Blockchain and Clean Energy: 5 Companies that are Changing the Future
Clean, renewable energy and carbon reduction are the future, and blockchain companies are leading the way! In our lead-up to Earth Day, you can find out more about these 5 companies and their innovative projects to help the planet.
How Blockchain Is Changing The Carbon Energy Market
As a distributed platform that allows for secure, transparent and tamper-proof transactions, blockchain is leveraged by the energy sector to create a more efficient, reliable and sustainable system. For example, it can be used to create decentralized energy markets that allow producers and consumers to trade verified carbon credits directly with each other.
Blockchain can also be used to track the movement of energy resources and ensure that they are being used efficiently. For example, smart meters equipped with blockchain technology could automatically record data on energy consumption and production. This data could then be used to improve planning and decision-making around energy use.
It is an exciting technology with immense potential, and we are only just beginning to scratch the surface of the good it can do. But not all L1 blockchains are created equal, and several, such as Algorand, Avalanche, Cardano, and Solana, have built energy-efficiency into their core technology through Proof-of-Stake models. Zilliqa goes a step further and even offers initiatives like eco-friendly staking. Today though, we’re shining a light on just a sampling of innovative Web3 projects directly dedicated to a greener earth.
How Companies are Driving Clean Energy
Blockchain technologies are rewriting the playbook for green businesses. Some are creating new business models and platforms that make it easier to finance and invest in clean energy projects, providing opportunities that simply weren’t within reach before. Others are creating transparency and accountability around the use of clean energy resources, or around real world reforestation for example. These innovations are important for both businesses and consumers who want to make sure that their investments have a positive, measurable impact.
Here’s a view of just a few interesting companies and projects that have set out to transform the future of energy into a greener ecosystem.
1 . Liber
Liber is part of a new wave of dApps that are using technology to facilitate clean energy for a greener future. Liber allows users to invest in and trade carbon credits. Carbon credits are digital certificates verifying that a company has reduced or offset its yearly CO2 emissions by one tonne. (Source: https://www.liber.finance/features)
Liber was founded on the belief that access to carbon credits should be inclusive, collaborative and hassle-free. On this decentralized exchange, users can buy, hold and sell carbon credits categorized into “Themes”. This not only makes it easier for people to invest in carbon-free energy, but also makes way for significant reduction in global emissions.
Studies show that the market for carbon credits could be worth $50 billion by the year 2030. Liber’s goal is to reinvent the market for carbon credits using permissionless innovation that enables millions of people to participate, thereby democratizing an important asset class and making it more accessible to people who might not otherwise have had the opportunity to invest in it.
2 . Veritree
The looming global climate crisis demands immediate, strong and innovative solutions. One of the most effective ways to fight climate change is reforestation. Sadly, many reforestation projects have failed due to infrastructure-related inadequacies leading to the lack of transparency, measurability, auditability and permanence.
Veritree offers a coherent solution — by partnering with the best reforestation communities and projects across the globe and providing tools built on, and powered by, blockchain technology to audit and accelerate the impact of the reforestation projects.
Veritree’s comprehensive suite of on-ground data collection tools, such as a planting verification and inventory system, bring unparalleled transparency and traceability to all endeavors. It benefits sponsors by delivering real-time, easy-to-digest and engaging data.
“The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second best time is now.”
- Anonymous
3. Algorand
Algorand is one of the first blockchain networks to be compatible with the concepts of clean energy and sustainability. Founder Silvio Micali has been speaking about sustainability before it became a thing, and he’s continuing to do so with his revolutionary blockchain. Not only are its features environment-friendly, they even have a vision to offset their carbon footprint, in partnership with ClimateTrade.
One of the ways Algorand innovates sustainability is in their design. Energy efficiency was prioritized from the start and it was very carefully analyzed how this would affect security, decentralization, and overall robustness of the network. It does not rely on mining or crypto-currencies for payments so that energy consumption stays low.
Leading publications have claimed that blockchain transactions including minting of cryptocurrencies and NFTs consume high volumes of energy, contributing to the already alarming global carbon emission levels. Algorand addresses this problem using a number of ways; an example is PPoS (Pure Proof of Stake) on which this public blockchain runs. PPoS a mechanism that reduces electricity consumption to almost zero.
Algorand’s recent announcement to laud our planet’s well-being on a Times Square, NYC billboard on Global Earth Day is evidence of their “green” mission.
4. Energy Web
Climate change driven by carbon emissions is one of the biggest global crises today. Reversing this devastation is of paramount importance; it calls for massive transformation in the energy market to greener grids including the creation and adoption of low-carbon electricity systems.
Energy Web, a large open-source, blockchain ecosystem is a pioneer of decentralized technology solutions committed to decarbonizing energy systems today and in the future. EW’s Energy Web Decentralized Operating System (EW-DOS) is a scalable 3-layered suite of tools that can be used to build and deploy zero-carbon focused solutions for the energy sector, among others.
The journey to decarbonization requires a high degree of collaboration between technology innovators and global energy enterprises. With a well-balanced team of experts with extensive experience in the energy sector and blockchain technology, EW has successfully initiated dialogs with large players in the energy market as well as engaged in global strategic partnerships aimed at transition to clean energy systems.
5. gtime.io
For clean energy projects to function optimally, data transparency and traceability throughout the project lifecycle is quintessential. GTIME is a company that supports energy data traceability and measurability activities throughout the production chain starting with the origin of the data.
GTIME aggregates energy measurements into a blockchain via a secure PoW (Proof-of Work) method. This aggregated data is highly secure as it cannot be edited on-chain. GTIME’s uniqueness lies in the fact that the information mining process occurs every 15 minutes, making data available to users almost in real time.
Each block of data added to the chain is associated with a unique digital signature, thus making the data 100% traceable.
Invest in Our Planet
Umbrella Network is a scalable, decentralized, and community-owned oracle that brings the world’s data to blockchains to enable companies to perform at the optimum level. Following the 2022 Earth Day theme of “Invest in Our Planet,” we’re sharing green-focused content throughout the week (and be on the lookout for community engagement giveaways, too).
As a Layer-2 solution employing a delegated Proof-of-Stake consensus model, Umbrella is a more energy efficient option versus Proof-of-Work models. Umbrella’s Merkle Tree architecture and batching of data allows thousands of transactions to be bundled together into a single transaction, resulting in less gas fees and less energy expended overall. Umbrella has initiated strategic partnerships to fuel the common ambition of a green, healthy planet. We welcome more and more partners to be a part of our journey.
About Umbrella Network
Umbrella Network is a scalable, decentralized, and community-owned oracle that utilizes Layer 2 technology to integrate real-time data into smart contracts for accurate and timely reports. Umbrella Network brings the world’s data to blockchains to enable DeFi applications to perform at the optimum level regarding precise information dissemination.
It believes a decentralized oracle is paramount to creating a truly decentralized financial space.
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