Sustainable metaverse ecosystems: from ESG compliance to scalability of multilayer networks
This study examines the emerging sustainability of metaverse ecosystems, which combine multiple virtual and augmented reality spaces where users interact. ESG criteria, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals and promoting economic and financial sustainability, represent best practices for the selection and endorsement of viable projects. The research focuses on the historical ESG score of metaverse-prone BigTechs, demonstrating that they are more sustainable than traditional companies, as evidenced by the increased probability of payment among traditional customers and suppliers. Subsequently, multi-layer networks are introduced, incorporating the scalability features of new nodes (avatars) and links that make the metaverse economically sustainable. The most important ESG issues concern the social and governance component: access to the metaverse is hindered by authoritarian regimes, or gamification may be exacerbated by 3D dependency, which separates addicted users from the real world. Our findings show that integrating multilayer network theory with ESG metrics not only promotes economic sustainability, but also supports governance innovations that drive digital inclusion. By integrating ESG metrics with multilayer network theory, this research improves economic sustainability and reveals governance innovations that foster digital inclusion, strengthening the long-term viability of the metaverse.
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