Author: Valeria Graziani
Original Post:  Singularity Group Blog

We are proud to repost a recent blog on the Singularity Group website about our development of a youth-led metaverse to address the SDGs:

Our future will always flourish if our youth have the resources and the space to step into their potential as world leaders. Our young people are the world’s most abundant global resource, yet the most underdeveloped and underrepresented. Our San Diego chapter is working to change that. A world that believes in their youth and gives them every opportunity to explore, discover, imagine and create has already won the future. Our world has enormous untapped potential and too much talent for our future to stay stagnant. Our San Diego Chapter, in collaboration with Dream Tank, and sponsored by ExO Angels, realizes the power in our youth and is giving them real-world learning opportunities. These opportunities engage them as core design contributors and lets their imagination, passion, creativity and energy run free in Island17.io. Island17.io is a new metaverse game created as a global youth social, entrepreneurial and problem-solving ecosystem.

“We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future” – Franklin D. Roosevelt

‍Tech hotbeds are filled with opportunities for innovative ideas, and San Diego is steadily rising in the tech scene. It is the 7th best city for tech startups in the USA, hosting over 100 AI unicorns and the 6th-fastest growing technology job market. So it’s no surprise that our San Diego chapter is riding the wave as they partner with Dream Tank to aim their efforts at garnering tech interest for our younger generations. Youth at Dream Tank created Island17.io as a fun and interactive community-owned and led web3 gaming metaverse to invite young innovators to join and lead the design and development of the game to learn the art of coding.

‍The act of gaming can break down barriers and make the most out of a young mind by encouraging problem-solving and nurturing the imagination. By leveraging the power of gaming, youth innovation, blockchain, deFi, AI and more, Island17 players go on tiered-style missions and earn tokens through skilled gameplay and contributions to the ecosystem. But what makes Island17 different from more traditional games? To start, it is youth-led and inspires social entrepreneurship. The platform uses the power of technology, the excitement of gaming, the spirit of entrepreneurship and a youth-centered design to help our young people find innovative solutions to problems in their local communities. They then can share ideas and collaborate on a global scale in the Island17 Metaverse to address the biggest challenges facing our world in real-time. In addition, it’s a blockchain economic design that rewards players for their contributions to the Metaverse – or ecosystem.

‍With the project already turning heads, Island17 Fellowships are inviting youth from around the world to join in on this mind-opening experience for 3-months. The platform will allow them to co-create a Metaverse game from the ground up while working to make the world a better place for our collective future. It will also help them develop the skills for their interests, including coding, 3d animation, entrepreneurship training, marketing and social media influencing, music & film production, etc. As we progressively move into a completely tech-centered world, interest in skills surrounding tech development and innovation becomes more valuable. Our young people have a fresh perspective on this digital age, especially when trying to figure out technology’s role in solving the world’s greatest problems. It is now a prime outlet to grab hold of to create the future we want.

‍Through this exciting venture, the work of our San Diego Chapter, Dream Tank and their collaborations with the work of youth developers and organizations (business, government, academia, etc.) will be funded, championed, and implemented to address and support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across the globe. We cannot meet the SDGs  without the greatest minds of our youth who have the best imaginations and are the digital trailblazers of our time.

‍The digital age has grown with our youth, so much so that they are an essential part of the future of technology and how it will fit in our lives to help solve the problems of tomorrow. Our younger generations are vital in making programming enjoyable and establishing partnerships by building the Island17 Metaverse Game Portal. In 2022, our San Diego Chapter is hosting the challenges to design Island17 via their Youth Fellowship and World Changing Youth on Island17 with Dream Tank launching during GEW Global Entrepreneurship Week, Nov 14-20 2022 with the leadership of Dream Tank and support from ExO Angels. This is an opportunity for young people to gain access to experts and mentors, learn about game design, and leverage their ideas and feedback to shape the future of Island17’s Metaverse Game.

‍Our San Diego chapter leaders are devoted to causes such as refugee support, digital health data integrity and, of course, youth education and empowerment as they advocate for the ideas that come with generations rising in the tech scene and beyond. They work to solidify confidence in our youth, encourage engagement and collaboration, champion technology and innovation and advocate for education. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg as our San Diego chapter works to continue its impact on the world and our future.