Burn the world down with Bitcoin…or maybe not? - Blockchain sustainability from Cryptocurrencies and beyond

Description

With the increasing popularity of cryptocurrencies many are concerned about the environmental soundness of Bitcoin, under the rationale that since the Bitcoin network uses a high amount of electricity for mining, its environmental impact might be substantial. A wide range of estimates of Bitcoin’s energy consumption have been published in the media, reflecting the uncertainty of such assessments. But, how good are these estimates? And how can we actually estimate the environmental impact of Bitcoin? In this talk Massimo Pizzol – industrial ecologist – will present his recent work on the life cycle assessment of Bitcoin mining, that is essentially about providing scientifically sound estimates of the impact of this cryptocurrency. The talk will also include a few words about Massimo’s work on assessing the sustainability of blockchain applications beyond cryptocurrencies, as part of the “sustainable blockchain technologies” project he is leading.

Period	3 Dec 2020
Event title	Seminar of the Concordium Blockchain Research Center Aarhus (COBRA)
Event type	Seminar
Location	Aarhus, DenmarkShow on map
Degree of Recognition	Local