Are cryptocurrencies a tool for sustainable living?

By Arthur Blok

Bitcoin was launched in 2009 as a new kind of money: skeptical about traditional financial institutions and instead of a central bank using a complicated programming technology. Since that moment numerous cryptocurrencies were introduced. Are cryptocurrencies a useful tool to become more sustainable?

Years later the price of Bitcoin has risen drastically, and many are looking to automatic trading software such as Bitcoin Up Stiftung Warentest to help them invest, as the process can be difficult for someone not well versed in cryptocurrency. However, there are still those that find themselves disappointed that just like many other coins, it became a mainstream investment opportunity in a financial system it was meant to replace. Most of these crypto coins turned out not to be a responsible investment. It is for this reason that investments regarding cryptocurrencies must be done only after ample research on the topic. If you are interested, you could read this story by The Canberra Times to know more about Bitcoin investments.

Nevertheless, the demand for cryptocurrency seems to still be on the rise, and there are thousands, if not millions, of people leveraging this as a new and interesting investment opportunity. It's not just a small region of the world that's on this journey, there are people all over the world looking to get onto the crypto bandwagon; you can learn about crypto mining in australia and several other countries to know more in that regard.

However, some important aspects to determine if a cryptocurrency is sustainable or not include: how energy-intensive is the so called mining process? How is the used energy this process being generated? How are the earnings of the cryptocurrencies being spend? This of course a dynamic process: innovations in green cryptocurrencies are being conceived every minute.

Bitcoin
Taking Bitcoin as an example it is common knowledge that the mining of the most popular of all cryptocurrencies is a very energy-intensive procedure. It supposedly uses as much electricity as average household uses up to a week. For each bitcoin transaction miners use 215 kilowatt-hours of energy, and there are about 3,00,000 bitcoins being transacted every day.

In the wake of these energy concerns a few years ago the first ‘green' cryptocurrencies were introduced as a more sustainable tool for investment. Using renewable sources of energy like solar, wind energy, and hydropower.

Popular green cryptocurrencies
In the dynamic land of cryptocurrencies it is easy come, easy go as some mega gains are wiped out almost as quickly as they came. This is why those who invest in crypto often go on sites like findcryptoexchange.com and do lots of research to ensure they are making the safest possible investments. What are the most popular green currencies? Below some of them in random order:

Burstcoin enables its users to connect people and companies without intermediaries in order to communicate or business. It supposedly acts as a scalable, environmentally friendly and adaptable blockchain.

While EverGreen claims to take responsible care of our environment and the world we live in by helping to raise funds for environmental green projects. It is descendant of Bitcoin. Their website claims that is uses a more energy-efficient platform for its transfers.

Transactions in EnergyCoin run on so called Proof of Stake protocol with a sustainable vision of the planets future. Staking is more energy efficient compared to mining. It is backed by Arterran Renewables.

GENERcoin is just like EnergyCoin backed by the energy outputs purchased from renewable energy generating facilities. It can be redeemed for a specific solid biofuel or traded like bitcoins.

Another popular green crypto is SolarCoin. A currency that envisions a solar-powered planet. It helps build a foundation the global energy transition by rewarding solar producers with an energy-referenced currency. It claims that its total reserves represent 97,500 Terawatt hours of solar-energy.

Dag-chain technology
Dagcoin on the other hand uses another technology for mining. It saves loads of energy by using an alternative mining process called Dag-chain technology. DAG-chain transactions are conducted without any physical mining and are therefore far more energy efficient. Every transaction is validated by the transaction itself, cutting costs to network users as well as cutting down on energy consumption.

If you consider investing in green cryptocurrencies decent research is a must. Take all the above-mentioned criteria into consideration, visit various website and look at the history of a certain coin before placing your money. If you purchase without thinking, then you simply risk losing all your investment.

Arthur Blok is the editor-in-chief of Globally Today. He is a Dutch-Lebanese journalist specialized in Middle Eastern politics and economics. He is author of various books in Dutch and Arabic. He has over 20 years of regional experience and has a profound interest in sustainability and innovative energy solutions.

Source: Globally Today

 
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