Why Zwift and and other Metaverse companies are the next generation of climate change hedges
As Vineyards begin to buy land in Southern England and Vail Resorts opens properties in Australia tech’s metaverse plays could be the next evolution of climate change hedges. While the acid rain falls down and smoke from fires making going outside unbearable, it’s nice to know we can still ride our bikes around Watopia.
In 2020 I bought an indoor trainer for my bike because fires in Northern California and across the west meant riding outside was impossible if not incredibly uncomfortable. At the moment I didn’t realize it, but I was forced into this virtual fitness world not out of desire, but out of necessity. It didn’t cross my mind that I was missing out on riding my bike outside, I framed things in terms of being able to try something new. Now, if you are the 3 people reading this you will know how much a fan or indoor workouts I am, and I still am, but over the last two years it seems like many of us have gravitated to working out in our small apartments not out of choice, but because we had no other options. Although let us hope and pray that staying away from in-person group fitness classes because of a pandemic is just a now issue, but extreme climate will continue and worse into the future. For that reason I don’t think it will be our absence that leads to a crumbling world outside of our VR glasses, but rather an unlivable world pushing us to move inside.
Throughout the pandemic, like many, I have been able to rediscover my connection with the outdoors, and as I think about the future I hope I will be able to maintain this connection as our impact on the planet begins to impact us more. I’m not sure if there is any takeaway from all of this, other than the fact that we need to be mindful of these crutches we are building to make living in an unlivable environment more bearable. As we make virtual worlds more wonderful, consider the colonization of fart away planets a possibility, and move our wineries to the hometown city of Love Island cast members, let’s remember what we are losing in the process, appreciate it while we can, and do everything we can to lower our own impact on this positive feedback loop that is climate change.
