Dear Sophia Magnusdottir
I like how you were located the problem of consciousness.
I agree also with you that the true question is the level of consciousness not only "consciousness yes or no".
You write that it is difficult to determine existence of consciousness around us. I agree, but we should also be aware that sense of objective material world around us cannot be easily determined. Namely, what we imagine as objective material world (bunch of atoms around us) are only almost empty space and forces between particles. What is stuff from which particles are built, is unknown.
What you think about free-will? Some scientists think that it does not exist.
I have a different solution of this problem. This is panpsychism and quantum consciousness, where free-will is what is a cause of quantum uncertainty. I claim that free-will is the basic thing which is obvious for consciousness. One classical computer (example for p-zombie) works only according to some software, thus according to some logical gates, or according to some classical random generator, which also works according to some logical gates. But quantum uncertainty does not agree with any logical gates.
More in my essay and in my other links.
Best regards, Janko Kokošar