🌍 This Week in Web3forGood
Trends & Predictions
gm gm,
What is your 2025 strategy for how your mission-focused organization will experiment with and learn more about emerging technologies like blockchain, crypto, and AI? We are big believers that all tech is a TOOL that we can use to shape the world for the better (or worse, if we choose to or if we do nothing), and it's never too late to get started.
There are so many great examples out there or how people are already using emerging tech to implement positive, global change, and we talk about many of them in the latest episode of the Crypto Altruists podcast, featuring us in conversation with host Drew Simon.
In the episode, we dive into key trends of 2024 & predictions for 2025:
🤖 Crypto x AI & AI agents
💚 Stablecoins for good
💸 PGF Experimentation
🌱 The growth of DeSci & DePin
🐶 Memecoins for impact
...and more!
🎧Listen to the episode here.
And after you've listened, let us know... what upcoming trend excites you the most? (For us, personally, it's still stablecoins 🪙🪙)
WAGMI (we are going to make an impact!)
Our hearts go out to all who are suffering as a result of the horrific fires in LA. If you are able to contribute to the relief efforts, The Giving Block LA Wildfires Emergency Fundraiser provides aid to those impacted. Donate crypto, stock, DAF or card to orgs assisting with food, shelter, and medical care.
What’s Inside
📣 Latest News
🔍 TLDR: AthenaDAO
📚 What We’re Thinking About
🔈 Podcasts & Spaces
🚀 Opportunities & Calls to Act
🎪 Events
📡 On Our Radar
✨ And one more thing
📣 Latest News
Ripple & Chainlink partner to further RLUSD Stablecoin adoption
GoodDollar Launches Red Tent — First Segmented Basic Income Pilot for Women
Agora, Galaxy complete AUSD stablecoin’s first live transaction
Western Union and MoneyGram app usage drops as stablecoin adoption surges
Global Policy, Regulation, and Adoption News
Thailand To Roll Out Pilot for Cryptocurrency Payments in Phuket
China places blockchain at the core of national data strategy in new guidelines
Project Updates
🔍TLDR: AthenaDAO
New to Web3? Welcome! TLDR is where we offer a simplified explanation of a term used often in this newsletter or a big topic in the news this week. If there's anything you're curious about, reply and let us know.
🌱 What is AthenaDAO: AthenaDAO is a decentralized collective of researchers, scientists, and advocates working together to fund and accelerate women’s health research using Web3 technology. Traditional funding models often overlook women’s health issues, leading to significant gaps in research and innovation. AthenaDAO aims to change this by leveraging decentralized, community-driven funding to support groundbreaking studies and solutions.
When you participate in AthenaDAO, you become part of a global network contributing to projects that prioritize health outcomes for women. The community decides which research initiatives to fund, ensuring transparency and democratizing decision-making. By using blockchain technology, AthenaDAO creates an open and secure environment for collaboration and funding.
🌟 Why does it matter: Women’s health research has long been underfunded, leaving many critical issues unexplored. AthenaDAO empowers communities to take charge, direct resources, and accelerate innovation. It’s about rethinking traditional systems and creating equitable, impactful change.
TLDR: AthenaDAO is a decentralized community funding research for women’s health, using blockchain technology to ensure transparency and fairness. It’s about driving innovation and equity in health research.
📚 What We’re Thinking About
🍎 When will web3 have its Apple moment? Celo and Opera's mobile-first solutions are bridging the digital divide, demonstrating the potential for Web3 to expand financial inclusion globally. (CryptoSlate)
💳 Stablecoin payments are catching in the “real world”. (Bloomberg)
🕌 Shariah Compliant Crypto: Bridging Blockchain and Islamic Finance. (Azeem Khan)
🎉 Crypto Altruists: 2024 Year in Review. (Crypto Altruism)
🤖 Beyond Artificial Sociopaths: To teach AI what our shared values are, we need to first figure them out ourselves. (Combinations)
🪙 Stablecoin Usage in Africa: Key Insights From the Mento Community Survey. (Mento Labs)
🧠 7 Big Ideas for 2025 (and more trends to watch). (web3 letter from a16zcrypto)
🏦 Nations this year could begin adding Bitcoin to their treasuries to hedge against crippling inflation, according to a recent report. (Decrypt)
🧑⚖️ How crypto laws are changing across the world in 2025. (Cointelegraph Magazine)
👭 The Social Layer: An Ethnography of Two Cryptocurrency Communities in the United States. (Annaliese Milano Merfield - Dissertation for The LSE)
🔈 Podcasts & Spaces
Crypto Altruism Podcast - Episode 186 - 2024 Year in Review - Top Trends of 2024 & Bold Predictions for 2025 - Crypto & AI, DeSci, Stablecoins, and more!
