Zumo appointed to WEF crypto sustainability unit
Edinburgh-based crypto wallet Zumo has joined the World Economic Forum’s Crypto Sustainability Coalition.
Part of the wider Crypto Impact and Sustainability Accelerator, the newly-formed coalition will explore how blockchain tools can be leveraged to contribute to meaningful progress toward positive climate action.
Earlier this month, Zumo won the Climate Innovation category at the 2022 Scottish Financial Technology Awards.
Zumo will contribute to the outputs of the coalition’s targeted working groups in developing the guiding principles and toolkits for companies, regulators and start-ups to leverage the potential of blockchain to reach energy goals.
Particular areas of focus include collaborative assessment of crypto sector energy usage; an examination of the potential of web3 technology to facilitate positive climate action; and further investigation of the usage of blockchain-based carbon credits.
“It’s extremely encouraging to see the level of coordinated activity that has emerged in this area since we started our own crypto decarbonisation journey,” said Zumo CEO Nick Jones.
“As we all know, there’s a lot left to do and a long way to go; what we’re seeing, however, is the strands of this work in the crypto ESG space really coming together – and, perhaps, the beginnings of a shift in the narrative and the ability to see this technology not just as a problem, but as a potential force multiplier for good.
“Making sure crypto and blockchain more generally develops in a way that caters to the needs of people and the planet is critical to Zumo and what we’re doing. We’re delighted to be invited to participate in this worthy World Economic Forum initiative, and to continue to build and collaborate with our fellow actors in the space.”
Evin Cheikosman, Lead of the Crypto Sustainability Coalition, World Economic Forum, stressed that climate change was a global coordination problem.
“The current legacy system has failed to coordinate effective policies and capital investment into the commitments necessary to address the most pertinent threat to humanity,” she explained.
“What is urgently needed are global coordination technologies that can transcend the mass bureaucratization of climate action. This is where web3 takes up the torch. I’m excited to work with climate innovative companies, like Zumo, to showcase the impact journey that the Crypto Sustainability Coalition is spearheading from climate challenge to web3 solution.”
Professor Cathy Mulligan, ERA Chair Blockchain and World Economic Forum, Crypto Impact and Sustainability Accelerator (CISA) Fellow (Working Group 1 lead), commented: “The most critical discussion the world has today is how to combat climate change; within cryptocurrencies measuring true environmental impact can often be more complicated than in other technologies. Within this working group, we have convened independent experts to create tools and guidelines to those working in this space deal with this complex issue.”