Shows
ReFi GenerationEp. 24 The Current: Local Currency with Chris HewittGreetings and welcome back to ReFi Generation! Thank you listeners for your patience, after I got married last year, I took a break for a bit. Have no fear, we are back at it and will be releasing episodes regularly again!Today we talk local currency with Chris Hewitt, founder of Hudson Valley Current.We discuss the nuanced topic of money, and why local currencies matter. If you live in the United States, or a country with a fairly stable monetary policy, it may not matter much to you. However, there are a lot of...
2025-07-2739 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 23 RECs & Blockchain Tech with Nathalie Capati of Jasmine EnergyToday we get REC’d, and explore the innovative way Jasmine Energy is pairing the renewable energy credit market, aka RECs, with blockchain technology.Nathalie brings a wealth of knowledge around the renewable energy space and is an excellent bridge between the traditional and the cutting edge. With her electrical engineer degree she has a broad set of skills, from working in energy compliance markets, installing solar & storage for Bitcoin mining operations, to building electric race car engines for Formula 1.Nathalie’s systems engineering mindset enables her to take complex systems and synthesize them down to u...
2024-12-2343 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 22 Transforming the Carbon Market with Jeremy Epstein of Open Forest ProtocolToday we go into the forest with Jeremy Epstein, head of growth for Open Forrest Protocol. To put it simply, Open Forrest Protocol is a registry and issuer of carbon credits. Jeremy has a background as a lawyer and gives an inspiring take on how blockchain technology is applicable for solving the climate crisis, biodiversity crisis, really any sort of any of the ecological crises we face.Jeremy reminds us, “You can’t manage what you can’t measure,” and since we live in a capitalist economy, market based solutions will have the most potential for success. Jeremy w...
2024-08-0644 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 21 Carbon Markets & Blockchain with Marcus Aurelius from Klima DAOWelcome back from our summer break! Marcus Aurelius from Klima DAO joins us to discuss how blockchain technology can revolutionize the carbon offset market. Marcus has a background in data science and data engineering and is passionate about leveraging data to solve problems and make better decisions. Marcus sets the stage for us by sharing how nearly 2 trillion tons of CO2 have been emitted since the industrial revolution, yet the carbon markets to date have yielded only 2 billion CO2 credits, with only about half being retired. This is a huge mismatch, especially with an estimated 40 billions tons of CO2...
2024-07-2243 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 20 Community Currencies for Economic Regeneration with Scott MorrisIn today’s episode we talk with Scott Morris, AKA the Token Jedi. Scott graduated from college with an interdisciplinary degree in political economics amidst the great financial crisis of 2008. What followed is a captivating story of Scott researching and implementing place-based initiatives, because as he puts it, “Place-based organizing in real communities, changing patterns, with real people, will create real outcomes and real value.Scott is a seasoned veteran when it comes to community currency and I particularly loved this conversation because it is both philosophical and nuanced. We dig deep into what is actually within our...
2024-06-1050 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 19 Financing Impact with Maex Ament of WithEarth.xyzIn today’s episode we talk with Maex Ament of WithEarth.xyz & Centrifuge. Having vast experience leveraging technology to fundraise and create positive impact, Maex is a bridge between web3 and the climate space. Centrifuge tokenizes real world assets and puts them on the blockchain. Some examples are invoices, music royalties, mortgages, consumer debt, and all the way into carbon credits and carbon forwards. Maex gives a thorough and nuanced explanation of what tokenization of real world assets can allow for. One such example is democratizing the access to liquidity.Maex shares his thoughts on how the immut...
2024-05-2129 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 18 Sovereign Nature Initiative: Funding Conservation & BiodiversityIn today’s episode we talk with Alessandro Mazzi from Sovereign Nature Initiative. Ale was a joy to talk with and is a wealth of knowledge. He is getting his PHD researching the influence of law on the capacity of human and wildlife to coexist. Sovereign Nature Initiative works in biodiversity conservation and is sitting in the middle between philanthropic giving & conservation projects. Sovereign Nature Initiative helps to raise funds and do impact reporting. By looking at nature positive solutions, aka conservation and restoration of natural ecosystems, they are creating other ways to value nature rather than th...
2024-05-0944 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 17 Kingfishers Media Regenerating KnowledgeI love this episode with Will T. from Kingfishers Media LLC because Will is passionate about regenerative knowledge around community building initiatives. Kingfishers Media provides educational tools and resources for starting a business in Web3. They are a bridge to help onboard people and to make sure people have the knowledge needed to engage in the space in a positive way.Will seeks to democratize the access to knowledge and bridge the multilingual communication gap and has their learning content in Spanish, Portuguese, French, & Swahili.This episode gives a refreshing take on how web3...
2024-05-0229 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 16 Public Goods Funding with QZ from Clr.fundIn today’s episode, QZ gives us a refreshing look at the ETH London conference, what the blockchain space is like in Singapore, and the quadratic funding mechanism of Clr.fund Clr.fund has a permissionless quadratic funding tool, primarily focussed now on retroactive public goods funding, QZ discusses how it can also be leveraged to fund what specific communities want. This allows for a more forward looking funding tool that can be iterated on when a communities’ goals and needs change.QZ talks about the nuances of grant funding, and how by nature grants are...
