Lucy Atkinson studies persuasive communication (advertising, PR, social media) in the context of the environment, sustainability and climate change. She examines how mass media communicate about these issues and the impacts on audience attitudes and behaviors. Current projects with opportunities for undergrad research assistants (UGRAs) include:

1. VR and nature experiences 
   • Focus: Examining how virtual reality nature experiences elicit awe and the impact on environmental attitudes and values
   • UGRAs will help run subjects through the study in the lab
2. AI and emergency messaging
   • Focus: Examining the efficacy of AI-generated emergency messaging can improve emergency preparedness among underserved and at risk communities
   • UGRAs will 1) help with outreach to community groups in Austin to recruit participants for the study and 2) assist with translating messages from English to a number of different languages spoken by Austin residents, including Spanish, Arabic, Burmese, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, French and Vietnamese. Must be near native speaker to help with translation.