:buc  and Radius events and activities available locally during and after Covid 19. This approach seeks to promote and encourage engagement on a wider scale.

It will contain local walking trails taking in history, geography, digital learning and health & well-being, cultural diversity and promoting understanding through the inclusion of local, NI and Worldwide virtual tour options. I can also be used to promote other T:buc events, programmes and activities included within the shared schemes Good Relations Plans as well as other T:buc programme being delivered (separate to the plans) . This product can be used during and after the Covid 19 lockdown, when restriction’s are eased and also when they are lifted. It is a flexible product and can be changed, updated and added too.

Who will benefit

It will include virtual tours of the T:buc areas, places of interest in NI and other countries around the world. As such it will allow participants to experience local and world travel in the comfort of their own home using their phone, ipad, tablet or laptop.

During Covid 19 there will be additional benefits of using the app these will contribute to alleviating boredom, stress and anxiety as well as reducing feelings of isolation and loneliness as individuals and families continue to social distance. It will also provide a tool that can contribute to education and learning opportunities for all; children, young people and parents, especially supporting home schooling. The App will also provide a sense of the outdoors for those not able to access a garden/outdoor space or who are currently shielding and cannot get outside.

With travel restrictions in place for the foreseeable future it will also allow users to virtually visit other places. Furthermore it will enable the BAME community (who are unable to travel home) to virtually experience their own countries. Importantly,  it will promote cultural awareness, enabling users to learn about the culture of others. The target audiences include

• Radius Tenants (including tenants in T:buc and ‘Housing for All’ Shared Developments), Sheltered Schemes and Care Settings;
• Children, Young People, Adults, Elderly, Families;
• Schools;
• Local and wider community groups, organisations and individuals;
•  Ethnic Minority groups, organisations and individuals, and
• Worldwide audience - the app will be available to download for free world wide.

Newry Walking Trail

A virtual walking tour of Newry to see sights of interest, history and heritage and includes local information, 360 images and a fantastic virtual experience of a history part of Northern Ireland.

Future planned project app additions – T:buc and Brilliant Trails Schools Project (Walking Trails)

Radius have planned to deliver digital and virtual augmentation workshops into schools in T:buc areas in Belfast, Dungannon and Coleraine where school children will design and develop local walking trails in their areas. These walking trails will be added to the Radius Rangers App as additional experiences when restrictions allow.

Brilliant Trails through Radius and TBUC aims to create an innovative digital programme through a “Virtually Connected Shared Space” over the course of 3 months with 3 x Primary Schools located in the proximity of T:BUC Shared Housing Schemes in Belfast, Coleraine and Dungannon which will deliver a range of multimedia technologies, enhance the skills of the pupils and offer them experiential learning in Creative Arts and Digital Technologies.

Belfast Walking Trail

A walking tour of Belfast to see sights of interest, history and heritage and includes local information, 360 images and a fantastic experience of a historical part of Northern Ireland.  

A clue based interactive fun way to explore Belfast, increase physical activity levels and learn about the area. This can be used individually, as a family or group or as a team building activity to compete against each other.

The walking trails will be based within a 5 mile radius of located T:buc and ‘Housing for All’ Shared Housing developments in Northern Ireland (NI). 

Schools Project - GOOD RELATIONS THEME 

• Begin conversations about their area to include geography, history, citizenship and cultural difference
• Enhance understanding of shared space and promote within a 5 mile radius of the shared housing scheme
• Use of social media and technology in a positive way- change from being a passive spectator to an active participant in society and to assist in removing barriers to inclusion
• Creation of a positive tool accessible and usable for all ages accessible in a range of languages
• Promoting community pride and ownership
• Providing opportunity for civic responsibility
• Transform their areas into a shared space in a safe way that is easily accessible by all
• Change, shape and promote their local areas
• Making them and others aware of the area’s history, culture and attractions

 App will allow the children & schools to:

• Transform their local areas
• Offer a positive connecting digital tool and teach children about digital technology
• Present new ideas for local shared space and transformation
• To be part of the community and feel ownership
• To talk about issues that matter to them
• To voice their own experiences
• To learn about their local area and history of the area 

The Radius Rangers App provides an opportunity to explore, on a virtual platform, and allows users to experience other cultures, discover places and countries and learn about history and heritage. It includes related facts and information as well as videos on cultural food, dance, music and craft.  Each experience/trail consists of mapped guides, virtual tours, audio, quizzes, history and much more. It is blending both a detailed description of virtual experiences and trail routes, along with various points of historical interest and scenic beauty and encompasses geography, digital learning, health & well-being and cultural diversity.

Users will be given the opportunity to see sights of beauty, feel a virtual sense of being outdoors; using a range of senses, whilst experiencing sights, sounds and places. It may encourage learning new things, increase ability to see, hear and learn about a persons own culture or other cultures and provide an opportunity to engage in virtual learning. It is a diverse and inclusive, sustainable and maintainable family orientated product that encourages virtual outdoor exploration, simulation and engagement with the environment through a self guided virtual tour or trail from the comfort of your own home.

Experiences within the Radius Rangers App include; digital images and interactive 360 and panoramic views, information links, virtual walking trails and cultural experiences that cuts across a range of countries and cultures from across the globe.  The design is user-friendly and straightforward, functioning as a convenient free downloadable app on both Apple and Android software.

It provides a global learning experience for all ages on a select range of countries, towns, cities and places of interest.  Experiences can be utilised to contribute to education and learning opportunities for all; children, young people and adults alike; especially supporting home learning as well as a fun based tool for use in a school setting.

It opens to an easy to navigate menu which details experiences that you can visit and enjoy. It will allow users to experience local and world travel in the comfort of their own home. These experiences will be enhanced and added to over time, so make sure you come back and check for new experiences and trails!

The Radius Rangers App compliments the Northern Ireland Executive Together: Building United Community (T:buc) Strategy key priorities  of Our children & young people, Our safe community, Our shared community and Our cultural community and was developed to promote diversity, cultural awareness and understanding with additional features such as health & wellbeing messages and education and learning opportunities.

Translation - The content management system is integrated with Googles translation API and will allow the Administrator to define any number of languages to be included within the app