Climathon: Blockchain4Climate

[IMPACT] Please describe your proposed solution.

Why Geneva? 

Geneva is a very unique ecosystem hosting major UN agencies, international organizations (IOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other stakeholders engaged in driving the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDGs 12 and 13. Climate change is humanity's greatest challenge and it is time to tackle it together; it cannot be addressed in silos anymore, as it touches upon all aspects of our lives. 

Issues of lack of transparency in carbon emissions through supply chains increase the difficulty of measuring and reducing carbon emissions. Blockchain has the potential to revolutionize climate action - e.g. through a transparent measurement and traceability of carbon emissions - leveraging its three core pillars: transparency, decentralization, and immutability. We aim at raising awareness on the potential of blockchain for climate action and connect blockchain platforms with a diverse range of actors within the Geneva ecosystem. Through Impact Hub Geneva’s expertise in sustainability and circular economy and its access to Geneva’s both local and international ecosystems, including UN entities, potential partnerships and synergies will be enhanced. 

How does Climathon work? 

Climathon is a 3-month International Open innovation program, with a powerful 24h solutions-hackathon at its core, creating climate action in the form of tangible projects; supporting climate friendly businesses and start-ups; and addressing local policy changes. Climathon Geneva aims at supporting the Cantonal Climate Plan including by achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. Climathon follows three steps: defining the climate challenges in partnership with interested parties; developing solutions through a co-creation process; providing continuous support to realize the solutions. Climathon opens the doors to participants from university and academia, the UN, IOs, and NGOs, private sector companies and start-ups. 

We want to propose a blockchain related challenge to Climathon Geneva, taking place on the 11-12 November 2022, to raise awareness around the potential of blockchain for climate action supporting the finding of innovative solutions for leveraging the transparency provided by blockchain to reduce carbon emissions. This event will bring together representatives from different chains working on climate action (e.g. Climate Neutral Cardano, Climate Collective) and blockchain startups with UN and NGOs, students, and entrepreneurs creating new connections between blockchain communities and external actors.   

After the event, the developed solutions can potentially be selected to participate in Impact Hub Geneva’s Circular Economy Incubator program to develop their minimum viable product. Or alternatively, by submitting their proof of concept, projects can register to Impact Hub Geneva’s Kickstart program supporting startups. Regardless, Impact Hub Geneva organizes numerous events during the year for entrepreneurs and startups supporting them in networking and creating partnerships.

[IMPACT] Please describe how your proposed solution will address the Challenge that you have submitted it in.

This project will address the challenge of lack of awareness & understanding and innovation & decision-making in two ways. First, by efficiently communicating the potential of blockchain technology for climate action to actors from outside of the Catalyst community and raising awareness around the topic area. This will open the venue for new collaborations between Geneva-based stakeholders and blockchain platforms and startups. Secondly, by creating the right environment for the creation of innovative solutions for the implementation of blockchain for climate action. Proposing new solutions stemming from increased knowledge sharing and with the guidance of representatives from different chains and startups as mentors and experts will open Catalyst to new communities and strengthen it.  

Overall benefits: 

• Raising awareness outside of the Catalyst community on the use of blockchain for climate action; 
• Ideating innovative solutions for the use of blockchain for climate action; 
• Expanding the Catalyst community making it known to the Climathon network of people through the challenge and communication; 
• Possibility of scaling the solutions developed.

[IMPACT] What are the main risks that could prevent you from delivering the project successfully and please explain how you will mitigate each risk?

The main challenge will be finding participants, as it always is for events, however, Climathon is a well established annual occasion with a solid network of people which will be leveraged for communication and marketing. 

[FEASIBILITY] Please provide a detailed plan, including timeline and key milestones for delivering your proposal.

Project Roadmap: 

July - August 2022

• Research on the topic
• Challenge development  

September 2022 

• Communication and marketing

October 2022: 

• Preparation laboratory with participants: presenting the context, challenges and engaging with experts 

November 2022 

• 11-12 November: Climathon Geneva 2022 taking place 
• Development of solutions
• Winning team announced 

Main Deliverables and Outputs: 

• Creation of a blockchain challenge focused on the potential of blockchain for increasing transparency for climate action; 
• Recruitment of at least two teams of 4 people addressing the blockchain challenge during Climathon Geneva;
• Development of at least two innovative solutions applying blockchain for climate action; 
• Communication of the proposed solution to our networks through our communication channels. 

