Web3 Impact No. 12

The intersection of Web3 and social / environmental impact.

Kyle Westaway

Mar 16, 2023

Happy Thursday!

The Future of Medicine is Tokens

Crypto capital and blockchain infrastructure are now powering Decentralized Science (DeSci), or the permissionless capital formation for scientific research. The VC fund Zee Prime Capital outlines its thesis for DeSci: blockchain infrastructure will 1) accelerate research and funding for therapeutics, 2) upend the existing incentive systems between government and academia, 3) financialize and provide broader access to an otherwise fairly closed asset class, and 4) produce real-world outcomes that people are ready to pay for. They predict that DeSci will break up the monopoly that today’s governments has over the direction of scientific innovation. Zee Prime Capital (15 minutes)

How to address the challenges in carbon markets

Carbon markets have faced substantial criticism for their lack of transparency, accessibility, equitability and quality. A white paper by Crypto Sustainability Coalition Working Group on Blockchain Carbon Credits addresses the challenges facing current carbon markets and suggests a path forward. They propose 1) promoting inclusive, equitable and transparent governance, 2) ensure carbon markets adopt a common baseline taxonomy to provide clarity, 3) use digitally native credits to support more automation in validation and verification, and 4) build for Interoperability and transparency across exchanges and platforms. WeForum (11 minutes)

DAO for African Devs

The Celo Community has approved the formation of a community DAO in Africa with the stated goal of scaling Web3 to developers and builders at the grassroots. The purpose of the DAO aligns with the Celo mission to create a more equitable, regenerative financial system where value flows back to the under-banked communities around the world who need it the most. The DAO has 3 main focus areas: 1) Attract Web 3 Talent locally by focusing on local developer incubator programs. 2) Community Education and University Outreach. 3) Building Market Awareness and Brand Positioning. BitcoinKE (4 minutes)

Scaling Climate Finance

Climate finance is local, national, or transnational financing—drawn from public, private, and alternative sources of financing—that seeks to support mitigation and adaptation actions that will address climate change. Blockchain technology is never a panacea, but can help bring about more accurate and transparent carbon markets, automated incentive structures, and interconnected applications that help establish more impactful and verifiable climate finance initiatives. Transactions are dependent on multiple interconnected parties all benefiting from a shared system of record, greater immutability, and automation. Chainlink (18 minutes)

Project Spotlight

This state of affairs suggests a stark reality: Those who don’t own homes currently are largely priced out of homeownership. The comforting thought that generations of parents have had- that their kids would live better than they did—is no longer present. We are in the midst of a generational set-back, flipping the normal generational advancement on its head. But there is a way out. There are ways to regain the dream and to set the river straight again. With Rook's Shared Value Investment an aspiring homeowner can purchase a home with as little as 5% down, while enjoying lower monthly payments. Rook Capital

Web3 Impact

Web3 Impact is a briefing about leveraging Web3 for positive social and environmental impact by Banks Benitez and Kyle Westaway.