Faced With Climate Change, Tuvalu To Build Metaverse Version Of Itself

Faced With Climate Change, Tuvalu To Build Metaverse Version Of Itself
B&T Magazine
By B&T Magazine



Tuvalu has said that it plans to build a digital version of itself, representing islands and landmarks to preserve its history and culture as it battles rising sea levels.

Tuvalu foreign minister Simon Kofe told the COP27 climate summit that it was looking at alternative solutions for the country’s survival. The plan would make the tiny Pacific island the world’s first digitised nation in the metaverse.

“Our land, our ocean, our culture are the most precious assets of our people and to keep them safe from harm, no matter what happens in the physical world, we will move them to the cloud,” Kofe said in a video that saw him standing on a digital replica of an islet.

Tuvalu, a group of nine islands halfway between Australia and Hawaii, has a population of just 12,000. Up to 40 per cent of the capital district Funafuti is submerged at high tide. The entire country is expected to be under water by the end of the century.

The country said it would use AR and VR to allow users to interact with the collection of atolls after they are gone.

Kofe told Reuters that he hoped the creation of a digital nation would allow Tuvalu to continue to function as a state even if after it became completely submerged.

The government has begun efforts to ensure that Tuvalu continues to be recognised internationally as a state and its maritime boundaries — and the resources within those waters — are maintained even if the islands are submerged.

Kofe said seven governments have agreed to continual recognition but there were challenges if Tuvalu goes under as it would be unprecedented in international law.

South Korean capital Seoul and the nation of Barbados said last year that they would enter the metaverse to provide administrative and consular services.




Please login with linkedin to comment

metaverse Tuvalu

Latest News

Cosmo Returns To Australia!
  • Media

Cosmo Returns To Australia!

Ever get the feeling we've weirdly warped back to 1988 at the moment? Confirm it with the relaunch of Cosmo in print.

Sydney Comedy Festival: Taking The City & Social Media By Storm
  • Media

Sydney Comedy Festival: Taking The City & Social Media By Storm

Sydney Comedy Festival 2024 is live and ready to rumble, showing the best of international and homegrown talent at a host of venues around town. As usual, it’s hot on the heels of its big sister, the giant that is the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, picking up some acts as they continue on their own […]

Global Marketers Descend For AANA’s RESET For Growth
  • Advertising

Global Marketers Descend For AANA’s RESET For Growth

The Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) has announced the final epic lineup of local and global marketing powerhouses for RESET for Growth 2024. Lead image: Josh Faulks, chief executive officer, AANA  Back in 2000, a woman with no business experience opened her first juice bar in Adelaide. The idea was brilliantly simple: make healthy […]