Meet the Crypto and NFT Projects Making a Social Impact
August 02 2022 - 5:20AM
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At ETH Barcelona on July 6-8, there was the usual mix of geeks,
coders, hardcore ethereans, and project founders. With market
conditions having flushed out the moonboys and influencers,
however, there was a distinct absence of shillers. Its slogan “What
happens in Barcelona stays on the blockchain” captured the
nerdiness of the event, whose focus was very much on building. In
place of the frothiness that characterizes many crypto conferences,
there was an egalitarian ethos: an exploration of how blockchain
“can help build a sustainable world full of human potential.” How
exactly does this amorphous vision manifest in practice? And can a
technology invented to solve the double spend problem really
improve the everyday lives of planetary citizens? Answering those
questions calls for taking a closer look at the crypto projects
represented at the conference that fall into the ESG bracket:
Environmental, Social, and Governance. While mixing and mingling at
ETH Barcelona, I met representatives from a number of these
projects. Here’s what I learned. The Giving Block One of the
projects I had the pleasure of meeting at ETH Barcelona was The
Giving Block (TGB). These guys are convinced that crypto can change
the world for the better. TGB makes it easy for organizations to
accept crypto donations and for individuals to donate with crypto.
It’s particularly passionate about NFT fundraising and has authored
an entire report on the topic. I was particularly impressed with
the fact that The Giving Block seems intent on putting its money
where its mouth is: CEO Jared Isaacman of parent company Shift4 is
matching donations up to $10M for its Caring With Crypto campaign.
Thanks to the efforts of projects such as The Giving Block, NFT
philanthropy is really taking off, funneling more funds to social
causes and onboarding more people and organizations to crypto. The
Future of Giving Many of the socially conscious startups to have
emerged from the crypto sector lately have been NFT-focused. There
are obvious reasons for this synergy: NFTs are highly visual, and
thus an effective medium for conveying environmental messages. This
mechanism also suits collaborations with artists and creators who
share similar values. DoinGud, one of ETH Barcelona’s launch
partners, has done more than perhaps any other NFT project to
realize this goal. As the project’s manifesto explains, “We believe
that art has always been an incredible tool for influencing change
and by using blockchain technology to create transparency, we can
make an even stronger impact in the world.” DoinGud is intent on
spurring positive social impact, which it achieves through its NFT
platform where social causes can register as eligible organizations
to whom creators can donate a portion of their proceeds. DoinGud
has partnered with over 200 social causes, each of which aligns
with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. In the run-up to ETH
Barcelona, DoinGud ran an NFT scavenger hunt that gave participants
the opportunity to “collect NFTs to create a better world.” The
project is doing more than merely paying lip service to social
causes: it’s actively onboarding new users to crypto while
showcasing the transformative power of NFTs. Another socially
conscious project represented at ETH Barcelona was Giveth. The
event sponsor aims to “decentralize charity” by rewarding donors
who contribute to “for-good” projects. The platform enables
cryptocurrency holders to donate to a slew of charitable projects
including ones focused around Ukraine, sustainable food, and
grassroots community support. Giveth essentially runs a charitable
Kickstarter, allowing anyone to create a project and start raising
funds. Verified projects reward donors with “GIVbacks.” Like
DoinGud, Giveth is doing more to onboard everyday users to crypto
than the majority of conventional projects, while showcasing the
industry as a force for global good. As its mission statement
explains, Giveth is “building a culture of giving that empowers and
rewards those who give – to projects, to society, and to the world.
We aim to inspire our community to participate in an ecosystem of
collective support, abundance and value-creation.” The Next Wave of
Socially Conscious Projects Signifty is a new NFT project taking up
the socially conscious baton and running with it. What’s
interesting about its approach is the way it engages celebrities
and harnesses their stardust to achieve outcomes. The idea is
simple: celebs and influencers create NFTs that anyone can
purchase, with proceeds going to causes of the creator’s choosing.
Each of the stars represented on Signifty’s platform chooses a
“mission” i.e. a charitable cause or fundraiser. One of the cool
things about the concept is the way Signifty gamifies the whole
process: the celeb creating the NFT collection is the mission
“Hero” while buyers are awarded legendary NFTs for helping to
complete Global Missions in conjunction with the Hero. An NFT drop
that sells out, for instance, will culminate in mission completion.
It’s a neat way of mapping donations to outcomes, and showing that
funds raised are going directly to the corresponding cause. If the
caliber of projects represented at ETH Barcelona is anything to go
on, the future of crypto giving is in good hands. Platforms such as
Giveth, The Giving Block, and Signifty are demonstrating that it’s
possible to create a positive social impact while still having fun.
In doing so, they’re extending crypto’s utility and showcasing it
as a force for good. Image by GLady from Pixabay
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