If you look closely enough, it seems that we are unfolding into an era of networked localisation, with networked communities as the foundation of many of our societies, communities, and information flows.
It could be said that we are integrating the eras that have come before us: remembering and desiring the benefits of community and local while recognising the importance of cooperation, interrelationship, and shared information pathways at regional and global levels.
Web 3 (which Blockchain tech is a key element of) is potentially going to be a key aspect of moving into this unfolding new era.
At the time of writing this (8th March 2021), there is about $1.55 trillion in global cryptocurrency markets. Even if Decentralised Finance (DeFi) doesn’t eradicate our current financial global system entirely, it is changing it significantly. Large companies and governments are buying millions in crypto, some countries are creating national cryptocurrencies, humanitarian aid organisations use crypto for emergency aid, and projects like Celo are at the forefront of borderless payments that aim to help marginalised communities trade and save without the need for banks or intermediaries.
It's not just a shift in our financial systems that Web 3 is enabling: Web 3 enables decentralisation in many different spheres, from shared ownership of previously centrally-managed services like power, energy, and the internet, to new ways of governing such as DAOs (Decentralised Autonomous Organisations), which offer us new ways of cooperating, collaborating, and stewarding finances, public goods, and commons.
I'm excited about the potential of Web 3 socioeconomically, ecologically, and politically.
Scattered groups like refugees could coordinate and fully own their financial decision-making. Financial power might shift from large organisations, governments, institutions, and wealthy individuals and into the hands of individuals and communities. Regenerative agriculture, commons creation, community-focused projects, and micro-economies are, even now, being aligned through Web 3-managed incentives. Our communities might be able to start creating local, regional, and global Universal Basic Incomes (UBIs). Fossil-fuels could become commons and we could implement feedback loops using blockchain tech so that individuals and communities have real-time, key information about the impact of their everyday choices.
What's happening with Web3 isn't just important for a niche group of tech-savvy first adopters.
Isn't it time you started taking notice?