09 Jan 2022 - Chicko Brigante
A Blockchain, can solve many paperwork issues and provide companies with fast liquid, used to pay investors, workers and suppliers wherever they are. From copyright to future income payments distributed to those who have worked on a profitable project, many could benefit from a blockchain if it’s implemented properly.
The biggest issue though is how much energy it takes to maintain these blockchain transactions and ledgers. Cardano is so far the one that is actually taking this seriously from the ground up. But it will, if used by many still take a lot of energy to run. So I propose we alleviate this issue by offsetting it somewhere else: Reducing the enormous carbon footprint and pollution caused by industrial manufacturing.
But how?
Local licensing is an idea I had a few decades ago. I have discussed it with people from time to time but many of them just say, “It won’t work, companies are doing alright as they are”. But things are different now. The spotlight is shining on the environment brighter than ever. And we now have a chance to get this right using new technology.
The idea is pretty simple. It’s based on creating more manufacturing jobs in local areas rather than having to import masses of product that may or may not sell. For this example I’m going to centre it around the clothing/fashion industry, the first industry I worked in as a fresh faced school leaver after failing my GCSEs.
Currently, as we all know, most clothing is made in big factories half way around the world, away from where they will be sold and worn. While this is done to keep costs low, it comes with two rather large problems; 1) More than is needed has to made, which is wasteful. 2) The huge carbon footprint of these items from having to travel so far.
There is also the issue of slave labour, i.e. those that make the goods getting far less than they deserve!
One of the opportunities of a blockchain is to hold smart contracts. These contracts don’t just offer a simple one off transaction between two people, but an eternal link between the two, where transactions can continue until a set date or for as long as a project is profitable. These contracts also protect both parties, as the contract is written into the blockchain for good. And will protect the copyrights of companies and designers.
Now take a well known brand like Nike and imagine this. Instead of having to put in large orders at large factories and then get that all shipped out to thousands of destinations all around the world, all they have to maintain is their brand, their designers and their product range.
People still want Nike to made to a high quality and people everywhere need jobs. So what about licensing the range to smaller factories closer to the towns and cities that the clothing will be bought? This way the local areas can decide what sells best there and quantities can be adjusted appropriately and more can be charged for less popular items. But these factories will work for themselves with the rights to make and sell Nike.
Now, you could ask, what about local forgeries and factories not paying the correct price for the amount they have sold? The use of cookies can help here. This information can tell an analytics specialist where a user is, what they are looking at, and give Nike a good idea of the overall demand in a particular area. If demand is high but sales seem low, there maybe a problem. The blockchain can also be used to sign and track each products authenticity by scanning each completed product into the system. This will also have the benefit of auditing.
But here is where it gets smart. All orders will have to go through the Nike blockchain, even when a customer buys from a shop filled with goods. When a customer puts in their address online, the order gets assigned to the nearest factory responsible for making that particular product and the payment gets automatically split between Nike, the factory, the shop, the delivery service; whoever gets tied to the particular order type. This transaction is split at source and funds are instantly available to all parties thus keeping the money flowing and the business moving; and hopefully mitigating the demand for counterfeit items along the way.
All transactions enter the blockchain contract and so copyright holders and anyone else involved in the project also get paid their share.
I will put together a flowchart documenting the process and upload it asap.
Obviously, this is quite a simplified overview. But I do hope it can show a use case of how we can start to do things more efficiently in the very near future, and create more opportunities for more people of all walks of life.
This is so far, I think, after years of thinking about these things, a pretty good model for democratic society to function, while keeping the money flowing to where it needs to. The security and transparency a blockchain offers should be seen as an incentive to change things for the better.
Tax. I know no-one likes that word. But we still need maintenance; of public transport, flood defences, schools, building, bushes etc.
For everything to work this needs to be built into the transaction types. The value will depend on usage. E.g. your service uses the roads more than most, so road tax is paid from your companies transactions straight to the road maintenance firm.
In this basic use case, money will go to where it needs to instantly. The only job of local councillors now will be to make sure these firms are doing what they are supposed to be doing and if not, using their authority to replace the roads manager with someone more efficient.
And local council meetings should always be open to the local public, or available as a live stream, as complete transparency and public insight is essential to bringing communities back together and making sure the councillors are doing their jobs correctly.
I like to stay abreast of new technology and am always looking for solutions for a better way for mankind to do things. I’m not politically orientated, for or against capitalism or socialism etc. I believe that things can work well if we are willing to find the right way. I am concerned that more people leave school every year with little hope of achievement due to not being formally educated or academically inclined. Not enough is done to encourage many of these people, or help them find their true talents, and it’s very easy for them to fall into a life of mindless consumption as an anaesthetic. This as we know can lead to bad health, mentally and physically; and is also bad for the environment which in turn also impacts health. What keeps my mind busy is consistently looking for a new implementable solutions that can change things for the better environmentally, give people hope, and improve their lives wherever they live. The more I learn about blockchain technology the more I think we are lucky that so many top computer engineers are working on potential solutions such as this. There is probably a little way to go before it’s ripe but I sincerely hope this can be implemented and understood by enough people to really take off in the very near future.
I am very against the idea of a public credit system. People are already bored and lacking inspiration. Paying people to stay at home is the worse thing I can possibly think of. We as a species need a purpose and we need something to hope for. As far as credit for good behaviour, that too is a terrible idea. Trust is key. If we can trust each other more and show that we can be trusted, then people will behave. Total surveillance is dystopian, paranoid and mad. It might be profitable but ask yourselves, is that really the world we want to live in? Would it not be better to create a system that works for everyone and thus inspires people to get involved? Would it not be better for us all to get on the same wavelength and be universally positive about our existence?
Humanity has been to some pretty dark places in our history. We don’t want to go there again. Trust, Peace and Prosperity must be top of mind if we are to move forward and face the future ethically and responsibly.
Peace :)