During the peak of the 2020 pandemic, Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) experienced a global surge, promising to revolutionise remote work, education, and tourism. Yet years later, adoption across the Caribbean remains surprisingly slow. In this re-released episode, we revisit our conversation with 4thDymension, a visionary tech collective from Montserrat. They tackled these exact challenges by building the Plymouth Recreation Project, digitally reconstructing Montserrat’s buried capital using 3D modelling and VR. We also discussed, among other things: how immersive tech can safeguard Caribbean cultural heritage; practical applications for regional tourism and education; and building sustainable XR ventures from micro-states.

 

This episode is also available on SoundCloud, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music.

Across the globe, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) have evolved far beyond niche gaming into critical drivers of spatial computing, remote collaboration, and interactive education. Today, exciting trends, such as WebAR allowing markerless browser-based access, lightweight cross-platform hardware, and AI-driven spatial mapping, are seamlessly blending digital data with physical environments. From hyper-realistic architectural walkthroughs and remote engineering to immersive cultural storytelling and next-generation tourism marketing, these tools are redefining how industries operate and how humans interact with digital spaces.

However, despite these transformative global applications, the adoption of AR and VR across the Caribbean has lagged. Although regional economies heavily reliant on tourism and heritage sectors stand to gain immensely from interactive, virtual site visits and engagement tools that captivate younger demographics, widespread integration has not occurred and may be bottlenecked by high hardware costs, infrastructure gaps, and a scarcity of localised digital content. As a result, the region has largely remained a consumer rather than a creator of extended reality (XR) tech.

That spark is precisely what Montserrat’s tech collective, 4thDymension, has brought to the table by leveraging VR technology to digitally reconstruct Plymouth, the island’s former capital city, which was buried and abandoned following tragic volcanic eruptions in the 19090s. In this podcast episode, we revisit a conversation we had with the 4thDymension team recorded in 2020 to discuss the Plymouth Recreation Project and how Caribbean countries can use AR and VR to preserve invaluable regional history, spark new economic opportunities, and prove that immersive technologies can thrive right here in the region.

 

Introducing our guests

4th Dymension
From l-r: Jhovan Daniel, Jerely Browne; Carlon Brathwaite; Dexter Small

4thDymension is a software development firm that specialises in 3D modelling and the creation of virtual reality and augmented reality experiences. We were able to speak with four of the five members of the team.

Jhovan Daniel, the Founder of 4thDymension, also serves as the company’s Chief Executive Officer. He is also a 3D Modeller, Web Developer and Programmer. Currently, Jhovan is in the United Kingdom (UK), pursuing his Master’s in Advanced Computer Science.

Within 4th Dimension, Jerely Browne’s focus is videography, environmental design/art and 3D modelling. He has his own Cinematography company, Cinephou, but currently, he is also in the UK studying a production-related course.

Carlon Braithwaite is a Computer-Aided Design (CAD) Technician, 3D Modeller and the Building Technician/Draftsman of the team. Currently, he is working in Anguilla.

Dexter Small is the Lead Programmer and Designer, who is also a Web Developer and Graphic Artist. Currently, he is pursuing his Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science at the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus (Jamaica).

 

Insights into our conversation

Revisiting this discussion with 4thDymension was a powerful reminder of how excited we all were in 2020 about the potential and opportunities for AV and VR in the Caribbean region. Further, the Plymouth Recreation Project emphasised the potential and impact of technology to capture local knowledge, culture and experiences that are likely to be forgotten, or at the very least, watered down over time.

It is also remarkable that the four young men in a country of less than 5,000 people possessed the skills and capabilities to use VR to recreate Plymouth. However, at the same time, we ought to lament the seemingly lack of opportunities to truly leverage those skills and convert them into lucrative ventures, which is all too common across the region.

Below are key questions posed to Jhovan, Jerely, Carlon and Dexter during the course of our conversation:

  1. What is 4thDymension? When was it established, and what is the scope of the services it offers?
  2. What was the impetus for the Plymouth Recreation Project?
  3. How long did the project take, from the initial conceptualisation to being able to organise a public demo?
  4. What were some of the challenges in building Plymouth virtually?
  5. What was the scale of the final rendering, and how accurate would you say it was to Plymouth back in the day?
  6. What is the status of the Plymouth Recreation Project, and are there any future plans for it?
  7. What would you say is the difference between virtual reality and augmented reality?
  8. When one thinks about VR or AR, it is usually with respect to gaming, but there has been some talk about applications in tourism. What are your thoughts?
  9. In what other areas in the Caribbean do you think VR or AR should be leveraged?
  10. Developing a VR or AR experience is a lot of work. Can they be sustainable as a business?

We would love to hear from you!

Do leave us a comment either here beneath this article, or on our Facebook or LinkedIn pages, or via Twitter, @ICTPulse.

Also, if you or a member of your network is interested in joining us for an episode, do get in touch.

Let’s make it happen!

 

Select links

Below are links to some of the organisations and resources that either were mentioned during the episode, or otherwise, might be useful:

 

 

Images credit:  4thDymension; Andrew Shiva (Wikipedia);  pch.vector (Magnific); Ivan Browne (Facebook)

Music credit: The Last Word (Oui Ma Chérie), by Andy Narrell