Impact Investing - Blockchain for Social Change

Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, and money innovation, is it the new frontier for social impact?

Last month, the Impact Investing Community of Practice had a discussion on blockchain and its relationship with social business. We've set up a second session around this topic, to dig deeper into the topic and showcase a few examples of innovative projects happening in the Twin Cities bringing blockchain and cryptocurrency into business.

Featured Projects:

scryp.io

Scryp ($c) is a social enterprise and cooperative venture gauged at bringing socially-responsible, smart digital money to the public. Joel Hodroff is an Impact Hub member, cofounder of Scryp, a thought leader in the field of money innovation, and a 2005 Innovator of the Year recognized by Finance and Commerce newspaper. In 1997 he was awarded the first US business methods patents for his invention of dual currency commerce.

Tyler Tracy investigates cryptography wherever it plugs into business, politics, or computer networking. He has published academically on the topic of blockchain and cryptocurrencies, explicating these technological events as opportunities for novel modes of commerce and collective governance. Synthesizing an eclectic background in entrepreneurship and crypto, Tyler co-founded Scryp in early 2017: a tech startup and cooperative venture gauged at bringing socially-responsible, smart digital money to the public. (online @ scryp.io)

“CBT Success”

Tim Roman from Ecotone Analytics leads a locally based project concept, titled “CBT-Success,” -- a blockchain-enabled system for validating the delivery of Cognitive Behavior Therapy to users/populations that are at risk for PTSD, depression, and at risk for returning to prison (recidivism). Because the effects of CBT have been researched, and the social value of mitigating return to prison can be calculated, the validation of CBT counseling sessions can have a value placed on it in such a way as to be the foundation for a Social Impact Bond (SIB).

Tim entered the project concept in the Consensys Blockchain for Social Impact Consortium’s first hackathon competition in NYC. competing amongst 60 teams from 120 locations around the global. The project was awarded second place in the Identity and Vulnerable Populations category. It was additionally awarded second place at the the CodeSwitchMN event, which took place in September of 2017.

Join us to learn how this new age of Impact Investing has the potential to fundamentally change how capital is mobilized to solve social and environmental challenges.

This event is for Impact Hub Community of Practice members only. Sign up below if you’re interested in staying on the list for the next open community conversation around blockchain for social impact.