In a recent Tweet, the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, challenged us all to “hodl the rainforest.” In crypto parlance the implication is that we all need to protect the rainforests that remain to us and future generations. The Universal Protocol Alliance (UPA), a coalition of leading blockchain companies including Bittrex Global, CertiK, Fifth Era, Hard Yaka, Ledger, Trovio, SFOX and Uphold, have responded, and today are excited to announce that “hodling the rainforest” is now possible through a unique technological breakthrough: tokenized and transparently substantiated certified voluntary carbon credits. It turns out that crypto can save the rainforest.
Today, Universal Carbon (UPCO2) the world’s first tradable REDD+ carbon credit token becomes the first environmental crypto commodity to be listed on Bittrex Global – the leading Liechtenstein-based digital asset trading platform.
“We are excited to be providing every Bittrex Global user with access to UPCO2,” said Tom Albright, CEO, Bittrex Global. “With this important new listing, we’re enabling institutional and retail investors to both invest in the appreciation of carbon credits and offset carbon footprints while helping to save the world’s rainforests.”
Launched December 1st 2020, each UPCO2 Token represents one tonne of CO2 pollution averted by a certified REDD+ project preventing rainforest loss or degradation. Every token is backed by a digital certificate issued by Verra and other international standards agencies, which allows certified projects to turn their greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions into tradable carbon credits.
In the lead-up to the creation of UPCO2 and BTC0 (an ERC-20 wrapped carbon neutral bitcoin), the UP Alliance consulted many of the world’s leading carbon experts, ultimately forming the UP Carbon Foundation. The UP Carbon Foundation’s role will be to ensure that the carbon credits underlying UPCO2 are diverse, of unimpeachable quality, and, where possible through block issuance, the money paid for fully performed credits can immediately flow into the expansion of protected acreage.
UPA Chairman, Matthew Le Merle said: “We believe Universal Carbon is the best way to achieve the mission of protecting the world’s remaining rainforests and are excited that Bittrex Global agrees. We plan to jointly submit our technological breakthrough for one of the X Prize Foundation awards that Elon Musk is sponsoring.”
“UPA is proud to have made Elon’s vision a reality. Hodling the rainforests is a critical and tremendous start, as they are the lungs of the world and under siege… but with the advent of digital carbon credits, an entire world of possibilities open up, creating an efficient conduit for market forces to deliver outsize results precisely where they’re most needed.” concluded Le Merle.
