Photo by imgix on Unsplash Chances are you have heard someone mention the word in the past year. The , which revolutionizes the way we buy and trade, has flooded into public discourse over the past year. Entrepreneurs are racing to apply it to all industries, ranging from retail to energy to currency itself. blockchain technology Within the sustainability realm, my specialty, blockchain offers multiple benefits. griculture A Increased transparency provides consumers more information about their food. It opens the supply chain, allowing for more direct contact with farmers and assurance of appropriate farming practices. This direct contact reduces the amount of profit skimmed from middlemen and can boost the income of low-income farmers. Assurance of appropriate farming practices protects the soil, environment, and our long-term productivity. Ripe.io, linked below, is doing great work in this space by creating a blockchain that allows customers to trace both the source and quality of produce. _Ripe.io is altering the trajectory of the food system through blockchain technology and the Internet of Things. By…_www.ripe.io Ripe - Let's Talk About the Quality of our Food Photo by Joanna Nix on Unsplash Carbon Emissions In the wake of the Paris Climate Accord, more nations and jurisdictions have moved to put a price on carbon emissions. Carbon price laws and systems can take many forms, with some following a cap-and-trade structure. These structures set a limit on the total carbon emissions an entity (like a company or agency) can produce. If an entity goes over their limit, they can reduce their emissions by purchasing reduced emissions by other entities. In essence, this creates a market of entities trading carbon dioxide emissions and reduction. Blockchain comes in handy during the verification of reduced emissions and tracking its trading. As you can imagine, estimating carbon emissions and reduction can be tricky. Applying blockchain to these markets can bolster their credibility and buy-in, resulting in lower emissions. Companies, like CarbonX, are currently working to establish these markets. _Edit description_www.carbonx.ca Welcome The concern Despite these benefits, blockchain poses a potential problem in regards to sustainability. . Without a corresponding increase in renewables, the rise of blockchain processing will drive up carbon emissions. The process of mining and verification amongst nodes consumes very sizable amounts of electricity Politico Magazine recently covered the rise of bitcoin mining in Washington’s Columbia Basin. They showed how the region’s cheap — and luckily renewable — electricity attracted miners like bees to honey. The growing number of miners in the region put considerable stress on the region’s electric grid, with mining often taking as much electricity and the residents in the region. _EAST WENATCHEE, Washington-Hands on the wheel, eyes squinting against the winter sun, Lauren Miehe eases his Land Rover…_www.politico.com This Is What Happens When Bitcoin Miners Take Over Your Town As such, tensions have escalated between miners and residents as they fight over electricity. Residents have become off-put by bitcoin and cryptocurrency, and counties in Central Washington have considered a moratorium on the establishment of new bitcoin mines. Technology will continue to progress. Like the dot-com boom before this, we will continue to invent new technologies that revolutionize the way we communicate and produce. As we move forward, we will need to grapple with how we energize and power progress. And I don’t just mean electricity. We will need to better understand the draining effect of technological progress. How can we ensure that, as we develop new technologies, we don’t just use communities for their resources, but include them? How can we create partnerships instead of tension? Blockchain can create so much good. Let’s help others see that. Photo by Artur Pokusin on Unsplash
