Kristina Liburd has been a self-proclaimed “mama bear” since before she founded a decentralized travel company.
A former IP attorney, Liburd has always stood up to protect others — their creativity, their dignity and their bodily safety. This, of course, makes her a natural fit for the ethos of Web3, a burgeoning online community centered around the values of equitable ownership and keeping agency in the hands of the people.
However, Web3 was never exactly the plan. Liburd found her way to blockchain through her new company, Viageur, a platform born from the unexpected — and life-threatening — peril that Liburd and her husband faced while traveling in Brazil.
"During our honeymoon, we got robbed at gunpoint,” Liburd said. And the worst part: “Nobody helped us. Nobody had done anything to even remotely say, ‘Hey, are you okay?’ even though we just had guns pointed at our heads.”
The frightening experience made Liburd realize that not all travel advice is created equal. A recommendation from a well-meaning friend or coworker won’t necessarily paint a realistic picture of how safe, welcoming or friendly a destination might be to another person, since we’re all treated differently depending on how the world perceives us.
Factors such as a person’s age, race, gender, sexuality and/or nationality influence the experiences we have in different countries, whether we like it or not, explained Liburd. And sometimes virtual friendships fill the safety gaps when issues arise abroad.
Reflecting on the Brazil robbery, Liburd — a frequent traveler — remembers finding solace in a Facebook group run by Black female travelers. She counted on her digital nomad friends when nobody in real life stepped up to help
“They immediately responded, she said. “It was such a great community of people who asked, ‘Are you okay? What do you need?’ They found us people to talk to. They sent us money even though we didn’t need it. They sent $500 immediately.”
That feeling of reassurance stayed with Liburd, who noted how sharing commonalities with others in the Facebook group saved her.
And so, the idea for Viageur was born. What if, Liburd wondered, she could create a crowdsourced platform for travelers of all identities to compare notes regarding their experiences abroad? How could she ensure that more women of color, LGBTQ+ people and other marginalized travelers get accurate information based on the experiences of others they relate to?
“There is an under-appreciated traveler group that the travel industry has not paid attention to,” Liburd said. “ Which is why you have so many different Facebook groups, Twitter groups, etc. — It’s people trying to find the community of others who've had similar experiences to them.”
Liburd’s platform, Viageur, is perhaps the quintessential example of a “Web2.5” platform — a concept that takes the best of popular Web2 social media experiences like Facebook groups and combines them with the tokenization and community incentives of Web3.
“Using blockchain, we can use tokens,” said Liburd. “We can have token-gated communities where we allow people to become members of the VIP program.”
Being part of the Viageur VIP (VVIP) loyalty program unlocks perks and discounts from partner travel companies, Liburd explained. The company is also planning an upcoming NFT airdrop, featuring artwork of Viageur’s mascot Tiffany, a Carmen San Diego-inspired character representing safety for all travelers.
“Tiffany is your favorite travel spy, protecting you from all over the world,” explained Liburd.
And while Viageur doesn’t use Facebook groups (in true Web3 fashion), the company does have a community Discord channel with more than 3,000 members. Liburd’s first goal is to sign up as many enthusiastic members as possible, before onboarding travelers to blockchain where their recommendations and information will be shared.
"We launched a first token earlier this year, which lead to our Discord and Telegram growth. That led us to revamp and focus on the community rating rather than liquidity chasing like other projects were doing," Liburd said.
She doesn’t require that members have a crypto wallet yet, as she believes it’s still early. The goal should be about community building and education, she said.
“I don't mention decentralization [to members yet] because really we're in a process of more like Web 2.5. We're bringing people in initially from a more centralized focus point … and then we will move and migrate them onto Polygon.”
Yet, she feels passionate about ensuring her Web2.5 platform one day transitions fully onto blockchain-based network: “We want to make sure that the [travel] information is decentralized and cannot be compromised in any way."
Megan DeMatteo is BFF’s Guest Editor
This article and all the information in it does not constitute financial advice. If you don’t want to invest money or time in Web3, you don’t have to. As always: Do your own research.