[FEASIBILITY] Please provide a detailed budget breakdown.

Total: $13’500   

• Recruitment: $5’000 
• Experts: $2’000
• Facilitation: $1’000 
• Communication: $5’000
• Catering: $500 (for estimated 10 participants, costs may vary depending on the number of participants)

[FEASIBILITY] Please provide details of the people who will work on the project.

• Jie Li

Organizer of Climathon Geneva 2022 and Head of Collaboration Space at Impact Hub Geneva-Lausanne. Jie has extensive experience as Financial Analyst and Leads the Circual Economy Transition program at Impact Hub Geneva for SMEs and startups.

• Silvia Ecclesia

Social Innovation Research Assistant at Impact Hub Geneva with a focus on digitalisation and blockchain for impact.  

[FEASIBILITY] If you are funded, will you return to Catalyst in a later round for further funding? Please explain why / why not.

Depending on the outcome of Climathon, the participants might come to Catalyst for funding or we might return to scale solutions or fund a future blockchain challenge during the next iteration of Climathon.

[FEASIBILITY] Are you or any member of your team working on any other proposals in this Fund9?

[FEASIBILITY] Are you or your team working on any other proposals from previous Funds?

[AUDITABILITY] Please describe what you will measure to track your project's progress, and how will you measure these?

The progress and development of the project will be measured by: 

• Development of blockchain challenge 
• # people registered to hack the challenge
• # of solutions developed
• # of people reached by communication of the solutions afterwards

[AUDITABILITY] What does success for this project look like?

Success for this project is the development of a blockchain challenge meaningful for the blockchain community to be proposed at Climathon Geneva 2022. The number of participants addressing the challenge would be at least 8 people divided into two groups - either spontaneously registering or being specifically recruited in light of their role and expertise. In an ideal scenario a team addressing the blockchain challenge will express an interest in and be supported for the scaling of its solution, either within or outside the context of Climathon. 

[AUDITABILITY] Please provide information on whether this proposal is a continuation of a previously funded project in Catalyst or an entirely new one.

Entirely new one

Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Rating

SDG Goals

2 - End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

3 - Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

4 - Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

6 - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

7 - Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

11 - Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

13 - Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

14 - Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

15 - Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

17 - Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development

SDG Subgoals

11.3 - By 2030, enhance inclusive and sustainable urbanization and capacity for participatory, integrated and sustainable human settlement planning and management in all countries

11.6 - By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management

11.b - By 2020, substantially increase the number of cities and human settlements adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards inclusion, resource efficiency, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, resilience to disasters, and develop and implement, in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, holistic disaster risk management at all levels

12.2 - By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources

12.5 - By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse

12.6 - Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle

12.8 - By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature

12.a - Support developing countries to strengthen their scientific and technological capacity to move towards more sustainable patterns of consumption and production

12.b - Develop and implement tools to monitor sustainable development impacts for sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products

13.3 - Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning

14.1 - By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution

15.2 - By 2020, promote the implementation of sustainable management of all types of forests, halt deforestation, restore degraded forests and substantially increase afforestation and reforestation globally

17.17 - Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships, building on the experience and resourcing strategies of partnerships

17.3 - Mobilize additional financial resources for developing countries from multiple sources

2.4 - By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality

2.a - Increase investment, including through enhanced international cooperation, in rural infrastructure, agricultural research and extension services, technology development and plant and livestock gene banks in order to enhance agricultural productive capacity in developing countries, in particular least developed countries

2.c - Adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food commodity markets and their derivatives and facilitate timely access to market information, including on food reserves, in order to help limit extreme food price volatility

3.9 - By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination

3.c - Substantially increase health financing and the recruitment, development, training and retention of the health workforce in developing countries, especially in least developed countries and small island developing States

4.7 - By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development

6.3 - By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally

7.a - By 2030, enhance international cooperation to facilitate access to clean energy research and technology, including renewable energy, energy efficiency and advanced and cleaner fossil-fuel technology, and promote investment in energy infrastructure and clean energy technology

7.b - By 2030, expand infrastructure and upgrade technology for supplying modern and sustainable energy services for all in developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States and landlocked developing countries, in accordance with their respective programmes of support