Environmentally Friendly Crypto: 5 Potential Use Cases for Obyte

Dangerous things like global warming, pollution, deforestation, and biodiversity loss are already present on our planet, mostly due to the human race. We really need to start making all our industries and processes more environmentally friendly if we want to keep the planet green and livable —and that includes the crypto industry.

In case you didn’t know, the fact that cryptocurrencies are digital doesn’t necessarily make them harmless to the environment. Especially the ones with miners (like Bitcoin or Dogecoin) could bring serious issues, due to the way they work internally and how that affects the physical world. Mining cryptocurrencies can be polluting due to the enormous amount of energy it consumes.

This process requires powerful computers to solve complex mathematical problems, and these machines run continuously, often leading to high electricity consumption. Much of this energy comes from non-renewable sources like coal and natural gas, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, the mining hardware becomes obsolete quickly, resulting in electronic waste that must be managed. Improper disposal of these machines can lead to environmental contamination due to the hazardous materials they contain.

That’s why it’s better to choose a greener decentralized network, like Obyte, that has no miners and, therefore, no high energy consumption. Besides being intrinsically green, this network also has some interesting and specifically eco-friendly potential uses. Let’s explore them ahead.

Green Rewards

It’s possible to create eco-friendly reward programs to incentivize sustainable activities. By utilizing Obyte’s decentralized, secure, and tamper-proof network, participants could earn tokens for engaging in green practices like using public transportation, reducing or recycling waste, or joining conservation projects. These reward programs can work seamlessly by leveraging Obyte’s tokenization and Autonomous Agents (AA) capabilities.

When participants engage in sustainable activities, they could be rewarded with tokens that are created and recorded on a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) structure. Developers can build an Autonomous Agent like a vending machine to automate the issuance and distribution of tokens based on the predefined rules and integrate sensors or apps to track participants’ activities, ensuring data is accurately recorded and tokens are distributed accordingly.

So, for instance, when someone uses public transportation, a sensor or app could automatically record this activity and grant tokens accordingly. These tokens could then be used to redeem discounts, access exclusive services, or even be traded for other digital assets. These eco-friendly reward programs can effectively motivate people to adopt greener lifestyles, contributing to a healthier planet.

Donations for Eco-friendly Projects

According to the Green Software Foundation, “there are 2,000 specialized green software tools available in open-source, commercial, and academic contexts.” They were designed specially to mitigate environmental concerns or reach eco-friendly goals, and everyone can find them on public repositories like GitHub. It’s also possible to contribute to them with crypto donations via the Obyte-based platform Kivach.

By using Kivach, anyone can send some crypto coins to any GitHub repository using the Obyte wallet, even if the developers haven’t set up anything to receive donations. This user-friendly system was also designed for cascading donations, which means that developers can automatically forward a part or the total of the received funds to other open-source projects.

To donate, users only need an Obyte wallet with some funds in it, and the GitHub repository name they want to support. To claim a donation, developers will need an Obyte wallet, and pass through a quick and free GitHub attestation process via chatbot to verify their profiles. The funds will stay safely in an Autonomous Agent until rightfully claimed.

Green Energy Trading

Obyte could make clean energy trading easier and more efficient by enabling peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions. Imagine households or businesses with solar panels producing more energy than they need. With Obyte, they could sell this extra energy directly to their neighbors. An Autonomous Agent would handle the buying and selling of energy automatically.

The data would come from Internet of Things (IoT) devices like sensors that measure energy production and consumption in each household. These devices would send data to the Obyte network, where everyone could verify it, and users could execute trades based on real-time data and pay with cryptocurrencies.

For example, if Alice generates surplus solar energy, her system logs this extra power on the Obyte network. Down the street, Bob might need more energy for his home office. His system can see Alice’s available energy and buy it automatically through an Obyte’s Autonomous Agent. This ensures Alice gets paid right away and Bob is charged fairly for what he uses. This way, people can trade energy locally, reduce reliance on big energy companies, and support renewable sources.

Sustainable Agriculture

Do you know where your food comes from or what happened before it was served to you? Probably not. Traditional agriculture often relies on opaque practices that can hide unsustainable methods, such as excessive pesticide use or harmful soil depletion. This lack of transparency makes it difficult for consumers to trust claims about organic or eco-friendly products.

With Obyte, farmers and agricultural businesses can bring transparency to their sustainable practices. By using IoT devices and manual logs, they can record data on soil health, water usage, and pesticide-free farming methods directly onto Obyte’s tamper-proof network. Accredited third parties can verify this data, adding digital certificates to the DAG that confirm adherence to sustainability standards.

Finally, consumers can then scan QR codes on products to access this verified information, gaining insight into the farming practices and the whole journey behind their food. This system not only builds consumer trust but also promotes accountability and environmental responsibility among producers. By ensuring that all recorded data is immutable and transparent, Obyte could help bridge the gap between sustainable agricultural practices and consumer confidence.

Carbon Credit Marketplace

A carbon credit is a permit that allows a company to emit a certain amount of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gasses, in exchange for investing in sustainable practices or projects. They are issued by governments or environmental organizations, and companies buy them to offset their emissions and comply with regulations, or to demonstrate their commitment to reducing their environmental impact. These credits could be tokenized and traded peer-to-peer (P2P) more easily on a distributed ledger like Obyte.

Creating a P2P carbon credit marketplace on Obyte would involve leveraging its decentralized network to facilitate direct trading between buyers and sellers. First, third-party verified carbon credits would be tokenized into digital assets on Obyte, each representing an amount of carbon offset. These tokens would then be listed on a decentralized marketplace where institutional users could buy or sell them directly, without intermediaries.

This marketplace would ensure that all transactions are transparent and secure, with Obyte’s immutable ledger recording every trade. An Autonomous Agent could automate the trading process, handling the transfer of carbon credit tokens and verifying that each transaction meets the agreed terms. This setup not only simplifies the trading process but also builds trust by providing a clear and unchangeable record of all transactions. Participants would benefit from a more efficient, transparent, and accessible platform for trading carbon credits worldwide.

We can say that Obyte's distributed platform offers promising solutions for environmentally friendly practices across various sectors in crypto and beyond. From green practices to transparent supply chains and P2P trading, its decentralized approach fosters sustainability. Explore how Obyte can enhance your green initiatives today—visit our website to learn more and join the movement!

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