Personally I don’t think there’s any obligation. Folks have campaigned for rights to be enjoyed, not for those people who receive the rights to feel obligated to join the fight.
If you can afford it consider donating to a charity that supports campaigners for the rights you enjoy. This way you can increase their ability to campaign without needing to be directly involved.
Thread is a network layer thing, comparable to WiFi or Bluetooth. Matter is an application later thing, comparable to HomeKit or Google home.
Zigbee is both network and application layer.
This article has a decent overview https://www.smarthomeperfected.com/zigbee-vs-thread/