How Regenerated Advertising Can Help Sustainable Web3 Projects Grow

If you follow Gary Sheng’s weekly Substack, America 2.0, you will be well-versed in the world of regen Web3. Gary is a big advocate for ReFi, or regenerative finance, which is the term coined by economist John Fullerton (CoinDesk) to refer to initiatives and projects that use Web3 and blockchain to prioritize regenerative practices, sustainability, and positive environmental impact. Gary is part of a growing community advocating for emerging technologies to be directed at restoring and regenerating society, from the environment, economy and financial system, all the way to social systems.

For general proponents of greater decentralization and transparency, Web3 technologies provide a universal opportunity – or even an obligation – to rebuild ethical alternatives to Web2 technologies. If the development of Web2 was fuelled by a relentless fixation on fast innovation, then Web3, they believe, has a chance to respond with greater ethical standards.

One of the biggest opportunities to support regenerative Web3 comes from the digital advertising industry. Here Web3’s focus on privacy, consent, ownership, and monetization, presents an opportunity to create a more user-centric and transparent advertising ecosystem and more ethical social platforms. By regenerating the advertising industry, ReFi projects can establish sustainable marketing foundations to garner attention and drive growth. 

What’s happening in the Web3 regen space?

Regenerative Web3 projects want to make a positive impact on people as well as the planet. Some examples of regen projects are ecoterra, the Recycle2Earn app that rewards people with tokens for recycling, Toucan Protocol, a carbon infrastructure company, which allows people to bring carbon credits onto the blockchain and makes the carbon market more accessible; and Climate Collective, a group of non-profits, DAOs, scientists and technology companies that offer grants to accelerate regenerative Web3 applications.

Projects such as these are using Web3 technologies to address a multitude of issues, including:

1. Carbon Offsetting and Tokenized Ecosystem Service

Some regenerative Web3 projects focus on creating platforms that allow individuals or organizations to offset their carbon emissions or contribute to ecosystem regeneration. These platforms utilize blockchain technology to create tokenized ecosystems, where participants can invest in projects that actively restore natural resources, such as reforestation or wetland preservation. Through these projects, individuals can directly contribute to the regeneration of ecosystems and the reduction of carbon footprints.

2. Circular Economy Platforms

Circular economy projects in the Web3 space aim to create platforms that facilitate the exchange, reuse, and recycling of resources to minimize waste and promote sustainable consumption. These platforms leverage blockchain and tokenization to enable transparent tracking of resources, incentivize recycling and reuse practices, and facilitate peer-to-peer exchanges. By encouraging the circular economy principles of reduce, reuse, and recycle, these projects contribute to the overall sustainability and responsible resource management.

3. Community-Owned Renewable Energy Initiatives

Web3 projects that focus on community-owned renewable energy initiatives empower local communities to generate, manage, and distribute renewable energy resources. These projects leverage blockchain technology to facilitate peer-to-peer energy trading, transparent governance, and collective ownership of renewable energy infrastructure. By enabling communities to produce and consume renewable energy locally, these projects promote energy independence, reduce reliance on centralized energy systems, and contribute to the overall transition to clean energy.

4. Impact Investment and Social Entrepreneurship Platforms

Regenerative Web3 projects also include platforms that connect impact investors with social enterprises and projects focused on environmental and social impact. These platforms utilize blockchain technology to enable transparent and efficient impact investment processes, tokenized ownership structures, and decentralized governance. By facilitating direct investments in projects that prioritize sustainability and social responsibility, these platforms drive positive change and support the growth of impactful initiatives.

Regenerated advertising’s role in supporting ReFi

One of the many industries undergoing a Web3 regeneration is advertising, which is a prime example where Web2 technologies often evolved through innovation before ethics. Given that the Web2 advertising industry is worth some $681.39 billion (Oberlo) it poses a major opportunity for Web3 alternatives to swoop in with a greater balance of innovation and ethics to attract and migrate users.

For example, Web2 advertising platforms have faced criticism for their handling of user privacy. In the pursuit of more targeted advertising, companies have collected vast amounts of user data without always obtaining proper consent or adequately informing users about how their information is being used. This practice raises significant ethical concerns regarding user privacy and the responsible use of personal data.

Web2 platforms have also struggled to effectively combat the spread of misinformation and disinformation. Despite growing concerns about the impact of false information on society, some platforms have been slow to develop and implement robust content moderation and fact-checking mechanisms. This delay can be attributed, in part, to the platforms' prioritization of innovation and user engagement over addressing ethical issues related to the dissemination of misleading content.

The WOM Protocol is an example of Web3 technologies working towards regenerating advertising. WOM powers decentralized advertising by rewarding content creators for marketing brands. Advertisers can incentivize users to create authentic, high-quality UGC that promotes their products or services, spreads education, and awareness, and supports user acquisition.

Content is peer-reviewed through an authentication process for authenticity, creativity and positivity. As all participants stake against every action they take on the network, incentives are set in a function which comprises reward and ensures “punishment” for malicious behavior.

Other examples of Web3’s regeneration of the digital advertising industry include:

• Brave Browser and Basic Attention Token (BAT), a privacy-focused web browser that rewards users with BAT tokens for opting into privacy-respecting ads;

• AdEx Network, a decentralized advertising network built on blockchain technology. Advertisers and publishers can directly connect and negotiate ad placements through smart contracts, reducing costs and increasing transparency;

• Unstoppable Domains, which is a project that enables the creation of blockchain-based domain names. These domains are censorship-resistant, meaning they cannot be taken down or controlled by any centralized authority.

These are great examples of how innovation and ethics are evolving together to rebuild a regenerative Web3 space, starting with digital marketing and advertising. By introducing novel concepts, prioritizing user privacy and control, and creating fairer and more transparent advertising ecosystems, they provide regenerative projects from across industries with a better platform to reach audiences and spread their missions.