Social NFT app Artrade aims to disrupt the unsustainable, carbon-inefficient NFT marketplace with an ethical, carbon-neutral, and ecologically responsible NFT sharing and trading platform that can be accessed from any smartphone

The NFT revolution has dramatically altered the digital asset and art ecosystems, establishing a new paradigm in which artists are able to create and share art with highly motivated online communities of NFT investors and enthusiasts. While the technology that powers the new NFT ecosystem has created a new frontier or digital art, the environmental impact of NFTs cannot be overlooked.

Solana-based social NFT app Artrade is working to transform the way in which NFT artists and NFT investors interact by creating the world’s first completely carbon neutral NFT marketplace. The Artrade app, in addition to operating with an environmentally-friendly approach to NFT minting and trading, also makes it possible for anyone to participate in the NFT revolution from any smartphone or mobile device — without the high gas fees associated with contemporary NFT marketplaces.

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Measuring the Environmental Impact of NFTs

NFTs represent immutable, blockchain-verified ownership over a digital asset — in most cases, a piece of digital art. The process of creating an NFT, however, requires interaction with a blockchain network, as does any change of ownership over an NFT. The contemporary NFT marketplace is primarily driven by the Ethereum blockchain, which can have a significant environmental impact.

Estimating the carbon footprint of minting an NFT can be a difficult process. Data published via Digiconomist places the carbon footprint of the average transaction on the Ethereum network, which is commonly used to mint and trade NFTs, at 33.4kg CO2. Independent investigations into the ecological cost of an Ethereum-based NFT transaction place the carbon impact of the average NFT trade at 48kg CO2.

When compared to the average 2.3 kg carbon cost of mailing an art print via a shipping or courier service, it’s easy to understand the concern raised by environmental organizations regarding the ecological impact of the NFT market.

The key factor contributing to the high carbon impact of NFT minting and trading is the consensus algorithm that drives the Ethereum blockchain. Like Bitcoin, Ethereum currently operates on a Proof of Work algorithm that requires significant amounts of energy to secure and process transactions. New NFT marketplaces such as Artrade, however, are shifting towards sustainable blockchain networks such as Solana to deliver environmentally-friendly features and functionality at a fraction of the carbon cost.

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How Artrade Makes NFTs Ecologically Responsible

Artrade, as the world’s first Solana-powered social NFT app, democratizes access to the NFT marketplace by allowing anybody to create, share, and trade NFTs via a simple smartphone app. Unlike other NFT marketplace platforms, Artrade doesn’t leverage Ethereum technology in order to facilitate NFT minting or trading.

The Artrade ecosystem relies on Solana, a highly efficient blockchain network that uses a unique model that fuses both Proof of Stake and Proof of History consensus algorithm to deliver far higher transaction throughput with a far lower carbon impact.

The high level of efficiency provided by the Solana blockchain not only provides NFT artists with the ability to mint new NFTs for a fraction of the cost, but also dramatically reduces the overall environmental impact of the NFT marketplace. The average Solana transaction uses just 1,837 joules of energy, compared to the 692 million joules of energy required to process a single Ethereum transaction.

In addition to operating on a far more ecologically responsible blockchain network Artrade works with ClimatePartner to certify that the carbon cost of NFTs minted on the Artrade platform is offset by validated climate protection projects, making Artade the world’s first carbon-neutral NFT app.

Eco-responsibility is one of several elements of the Artrade platform designed to promote ethical digital art and NFT innovation. Outside of the scope of environmental impact, Artrade also contributes to charity projects via the Binance Blockchain Charity Wallet and involves the NFT community in a decentralized governance decision-making system.

NFT Community Participates in the Development of Artrade Platform

The Artrade app is currently under development and is in round two of an explosively popular token sale event that allows NFT artists and enthusiasts to participate directly in the development of the Artrade platform. Artrade’s round two token sale will operate from December 20, 2021, until January 20, 2022, and follows a highly successful series of rounds that has raised over $2 million to date.

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