Nat Geo Genesis NFT Announcement Under Fire
The new non-fungible token (NFT) offering of National Geographic or Nat Geo is currently drawing a lot of flak online. According to critics, the new Genesis NFT is against the company’s ethical standards as the creation of these digital assets is considered harmful to the environment.
Last month, Nat Geo unveiled its Genesis NFT Collection. The assets consist of artistic illustrations by a group of artists who call themselves Utopiea. They show depictions of various creatures and cultures around the world with a particular focus on sub-Saharan Africa.
Total NFTs in the collection are composed of 1,888 items with 118 editions. A total of 16 artists have been credited for these digital works.
The criticism
However, Nat Geo’s NFT collection drew mixed reactions online. Some of them strongly criticized the company’s direction towards supporting and engaging in NFTs.
The media’s target group believes that the promotion of NFTs is against the morals of a nature-focused network that has championed environmental protection and conservation for more than a century. This is because the creation of such is considered harmful to the environment.
The trade-off
Based on research by the NFT Club, each NFT created in the blockchain requires around 83 kilograms of carbon dioxide (CO2). Unfortunately, the emissions do not end when the asset is extracted.
The existence of each NFT alone continues to generate CO2 emissions. The survey found that it costs around 23 kg of CO2 each time a bid is submitted to an NFT. When a sale takes place, an extra 51 kg of CO2 is released. Finally, 30 kg of CO2 is generated when the asset is transferred to another owner, and the cycle continues.
The emissions produced by each NFT sale will require at least 1.37 trees for offsetting. So for example, every 5 million NFT sold would require approximately 6.85 million trees to offset the emissions.
Total NFTs in circulation in 2023
It is difficult to come up with the actual number of NFTs in circulation these days due to their constantly changing supply. However, they are estimated to be between 11 million and 13 million by 2023.
The prices of each NFT vary. It is mostly determined by its creator and the subsequent demand it creates.
So far, the most expensive NFT to date is “The Merge” which sold for a total of $91.8 million in December 2021. However, it should be noted that this property is not owned by a single entity, but rather by 29,983 individuals. With that, the asset was divided into 312,686 coins, which were conveyed to the buyers.
Final thoughts
However, many critics ignore the fact that over the years the network has had its own magazine and channel that requires the exploitation of natural resources. Although the former uses recycled paper during the process, it cannot be denied that energy is still used during production. On the other hand, the carbon footprint for each hour of satellite TV reception translates into at least 21 grams of CO2. Translate that into the total number of viewers of the shows and you’ll get staggering numbers there.
Furthermore, the company now has its own YouTube channel with more than 21.2 million subscribers and around 5.47 billion views currently. Nat Geo’s app users aren’t even included.
Blockchain is now a way of life in this digital age. Businesses must adapt and take advantage of the changes it brings in modern businesses. Nat Geo, for its part, must stay relevant and fluid in these competitive times dominated by digital media. Therefore, the continuous introduction of new technology – even if it receives mixed reactions – is just one of the ways to achieve its goals and agenda just like any other. After all, it is still a business entity.
