NATURE & TECHNOLOGY

Why Dataverses & Metaverses Are like Indigenous Songlines and Why That Matters

An analytical mind is nothing without common sense and kindness

After a year of relative quiet and reflection (I had an aggressive form of breast cancer), Gaia asks me now to speed up again. And she puts international projects in front of my feet

Partners to collaborate with. Students to mentor. Masterclasses to give. Cluster economies to design. Everything to make sure people and nature are being reunited

The answers to our wicked human problems are in the strategies of nature, you know. We are a human species. And as long as we remember that, we can’t go wrong on this planet. We can just be resilient to her surprises and redesign our cities and villages in such ways that it’s comfortable and safe for our grandchildren to live there

Gaia is my mentor. Ever since somewhere around 2011–2012–2013 when I learned from a shaman how to hear the Stories of the Earth, she’s been telling me in my intuition what to do. What to write

And Medium has been my platform of choice

600+ stories later, I’m ready to do her calling big time!

Be a marketeer for Gaia and tell my sisters and brothers on this planet how to design better human systems. Better cities that are resilient against malaria and zoonotic viruses. Better rural areas so we can (partially) harvest healthy landscapes for food and resources

Better cluster economies, so wealth is fully distributed. Etcetera Etcetera

This is a story about dataverses and metaverses. And about digital 3D design in architecture. Because that’s what we will do the designs with. Healthy buildings. Healthy infrastructures for everything

And education of 21st-century skills

I’ll publish these stories in my favorite pubs so far. Unless some other pub asks me. I’ll consider it. Although, I’m always a loyal writer to my editors. So, it’s just a maybe…

Age of Awareness. Better Marketing. Blue Insights. Change Your Mind, Change Your Life. Climate Conscious. DataDriven Investor. Globetrotters. Heart Revolution. Illumination Curated. Know Thyself, Heal Thyself. Literary Impulse. Living Out Loud. Predict. Publishous. Regenerate the Future. The Apeiron Blog. The Creative Cafe. The Startup. The Writing Cooperative. Tiny Life Moments. Unpopular Opinions. Weeds and Wildflowers. Wild Women Writers

Let’s see who picks up what. Let’s see who wants to hear. I never push. I always pul with my intention

I always go where Gaia’s flow takes me…

That’s my life, ever since 2011–2012–2013. Gaia’s flow is the planetary spinning of 1670 km/ hour… Can you get your head around that one? 1670 kilometers = 1038 miles per hour!

And of course, honoring the request of my reader Astoria Bob, I will write about Merlinda. Our great-great-great-granddaughter, who lives in the year 2222. Two hundred years from now. Humans will still be here

But how will they live in 2222?

Do you write science fiction? Tag me, I want to know!

Let’s get going, my friends

Why are dataverses and metaverses like indigenous songlines and why does it matter?

It’s simple. We live in complexity but we have just one compass. Our common sense. And our conscience

Even though it might not be fast or easy. And might not feel comfortable. We didn’t receive a life just to be comfortable. Or even be happy. We have received a gift. A truly amazing experience. And we’d better enjoy it before we have to leave again

“Just do right” — Maya Angelou

Paul Baran, 1962

What’s all this shit about modern technology, you ask? Well, let me explain some terms to you and give you a picture. This is the picture. Paul Baran, 1962, and his information technology theory

Information is flow. And it can flow in different patterns

The left one is a current company like Facebook or Amazon or any other company but a very modern cluster economy design one. We have linear business models in companies, and that’s why we produce so much waste and pollution

But modern, ethical companies try to be different…

The middle picture is our governments. Decentralized. Country. State. Province. Municipality. There the problem often is that we like to delegate responsibilities. But we like to keep control and budgets at the top

We have designed top-down human systems with often manipulative leaders who do not see what’s changing right now

They do global to local. We do local to global

They do outside-in. We do inside-out

They do top-down. We do bottom-up

Okay, now the right one. Here is where it gets interesting. This is a structure like bamboo roots. Rhizomes. Crabgrass roots. They are the ones changing our world right now

Rhizomes (fully distributed and individual power) and rivers (flows)

Currently, in this day and age of computers, it’s possible to design fully distributed systems in which data or money flows over crossroads

Of course, we have to design the crossroads!

