Can NFTs be Good For the Climate?
In March of 2021, the digital artist known as Beeple sold an NFT for $69 Million at Christie’s auction house in New York City. The mind-boggling price of the unique JPEG and Christie’s long history where posh billionaires trade their fortunes for priceless works of art propelled NFTs into the public eye.
Since the historic deal, NFTs have skyrocketed in popularity. Digital artists from around the globe are adding their creativity to the space, and collectors are ready to buy. In 2021 alone, NFT sales are projected to reach $17.7 Billion and continue to grow into 2022 and beyond.
What is an NFT?
An NFT, or non-fungible token, is generally considered to be a piece of art stored on the blockchain to cryptographically confirm ownership. The “non-fungible” part basically means that it is one of a kind and cannot be replaced by anything else. Bitcoin, for example, is considered fungible. If I trade one Bitcoin for one Bitcoin, I’ll end up with the exact same thing. But an NFT is “non-fungible” because it’s one of a kind. As in all markets, scarcity drives value.
The ability to verify ownership of a particular asset is critical for art and can be applied to countless other industries. But, there’s a problem…
What’s the Problem with NFTs?
In summary, what makes NFT art pieces unique is that they’re stored on the blockchain. This allows the owner to verify that they own a particular piece with 100% confidence. The trade-off is that many blockchains take lots of energy to run.
Ethereum is one of the world’s most popular blockchains for developers and artists. So far, most NFTs are created and traded on the Ethereum blockchain which is not very energy efficient. The Ethereum blockchain uses Proof-of-Work, a mechanism that requires high levels of electricity consumption to power transactions. This includes sending your friends money and creating your own NFTs.
While miners are slowly transitioning towards renewable energy sources, energy consumption is still a concern.
Well… is it all hopeless? Should we just give up on NFTs? No!
Enter Algorand & Webblen: A Carbon Negative Alternative
The Algorand Blockchain began in 2019 as a much cleaner alternative to Ethereum. Its advanced technology was “designed as a highly energy-efficient network from the start” making the blockchain nearly carbon neutral. Algorand has also committed to working with environmental organizations to offset their carbon footprint even further. In 2021, Algorand officially became carbon negative.
Algorand now has a growing community of NFT artists including AlgoBots, Algorillas, Al Goannas, and many others. The whole community is proud of their NFT art while positively impacting the environment.
For this reason, the Webblen team decided to make Algorand the foundational technology behind the Webblen platform.
Using Webblen and interacting with the Webblen Network now makes the world a cleaner place.
How to Sell NFTs on the Webblen Marketplace
Webblen is an ecosystem that enables users to explore their community through events and media, earn the WBLN token for attending events and being involved, and spend their rewarded WBLN in the Webblen marketplace.
As an artist, you can tap into that ecosystem to create NFTs and earn both WBLN and USD for helping the planet. Here’s how you do it, step by step.
- Download the Webblen app on iOS and Android
- Set up your account
- Create an earnings account by navigating to your wallet and selecting “create an earnings account.” (You’ll be creating a Stripe account, which is the industry standard payment processor for mobile apps)
- Create your first NFT by clicking the + button in the top right of your screen and selecting “Shop Item.” Now, just fill out the information and click “Done”
- To promote your NFT outside of Webblen, go to the “Shop” tab in your profile. Click on the NFT you just created, click the 3 dots in the corner and click “Share.” You’ll now be able to share your Marketplace item with your friends and followers!
In Summary
NFTs have already changed the world of art but at a considerable cost. Antiquated blockchains like Ethereum are popular but are harmful to our planet.
Platforms built on Algorand, like Webblen, are the solution.
With Webblen, you’re able to create your NFTs while helping the planet.
