E-Ecology: A Virtual Lab for Natural Protection

Abstract:- The ICT and the Internet in particular, have invaded the personal and public activities of a vast number of domains nowadays, constituting them very powerful tools. Such activities include among others learning, culture, government and even ecology. This development has created the term e-services which are slowly but steadily becoming a global reality and part of our daily life. This paper presents in detail the structure of a model and innovative multimedia e-ecology virtual lab. This e-ecology environment enables the user-visitor to be introduced and discover various ecological themes and items like islands environments, mountains ecological systems and about flora and fauna (e.g. birds), through a virtual library environment. Moreover, the user is introduced to the various societies that are occupied with the preservation and protection of nature by navigating through an easily navigable environment and the multimedia content that is offered. Due to this multimedia content, the need to find ways to handle it was brought up and was taken into elaborate consideration. Finally, it was essential to bear in mind the “Design for All ” approach to make this e-ecology virtual lab accessible and navigable for the disabled individuals as well and hence, the appropriate tools were incorporated into the system to make this feasible