The Algorand Foundation, the non-profit affiliated with the carbon-negative blockchain Algorand, and Climate Ride, the non-profit mobilizing people to protect our planet through life-changing adventures, today announced a five-year initiative to promote community-powered environmental health and sustainability. The Algorand Foundation is committing $15M over five years by matching funds (up to $2.5M annually) raised by Climate Ride participants and contributing $500K annually for program expansion. Donations eligible for the match will be accepted year-round, beginning immediately.
This support will enable Climate Ride to expand event offerings, including the Green Fondo series – community cycling events styled after Gran Fondo rides – to other major cities. With the donation matching, Climate Ride will be able to double the contributions that everyday donors make to people who participate in Climate Ride’s biking, running and hiking events – building on the millions it has donated to support conservation, climate, environmental justice, sustainability and active transportation efforts.
"I did my first Climate Ride – four days and 250 miles through Death Valley – in 2017, raising money from my family and friends to support wildlife preservation in Africa," recalls Algorand Foundation CEO and three-time Climate Rider Staci Warden. "Over the last 12 years, thousands of people like me have raised millions of dollars each year to support climate-related causes through the amazing work of Climate Ride, and we at Algorand are thrilled to be able to help amplify the efforts of its incredible (and fierce!) community of participants in their fight to help preserve the Earth's environment." Algorand is unique among blockchains for its pure proof-of-stake protocol, which has drastically (by orders of magnitude) less energy consumption than its proof-of-work counterparts. Its commitment to maintaining a carbon-negative footprint contrasts with the environmental impact of other blockchains, whose environmental downsides have been well-documented. Algorand is also unique for its governance structure, which allows community members who hold ALGO – the cryptocurrency associated with the blockchain – to vote on changes made to the protocol.
"Today, donations to environmental causes represent only 3% of all philanthropy in the U.S. At the same time, we've seen matching grants - like the one Algorand Foundation is providing - lead to an 80% increase in donations to Climate Ride," said Caeli Quinn, founder and executive director of Climate Ride. "We're optimistic that initiatives like the one we've forged with Algorand will help Climate Ride expand environmental charitable awareness and encourage more people to get physically active and help their own communities get involved to heal and protect our planet."
