Upcoming workshop to explore the possibilities of blockchain technology

At a time when black people are setting their sights on ownership and generational wealth, proponents of blockchain technology continue to embrace what they describe as a means to those ends.

That mission continues at Everlasting Life Vegan Cafe in Capitol Heights, Maryland this weekend. From 4.-6. November, participants can visit and gain a basic understanding of blockchain technology.

At the end of this experience, they will walk away with a non-fungible token, or NFT, they developed under the guidance of a blockchain expert. They would also have bought cryptocurrency.

Blockchain technology, also known as Web 3.0, serves as the platform where the exchange of cryptocurrency and NFTs takes place.

Since its inception more than a decade ago, blockchain technology has been heralded as a tool that marginalized people can use to bypass banks and other global entities on the way to collectively building wealth.

NFTs and cryptocurrency count among the many commodities exchanged through blockchain technology. In recent years, governments around the world have slowly embraced cryptocurrency. Even with a drop in value in recent months, Bitcoin and other forms of cryptocurrency have remained stalwarts.

In the age of the metaverse, NFT counts more as a recent creation. In previous years, content creators could not guarantee ownership of video and other media posted on social media platforms. However, through blockchain technology, NFT creators certify their ownership with non-replicable identifiers.

Over the past couple of years, people of various ages have developed and generated millions of dollars from NFTs. They come in many forms, including songs and visual art.

That’s why Nile Ferrell, organizer of the upcoming workshop, titled “Wealth in Web 3.0,” continues to encourage black people of various backgrounds to monetize their talent with blockchain technology.

Over the past three years, Ferrell has been learning about blockchain technology while educating others about its benefits. He began exploring blockchain after participating in a hack-a-thon where he helped African immigrants make digital cross-border payments without a bank account.

Even with concerns about the volatility of cryptocurrency and its environmental impact created by exorbitant amounts of energy used to power Bitcoin mining machines, Ferrell supports blockchain as a tool that black people in the United States and abroad are using in this day and age to secure their sovereignty.

Ferrell went on to describe the concern about energy consumption as an indictment of technology as a whole, not just blockchain. He then expressed hope that people would overcome this fear and see blockchain’s potential to facilitate entrepreneurship and self-governance.

“This applies to all goods, but more so groups and organizations that want to create a stamp of authenticity for their goods without [being attached] to a centralized body, corporation or government,” said Ferrell, 23.

“We’re still in the early stages of blockchain. There’s an opportunity for black people to get ahead as long as we do the work, get the education and have some stake in blockchain early,” Ferrell added.