NFT’s Driving Change: Sovereign Nature Initiative

This edition of NFT’s Driving Change spotlights the Sovereign Nature Initiative, an Amsterdam-based non-profit organization working at the intersection of ecology, economics and Web3 technologies.

I think Sunday mornings are for lazy breakfasts and a good read in bed – unless it’s a sunny and lovely spring day. Norwich (where I live) is finally welcoming spring in full swing. As I sit down to write, I can hear the birds breaking into song outside my window. If you’ve read this column before, you know where this is going: take reading outside; put on some grass. While I can’t promise you a good read, I guarantee something thought-provoking, something inspiring, or maybe even a glimmer of hope.

welcome to NFTs drive change—a monthly column, where I highlight projects and creators using NFTs and other Web3 tools to make a real impact. In this edition, I want to introduce you to the Nature Initiative, an Amsterdam-based non-profit organization that is taking a radical step towards sustainability.

Web3 and its changing environmental narrative

The environmental impact of NFTs is one of the most debated topics in the Web3 area. Over the past two or so years, however, several creators and organizations have shown that NFTs can indeed play a role in tackling environmental issues. The NFT collection of WWF Germany, for example, focused on raising funds for its species conservation projects. The film production company Rejell, on the other hand, used NFTs to advocate for climate action. There are many more such examples.

The Sovereign Nature Initiative (SNI) is the latest player in this niche intersection between Web3 tools and the environment. Based in Amsterdam, SNI has a unique mission: to change the way we see and value nature. With the help of technology, SNI wants nature to become self-governing and not exploited by humans.

A large part of the organisation’s work is in partnership with the Kenya Wildlife Trust (KWT), a leading predator conservation fund in Kenya. KWT has several lion and cheetah monitoring projects in the Maasai Mara. With SNI’s help, the foundation is now bringing the stories of these predators online, raising much-needed funds for their initiative.

“Collaboration with the Sovereign Nature Initiative has shown us new opportunities to integrate our data into projects that can reach larger audiences … inspire people to learn about the importance of human relationships with predators,” said Irene Amoke, KWT’s director.

Q&A with the Sovereign Nature Initiative

I spoke with Seth Bockley, Director of Creative Engagement at the Sovereign Nature Initiative to learn more about their work.

(The quotes have been edited and condensed for clarity)

NFTE: Tell us about the Sovereign Nature Initiative and its mission.

SB: The Sovereign Nature Initiative is an organization working to achieve a thriving planet by reconfiguring the value of nature. We build at the intersection between ecology, economy and new technologies such as Web3. We aim to ‘turn the economy around’ for conservation organisations, ultimately enabling nature to have its own value.

Our central project is DEEP, (Decentralized Ecological Economics Protocol), a pipeline that connects dynamic wildlife data with digital creatives, artists and game companies. They then bring this data to life in virtual worlds. These virtual assets, in turn, have the effect of generating value that is shared directly with conservation organizations.

NFTE: How did this unique intersection of ecology, economics and Web3 technologies come about?

SB: We have always been involved in the intersection between ecology and new technologies. We started SNI with a radical proposal: how could nature own its own value? What would it mean for a tree to have a wallet? How can a population of animals or plants have value in themselves, rather than in terms of their potential to be exploited by humans?

Initially, the worldwide success of the natural rights movement inspired us. So did thinkers like Jonathan Ledgard, whose Interspecies Money paper had a major impact on the conservation and technology worlds. Similarly, SNI co-founder Andrea Leiter’s study of international law relating to sovereignty as applied to non-human life on Earth also played a role.

Our name, Sovereign Nature Initiative, suggests the magnitude of our concerns, which involve finding new ways to find value in nature. Web3 for us is about decentralization, transparency and proof-of-preservation. It is also about thinking through creative ways to imagine alternative forms of value (currency) and the types of information databases where data can be authenticated and distributed.

NFTE: Tell us more about your work with the Kenya Wildlife Trust. What inspired you to work with the Trust?

SB: Kenya Wildlife Trust (KWT) is an innovative, imaginative and vital conservation organization working to support carnivores in East Africa. They use cutting-edge technology to track and monitor the health of lion, cheetah, wild dog and leopard populations. Considered Kenya’s premier carnivore conservation, they are focused on creating sustainable populations and ecosystems. Since 2007, they have been raising money to protect these iconic species and landscapes in Kenya. Currently, habitat loss and human-wildlife conflicts are putting the delicate ecosystems of these predators under pressure.

In autumn 2022, we organized an online Hackathon in collaboration with KWT to tackle the challenges of lion identification and human-lion conflict mitigation. In March 2023, we helped create an art project called “Tracing The Wild”. This was in collaboration with visual artist Chuma Anagbado and the local design festival, Nairobi Design Week. The latest initiative in this partnership with KWT is the Moonsama project.

NFTE: What is the Moonsama NFT collection? What excites you most about this initiative and what do you hope to achieve with it?

SB: We have recently partnered with Moonsama, the leading NFT protocol of Polkadot, to provide data on real lions. The idea was to help game creators use this data and build utility. As part of the initial phase of the partnership, we sold 400 lion NFTs to the Moonsama NFT/gaming community, raising $100,000 for KWT. The NFTs start their life cycle as juveniles. Once they have evolved into their adult counterparts, they will be updated by DEEP to link animal data with digital advertising.

We were impressed by the enthusiasm of this gaming community to support the lives of lions in Kenya. In the long term, we hope to secure significant ongoing funding for KWT to support their work on the ground in Kenya. These funds are needed to pay rangers’ salaries and carry out new experiments with technological startups. They will also be able to purchase more sophisticated GPS collars to track lions and better understand the fragile ecosystem of the Maasai Mara.

NFTE: Your website mentions how SNI “seeks to open minds to radical approaches to sustainability and to make nature’s organization profitable for all”. How can Web3 help build a system that is profitable for everyone?

SB: We believe in the power of innovation to redefine value for people and the planet. Blockchain technology offers the potential to “turn the economy around”. To explain, we can redesign value practices of production, distribution, and exchange in ways that allow us to tap into the broad stream of market-based solutions for sustainability without simply repeating an extractive relationship. The Web3 world embraces new technologies that build alternative economies and incentive structures. This makes it the perfect sandbox for these radical experiments and ideas.

A “win-win” system will include both human and non-human benefits. We basically want to stimulate symbiosis, to make it sustainable to live together on a flourishing planet. We want to encourage a balance between nature, people and technology. Ultimately, we envision a world where trees, hyenas, snails, rivers, moose and algae preserve their own value, and where we humans are invested in the same value and have a stake in their flourishing.

NFTE: One of the challenges NFTs face regarding mainstream adoption is their environmental impact. How fair do you think that is?

SB: It is not entirely fair to lay the environmental impact at the feet of NFTs. These days, Web3 ecosystems like the Polkadot network are increasingly energy efficient. We are seeing more and more partners embracing carbon neutral principles and practices. Some even link directly with international climate action platforms.

In addition, digital assets representing ecological data are a relatively low-carbon cost way for people around the world to engage with nature externally. This could potentially reduce the carbon impact of tourism by providing online representations and “digital twins.”

NFTE: Can you tell us something about SNI’s upcoming projects?

SB: We are deeply engaged with new partners in the conservation sector as well as in the online gaming world. We are also keen to build on our success with the Kenya Wildlife Trust and the Moonsama partnership. Also, we are exploring conservation work in Romania, more in Kenya, as well as other parts of Africa.

Loved this? Be sure to check out our past issues at Pussy Riot, Right, Drop spotand more.