BTA and the impact ledger
The Blockchain Trust Accelerator (BTA) has announced the creation of a curated online registry in partnership with Social Alpha Foundation (SAF). The online registry entitled ‘Impact Ledger’ spans across the non-profit, public and for-profit sectors. Tomicah Tillemann, the Founder of BTA and Chairman of the Global Blockchain Business Council, made the announcement at the 2018 Concordia Annual Summit.
The Impact Ledger aspires to raise awareness of socially beneficial blockchain projects. It targets key audiences including funding institutions exploring blockchain technology, NGOs interested in pursuing blockchain projects, and for-profit organizations. Additionally, it considers the creation of blockchain projects and/or partnering with those in other sectors.
Tillemann expressed his enthusiasm about the ledger, stating “Attempts to catalogue activity in the space have lacked rigor, a mechanism for keeping information up-to-date, and a communication strategy to ensure information about projects reaches the right audiences. The Impact Ledger will solve those issues by convening experts in the field to define parameters for inclusion in the registry; applying those parameters to researched and referred projects; implementing a plan for updating The Impact Ledger regularly with additions, deletions and relevant news on listed projects; and crafting a communications plan to raise awareness of the registry among key constituents.”
BTA is the world’s prominent global platform for harnessing blockchain technology to resolve social impact and governance challenges. Established in 2016, BTA operates as a not-for-profit collaboration between Washington D.C. based think tank New America, the Bitfury Group and the National Democratic Institute with support from the Rockefeller Foundation. It brings together technologists, governments, philanthropists and civil society organizations to build blockchain pieces that benefit society.
According to Tillemann, “Blockchain technology is emerging at a time when broken systems, a lack of trust, and bureaucratic dysfunction are preventing civil society leaders from achieving their objectives. Many high potential blockchain for social impact projects — projects that could affect all facets of civil society — are currently underway. But these projects are far-flung, and differ widely in terms of their potential, the degree to which they leverage blockchain’s capabilities, and their stages of development.”
Partnership with Social Alpha Foundation
Social Alpha Foundation is a not-for-profit, grant-making platform whose main focus is supporting blockchain education and outreach to enable communities to utilize blockchain technology for social good. It was founded by Jehan Chu and Nydia Zhang in 2017.
Headquartered in Hong Kong, SAF issues no-strings attached funding to projects and companies that educate communities on blockchain for social change. The foundation also grants non-commercial blockchain applications that center on improving education, public health and the environment.
BTA has received support from SAF with a recent receipt of a six-figure anchor grant. Such support aids projects and research to help institutions and organizations ensure transparency, increase accountability, build trust, and create opportunities in core institutions. Other SAF Grantees include Aparna Krishnan, 2018 Thiel Fellowship recipient and co-founder of Mechanism Labs, Amply, and the Blockchain Impact Summit.
Successful applicants receive financial grants ranging from US$10,000 to US$100,000 with no repayment obligations and no interest charged. Funding for grants is raised in cryptocurrency from commercial projects and individuals that have accomplished successful token sales. This creates a channel for donors to embrace corporate social responsibility practices.
Nydia Zhang, Co-founder and Chairman of Social Alpha Foundation was excited about the partnership, stating, “Blockchain is one of the most significant technical innovations of our time. The technology can create contracts, records and transactions that are highly transparent, secure and resistant to manipulation. Blockchain is already being deployed in the finance sector, with over $1 billion invested in potential fin-tech applications. From strengthening resilience and managing identity, to improving the efficacy of relief efforts, blockchain is poised to have a profound impact on the world.”
She added that, “The Blockchain Trust Accelerator will elevate the field of blockchain for social impact with the Impact Ledger, and we are proud to be supporting them as they build a definitive, vetted registry which promotes the understanding and flow of resources to blockchain for social impact projects, and which separates hype from projects with real impact and potential.”
