As a father of two young children, I'm quite aware that I want to leave the planet a better place for them to inherit. Part of this is to provide and educate them well, but the other part is to be doing the best that I can to reduce our ecological footprint on the planet. Now, I'm afraid I'm not the type that can (or wants to) go completely vegetarian or off-grid, but there are things that I can do....
It is our ongoing dream to install solar panels on our house when we have the time and money (yes yes, even in The Netherlands it is still worthwhile!). However, before we can do that, we do need to renovate the attic to build out into what is known as a 'dak-kapel'. Basically this involves straightening out the sloping roof into a usable room rectangular room shape. Obviously, it would be incredibly handy to do this before installing a solar array on the roof! So, let's just say that this is going to be a long term project that isn't going to happen in the next year or two....
However, there is an alternative!
In my first month of trading in the crypto derivatives markets at Bitmex, I've managed to double my initial investment. Before you go crazy and try to figure out how to rob me, let's just say it was a very token amount that I had invested, just to learn the ropes and the style of trading (which is very different to the regular altcoin trading). In hindsight, I wish I had risked my entire life savings, but I'm sure that if I had been stupid enough to do that, I would have lost it all!
However, that did mean I did have a small profit in Bitcoin with which I wanted to try and funnel into another experimental project!
The Sun Exchange is an interesting project that I have been hearing a good deal about during the ad breaks on the crypto podcasts Unchained and Unconfirmed by Laura Shin. These are my all time favourite podcasts about crypto, as they are really decent interviews with the people developing the ideas and infrastructure in the crypto space. Most importantly, the podcasts are all about the interesting stuff in crypto... and that does NOT mean prices and trading and stupid profit before everything else....
... anyway, back on track. The Sun Exchange is a project that aims to microfinance the construction of solar cells in Africa. Now, crypto is uniquely poised to help this project, as the fact is that paying small amounts by crypto is a really feasible solution to the cross border payment problem. In addition, the idea is that it is a loan, so the investment comes back over the course of 20 years also via crypto. Alternative means of payment are also possible (credit card I think was an option). So, I had seen that a project had just recently opened up for solar cell sale for a school in South Africa and I took the opportunity to revert some of my profit to fund some of the cells. Now, I'm the proud owner of some cells that are being installed on a roof of a school in South Africa, with the idea that the power will be sold direct to the school.
This is a great idea for people who might want to join the solar revolution, but either don't have the physical possibility (like me) or the financial means (the micro financing means that cells are really quite cheap!). It is easy for you to set up an account, however if you do want to be paid back you will need to complete a very basic KYC/AML (Proof of identity and address). I would highly recommend this option if you want to help out the current power production problem (migration away from coal), whilst helping to micro-finance a worthy cause... whilst getting a return on your investment!
Quite honestly, it is a bit of win win win all around!
This is the blurb for the particular project that I supported. It is a school, but there were other projects that included factories, wildlife farms and elephant sanctuaries. There is often a short sale period, after which the installation begins quite quickly afterwards, and then it is straight to the power production (return on investment) phase. Currently, my particular project is in the installation phase.
Sun Exchange is solar powering Sacred Heart College and offering you the chance to buy solar cells in the project and earn revenue from the electricity they produce.
Education is the key to combating poverty and setting South Africa on the right trajectory for a prosperous future. As South African icon, Nelson Mandela, said; “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
The school is renowned for working in collaboration with the surrounding communities and adopting a progressive teaching method designed to foster critical thinking skills. Located in Johannesburg, South Africa, the school is optimally situated as it receives sunshine for most of the year. This makes solar powering Sacred Heart a perfect project for Sun Exchange and the people that use our platform because it’s aligned with our brand values and guarantees profits for our customers.
In its 129-year history, Sacred Heart College has always been at the forefront of promoting social justice for all. Their unique characteristic is that they reflect a transformed microcosm of South African society. Acceptance, understanding, and respect for one another underpins all teaching and learning at the school. The school also shares its facilities with the Three2Six Refugee education project, which provides bridging education to refugee children.
The charity for this project is Field of Flowers. This is a fundraising initiative that provides bursaries for deserving learners to gain an exceptional education at Sacred Heart. You can, at your option, donate a proportion of your solar cell rental income to this charity.
This is a great opportunity to solar power a project that promotes progressive education, offset your carbon emission and earn a significant passive income stream paid optionally in Bitcoin or local currency and in addition earns you SUNEX and SolarCoin bonuses!
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