Mercy Corps Ventures and CCI:

Documenting the Real-World Impacts of Web3 in Emerging Markets

The Mercy Corps Ventures and Crypto Council for Innovation Partnership

Understanding the real-world impacts of emerging technology is critical to ensure that the benefits of these technologies are evenly distributed and that responsible policy and industry practices can be formed. Mercy Corps Ventures’ Crypto for Good Fund and the Crypto Council for Innovation have partnered to create evidence-based reports on a series of Web3 pilot projects in emerging economies.

Mercy Corps Ventures has invested $2+ million in seed funding to Web3 pilot projects that address the climate disaster. Its investments focus on projects utilizing Web3 technologies to enhance vital areas such as resource coordination, insurance, and financial services in regions susceptible to climate adversities. The goal is to not only counteract the effects of climate change but also to foster sustainable development and improve the economic conditions of these communities. By integrating blockchain technology, these initiatives can achieve greater transparency, reduce corruption and inefficiency, and provide more direct support to those in need.

The Crypto Council for Innovation has partnered with Mercy Corps Ventures to document a series of pilot projects, using its global research perspective to examine the real-world impacts and implications for scaling such solutions. These pilots focus on new Web3 tools that help to build climate resilience for the 3.3B people around the world whose daily lives are vulnerable to climate change. The reports showcase the pilots’ impact after deployment and seek to understand the economic, social, and environmental effects at the individual and community level.

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  • Anticipatory Climate Insurance for Kenyan Pastoralists

    In rural Kenya, an anticipatory climate insurance pilot powered by DIVA Donate pilot made a substantial impact on pastoralist communities in two counties, who depend heavily on livestock for their livelihood and are highly vulnerable to climate variations. As drought has plagued the region over the past few years and become more predictable, aid has often lagged behind need. In some cases aid was delivered months after the worst impacts of drought have already been experienced.

    The initiative, a partnership between DIVA Technologies, Fortune Credit, and Shamba Network, aimed to automatically trigger anticipatory cash payments to impacted populations once the conditions for drought are sensed – and critically, allow pastoralists to prepare for drought and save their livestock with the timely support received.

    Using crypto rails to facilitate payments to pastoralists’ M-Pesa accounts, the project used smart contracts triggered by widely used satellite sensor ecological data to facilitate donation-based cash transfers to pastoralists impacted by the dry season. By leveraging blockchain technology, DIVA Donate dramatically improved the efficiency of financial aid delivery, reducing donation transaction costs by 75% and the time it takes to process payments by 90%. This quick and cost-effective method allowed 262 participating pastoralists to receive funds promptly before the onset of the dry season's harsh effects.

    Read the Report

  • Atlantis DAO Water System Management in Rural India

    The Atlantis DAO project deployed a pilot project in rural India that developed a decentralized peer-to-peer water network. This network is designed to serve underserved communities, providing them with consistent access to clean water. The technology underpinning this project used a blockchain-based token system to incentivize and compensate community members for their participation in water collection, testing, and distribution.

    The pilot also introduced a mobile app that was gamified to engage users effectively. The app's interface and functionality were designed to feel familiar to rural smartphone users, simplifying the complexities involved in managing water resources through traditional means. As the report finds, over an 11-month period, this pilot engaged 3,859 individuals and served a population of approximately 45,000. Through on the ground interviews and online surveys, users of the app reported that Atlantis DAO initiative not only improved water conditions but also stimulated local economies.

    Atlantis DAO has created over 440 new informal jobs, 30% of which were held by women, promoting gender equality in employment within the community.

    Report the Report