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A project from two agency veterans aimed at bringing more diversity to who participates in virtual worlds is teaming with metaverse platform The Sandbox to bring a new type of Pride celebration to the metaverse.
The newly minted People of Crypto Lab announced this week that it is launching a hub within the virtual gaming platform called Valley of Belonging, which will serve as a space to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and people of color taking part in the metaverse.
The hub will feature a non-binary avatar collection with virtual make-up provided by L’Oreal-owned NYX Professional Makeup, in what is the first appearance by a cosmetics brand in The Sandbox.
The People of Crypto Lab was co-founded by Akbar Hamid and Simone Berry of The 5th Column communications agency, which also boasts a web3-focused arm called 5Crypto. Beyond the initial Pride celebration, the group plans to create experiences around other diverse cultural landmarks and issues across different metaverse platforms while boosting work from marginalized creators.
The goal is to ensure that people of a range of backgrounds and identities will play a role in setting the foundation for what some technologists say could be the next iteration of the internet, or web3, a constellation of technologies that includes non-fungible tokens (NFTs), the metaverse and cryptocurrencies.
“In order for web3 to really scale, we need to root it in diversity and inclusion, and recognizing that these marginalized communities have an unprecedented influence on community and on culture,” Berry said. “We really do need to educate and onboard them into web3.”
Hamid said the space is modeled after what the community center for diverse youth might look like in the real world with a blend of cityscape and nature. The group claims the project is the first major space designed exclusively for diversity, equity and inclusion across any of the prominent metaverse platforms.
“It’s our imaginative recreation of what an LGBTQ+ center or diversity youth center might be in the real world in this imaginative, creative environment where we’re going to bring in these cultural integrations,” Hamid said.
A range of non-playable characters made up of diverse personas with their own unique backstories will guide users through game content and activities, said Berry. “Our NPCs are very reflective of the environment we’re trying to create,” Berry said.
“So there’s wheelchairs, we have my favorite one—he’s an elderly Black man named Finn; we have Trinity, who is in a wheelchair, we have drag queens, we have a representation of non-binary characters. And as you move through the game, you’re interacting, and your goal is to reach the pinnacle of Pride, where you can celebrate with everyone.”
The Valley of Belonging will serve as a full-time space for hosting other DEI-themed events in the metaverse going forward, the creators said. The creators also intend to work with a range of brands and metaverse platform partners in ways that fit their mission in an authentic way.
The launch comes as more and more brands are experimenting with how to create a presence in virtual worlds that don’t feel too disruptive to the established ethos of the spaces, which has largely evolved out of open-world gaming.
The People of Crypto founders believe that experimentation makes this period critical for setting a precedent for diversity and inclusion in how these worlds will operate in the future.
“Our utility is being able to onboard and educate,” Berry said. “we want this to be your first NFT; we want you to understand what a Metaverse experience feels like and continue to educate you through your entire web3 journey so that at the end, you have the knowledge to decide whether you just want to be a participant or a creator within this space.”
