I was humbled to be invited to the Betting on Esports Conference last week, part of the Clarion Gaming ICE Show at the London ExCel.
As always,
I enjoy Clarion Gaming events and have attended ICE for ten years as a
delegate, speaker and exhibitioner. In that time, the focus and prominence of
consumer protection has increased dramatically. In 2024, so many non-profit and
for-profit organisations now offer various services and products for gambling
operators around player protection, starkly contrasting to only a few years
ago.
In
establishing ESG Gaming, it was important to me that we do something different,
not duplicate services or products in this space and be kind and collaborative.
This approach, coupled with studies for an MBA and getting alongside leaders
involved in gaming, competitive gaming and the metaverse, has been invigorating
and, in many ways, enabled me to see player and consumer protection through a
different lens.
At the
Betting on Esports Conference, I was fortunate to not only share insights into
my ten-year journey from gambling addict to establishing not-for-profit
organisations in this space but also pose some questions to the audience,
specifically gambling operators looking to engage in esports and esports
organisations, who were considering engaging with gambling operators. Authenticity,
motivation and relevance were high on the consideration list, along with consumer
protection.
The work of
ESG Gaming is firmly rooted in esports and web3 (initially the metaverse).
Consumer protection is the thread that holds all our work together. We deliver
a dual social purpose; firstly, we want to understand if esports and the
metaverse might reduce loneliness and social isolation, reduce the risk factors
for dementia, and provide an alternative, drug-free prescription for depression
among those aged 50 years and over. Secondly, we work with the gaming ecosystem
to understand how consumer protection can be built with awareness information
and tools specifically aimed at community members and parents to strengthen
consumer protection further.
How can I support ESG Gaming: Fundraising
We are very
humbled by the support ESG Gaming is receiving, and we are keen to build upon
our supporter base in 2024. So, if you own or are leading a business and
looking for a purposeful and socially-driven not-for-profit partner, we would
love to discuss ways in which we might collaborate. From an ESG Gaming
perspective, we seek support with RET donations, fundraising, or sponsorship to
build, evaluate and scale our work with our partners. We can recognise your
support in many ways, including employee volunteering opportunities, trade
press and event publicity or training.
How can I support ESG Gaming: Complimentary workshop
The other way to support ESG Gaming is if you are a Health Care
provider, nursing home or organisation based in London, the South East, or the
South West that focuses on wellbeing for people aged 50 years and over. We
would love to work with you and your residents to offer an ESG Gaming facilitated
group discovery workshop. Our team will come to your community setting and
deliver a two-hour, evaluated experiential workshop. We will provide all the
equipment needed, including the use of top-of-the-range virtual reality
headsets for a fully immersive experience or tables for a 2D experience. All we
need from you are some plug sockets, access to wifi or landline, and a small
space to demo. The experiential workshops will be available for groups of
between eight and twelve people and offered at no cost and we would ask if you
can pay for our facilitators travel expenses only.
The two-hour discovery workshop will include an
introduction to virtual reality, a hands-on tour of THE DOME by ESG Gaming, and
an opportunity to undertake group and individual tasks such as yoga,
meditation, mindfulness or a fitness session.