If people know anything about blockchain technology, it’s the astounding appreciation in the value of bitcoin in recent months—a cryptocurrency that uses blockchain as a way of transparently and instantaneously recording peer-to-peer payments. But blockchain is much more than mere financial tool. And according to many people invested in the environmental sector, it might just hold the key to better climate change solutions. In this special Earth Day episode of Disruptors, an RBC podcast, guest host Trinh Theresa Do speaks with two experts who know the climate beat well: Joseph Pallant, founder of the Blockchain for Climate Foundation and director of climate innovation for Ecotrust Canada; and Carolyn DuBois, executive director of The Water Program of The Gordon Foundation. While technology is no panacea—and our guests confront the very real issue of blockchain’s environmental cost, as well as its many benefits—the work of Joseph and Carolyn promises a brighter and greener future for many people around the world.
RBC Tech for Nature is RBC’s multi-year commitment to preserving our natural ecosystem and works with partners to leverage technology and innovation capabilities to solve pressing environmental challenges. Learn more here. To read RBC’s Climate Blueprint, click here.
For details on Blockchain for Climate—and how Joseph and his team are using the BITMO platform to issue and exchange climate credits—click here. For more on EcoTrust Canada, which partners with Blockchain for Climate to implement its blockchain project, click here. Joseph also talks about “Article 6” from the Paris Agreement; if you want to do a deep dive into that seminal international agreement, click here.
For more information on what Datastream is doing to ensure cleaner waters, click here. Carolyn cites a study from WWF-Canada, and how little is known about the quality of watershed health in Canada; more about that study can be discovered here.