Crypto Altruism Podcast - Episode 185 - Masa Network - Crypto-Powered AI Agents and Fair AI through Decentralization
Crypto Altruism Podcast - Episode 184 - Good Empire - Gamifying Impact with Crypto and Web3 to Achieve the 17 Global Goals
ReFi Podcast - Season 4 The Regeneration Nexus - Episode 12 - Web3 for Climate Action with Wes Geisenberger
ReFi Podcast - Season 4 The Regeneration Nexus - Episode 11 - Nature As Technology With Anna Lerner
Green Pill - Web 3 Public Goods Funding In 2025 W/ Vitalik
Green Pill - DeepFunding.Org W/ Vitalik Buterin
🚀 Opportunities & Calls to Act
Apply: Optimism is hiring a Partner Manager.
Apply: Scroll is hiring a Governance Facilitator.
Contribute: Allo.Capital is a hybrid research org, software studio, and venture fund. Get involved by joining the Telegram chat.
Accelerate: Crypto Startup Accelerator (CSX) is a program run by a16z for early-stage startups building with blockchain technologies. The Spring 2025 cohort will be held in person in San Francisco from April 1 to June 3.
Funding: The Celo Citizen Retro program aims to recognize and reward individuals for their meaningful contributions to the Celo ecosystem in three key domains until December 20th, 2024.
Funding: Glo Dollar x Optimism Builders round supports projects on Optimism that have integrated or hold Glo Dollar (USDGLO), a stablecoin that donates 100% of its profits to fund public goods.
Donate: Givepact has compiled a resource for donating crypto to help survivors of the Tibet 7.1 magnitude earthquake.
Donate: Givepact and The Giving Block have both compiled a resource for donating crypto to help the Los Angeles Wildfires Emergency Response Fundraiser.
🎪 Events
🆕= New to the roundup this week
Virtual
@civilmonkey’s Curated X Spaces focus on using Web3 for positive impact in the real world (+ recordings).
Climate Coordination Network X Spaces happen weekly, every Thursday.
Funding the Commons Public Goods Town Hall #6: PGF Trends & Deep Funding is happening January 15. 🆕
The Year Ahead for the Responsible Tech Ecosystem is happening January 16. 🆕
IRL
The Global Blockchain Business Council 8th Annual Blockchain Central is happening January 20-23 in Davos. 🆕
ETHiopia in happening January 21 - February 21 in Addis Ababa. 🆕
Oasis Oncahin is happening January 30 - February 2 in Nassau, Bahamas.
ETHDenver is happening February 23 - March 2 in Denver.
Schelling Point is happening February 25 in Denver.
SheFi Summit is happening February 26 in Denver.
Recurring
Monthly Earth Day is a global event that happens on the 22nd every month, not just once a year. Get involved next on January 22 and share on X to @HighlyArtistic with the hashtag #MonthlyEarthDay.
Hosting an event that you’d like to see listed? Reply here or send us a DM.
📡 On Our Radar
Allo.Capital is a hybrid research org, software studio, and venture fund that is catalyzing a network of hackers, thinkers, and doers, to help fund what matters in the 21st century.
How to DAO: Mastering the future of Internet Coordination is a new book by Kevin Owocki and Puncar.
The Global Blockchain Business Council’s Global Standards Mapping Initiative (GSMI) is the most comprehensive effort to map and analyze the blockchain and digital assets ecosystem.
Triplicate is creating a radical future for science - network-driven, deinstitutionalized, open for all.
Filecoin Ecosystem Explorer is a showcase of the incredible projects and passionate builders behind the #Filecoin network.
Deep Funding rewards open source contributors without them even having to apply for funding, based solely on the usefulness of their contributions.
$REGEN Liquidity DAO will support the growth and adoption of the $REGEN token
✨ And One More Thing
Infographic via Crypto Altruists 👇