Naturally, we cannot just say here is a bucket of data. Just see what you do with it. We need systemic designers in the dataverse and metaverse projects to show us WHAT we want to make…

And that WHAT is always humanly fair and environmentally healthy

Sounds still simple, so far?

Great! If not, ask questions in the comments, please. I love to explain deeper if there is a need…

Dataverses & Metaverses

Let’s get some terms straight first of all. What are dataverses and metaverses?

First of all, we can have a database. That’s just a bucket of data

But if the data are distributed over crossroads (right-hand side Baran picture), we have a dataverse with designed nodes. Information (data) flows to many sides so the design of the nodes matters

Important questions?

• What is it we are creating and why? What is the overall goal?
• What are the nodes? What do we need to know to get to the goal?

If AI is designed well, it is a dataverse. You have many different designs but follow my friends Dr Mehmet Yildiz and the techie girls and guys at Illumination and related pubs to know more

Do you want an example of what an ESG dataverse can be? By the way, ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance…

This is what we are designing now in Greece. A cluster economy for local people and the sea… Satellites are dumb. So, we combine it with human observation. Citizen science. Tourism. Young students…

What are metaverses, you ask?

Well, it’s kind of simple. Dataverses just have flows of data. Information.

But if you want transactions (agreements) and money in a system, you need a metaverse. Ethereum is the community to be if you want to go deeper. They have just finalized The Merge and now save 99% of energy by going to the right-hand side picture of P. Baran. Become fully distributed. They don’t mine the cryptocurrencies anymore. They farm them…

Well, is this just about business models? Of course not! This is about governance. About fair voting systems. About post-industrial, local production. About all sectors of human progress…

But let’s design it all with common sense!

We need a humanly fair and environmentally healthy world

Adapted and resilient to the surprises of our planet

Yesterday, I told you about Gaia birthing new volcanoes…

Indigenous Songlines

What Paul Baran saw in 1962, was seen by indigenous people long before him. In Australia, they call them songlines. And my Australian friend Dr John Frederick Rose designs them. AI Songlines. He doesn’t write about them all the time because just like all of us, he likes to do poetry and Zen Gardens. But his work is about AI Songlines

So, ask him his opinion. He will be willing to share his wisdom. Just like indigenous people. They should be at the heart of the new systems. Taking their role and being taken seriously

We are the elders, you know

All young people will design their new world in whatever way they see fit. And it’s easy. Normal citizens will be able to use the new devices easily. And design their own layers onto it

But in the initial design, ESG has to bring common sense and experience to the table. Life experience. Next month, I will be 58. Last year, I nearly died. So, in the time I have left, I’m here for citizens and professional people to answer questions and help them design…

Ask your questions, my dear (young) friends!

No question is ever stupid… and I will always answer…

Masterclasses & Social Media

In the meantime, my work in Education & Inspiration goes on. I try to make it as accessible as I can. We design cities, rural areas, and dataverses and metaverses together with huge groups of changemakers

I’ll share about Mike’s and my business model to be digital nomads on a mission. If you are interested to join our huge tribe of learners and doers, feel welcome to register or just have a look around on our website

We have an Abundance 4 ALL YouTube channel for inspiration. Our own explanations have just started. But we have collected many videos that inspired us and might inspire you. Browse around…

Like the video from Maya Angelou. The Power of Words

She’s been such an elder in my personal life!

I’m also on LinkedIn for my professional systemic design work. Don’t be shy to connect and ask me questions there, too. Please do so as much as possible in public, so others can read the answers too. My aim is to spread education and inspiration on social media. Nothing else!

I’m too busy with my hands in the soil for olive oil and healthy energy models and feet in the sea for seaweed progress like the ESG Dataverse above. Just yesterday, I got another request for bamboo progress…

I love it!

Happy designing a better world than the one we have so far!

And don’t forget to dance with your feet in the sea and your hands in the soil. Gaia really has all the answers. And if we listen closely, she will keep our species safe and thriving…

I’m a systemic designer. A (digital) nomad. A social and environmental change-maker. Coach to powerful leaders. And to students of life. Stay tuned via our website Abundanism.com

Thank you, Gaia, for giving me Wild Writing © Désirée Driesenaar, 2023