2024-04-1540 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 15 Crypto Commons Association with Giulio QuartaToday we dive into different economic models with Guilio Quarta from Crypto Commons association. Guilio, having a background in sociology, has been studying alternative practices of organizing and assigning value. This has caused Guilio to lean into the “Blockchain for good” space. What I especially resonated with was Guilio’s narrative agnostic approach, where his work seeks to be the narrative bridge that shows people they are doing things that are actually quite similar to each other, rather than strikingly different.Guilio discusses the concept of how a system is what it does practically, not what it says i...
2024-04-0935 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 14 BASIN Protocol is Building Nature's Balance SheetIn today’s episode I have the pleasure of interviewing TMO of BASIN Protocol for a third time. TMO, AKA Thomas Morgan, having spent the majority of his career in commercial real estate, is the bridge we need for real world assets coming on chain.TMO discusses the nuances of nature being on the balance sheet, versus nature having its own balance sheet. The former is the old extractive mentality, whereas the latter allows ecosystems to hold their own assets of value. BASIN as a protocol is aimed to preserve, conserve, and restore more land by...
2024-04-0148 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 13 Leaky Weirs with Will Masters from Ogallala LifeJoin us as Will Masters from Ogallala Life discusses how regenerative finance can breathe life back into landscapes. Will doesn't just talk theory, he and his team are actively building methods of landscape hydrologic restoration on the ground at the Wildcat Bluff Nature Center in the Texas panhandle.Ogallala Life is at the intersection of nature, technology, and finance, navigating the rollercoaster of fundraising through cryptocurrency markets. Will discusses the nuances of landscape restoration, from the implementation of leaky weirs that rejuvenate creeks, to adaptive multi-paddock grazing that mimics the grazing patterns of the once prevelant bison t...
2024-03-1953 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 12 Live @ ETH DenverJoin us live at the Ethereum Denver conference! The pulse of the conference is vibrant, and there is a resounding narrative of regerneration. We are joined with Alan Ransil of Filecoin Green & William Skinner of Helios. A thing to note, the ETH Denver podcast studio had software to mute the background noise, which at times makes the audio not 100%, please excuse that for this episode, as the content the guests cover is not to be missed!Yes, there is still degens abounding at the conference, but there were two entire days dedicated to regenerative finance and blockchain...
2024-03-0444 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 11 Let's Grow Treegens w/ Jimi CohenLet's Grow! This episode is an exploration of purpose, passion, and planting. I sit with Jimi Cohen to discuss the monumental vision of Let's Grow DAO and Treegens, aiming to integrate positive environmental actions with blockchain tools for onboarding. This conversation explores the encouraging reforestation movement as well as inspires listeners that Jimi's goal of planting more than 560M trees in 24 hrs to beat the current world tree planting record is possible. Jimi shares info about The Regenisance festival happening in Thailand, and how festivals can set the stage for creating monumental change.The episode a...
2024-02-2942 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 10 Alternun: Earth is the Original BankThis episode just might blow your mind and cause a massive paradigm shift in your concept of gold mining. Jose Santiago & Noach Kettler join us from Alternun, and share with us the potential of "digital exploirtation" for gold mining. Alternun is a Columbia based ReFi project that is leveraging blockchain technology to collatoralize unmined gold, thus negating the need to mine it. This is possible because upwards of 90% of mined gold is put back into banks, so Alternun is creating a protocol that uses the ground as a vault. Alternun hopes to stop the environmental...
2024-02-2132 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 9 Global Reforestation Efforts with Silvi ProtocolToday we get inspired by the global reforestation initiative with Djimo Serodio of Silvi. Djimo shares how his journey through agricultural technologies and environmental science education has culminated in the Silvi Protocol.This episode sheds light on the critical role of indigenous tree stewardship, and also the sophisticated methods Silvi Protocol employs, using blockchain technology to foster transparency and further enhance environmental initiatives. We unearth the challenges and breakthroughs of the evolving landscape of natural capital investment in aligning financial mechanisms with positive environmental impact. Djimo's insights into collaborations with MRV (measure, report, verify) organizations a...
2024-02-0731 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 8 Taking the Green Pill with Kevin OwockiIn this episode we showcase the potential of regenerative finance with none other than Kevin Owaki, the trailblazing founder of Gitcoin and host of the Green Pill podcast. We dive into how blockchain can redefine our economic landscape and impact environmental and humanitarian efforts. Gitcoin's implementation of quadratic funding has directed over $55 million towards public goods!As we navigate the intricacies of Web3, we confront the real-world challenges of melding traditional nonprofit strategies with the often misunderstood realm of blockchain. The episode explores how projects like Downtown Stimulus in Boulder, CO have successfully harnessed the power of b...
2024-02-0245 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 7 $Earth with Utkarsh Patel: A Token for Ecosystem RegenerationToday we explore a regenerative finance token, $Earth, with Utkarsh Patel , whose expertise in environmental sciences and economics helps us dissect the transformative potential of digital currencies. Utkarsh was at COP28 in Dubai and shares his insights from the conference, one being that there was a resounding narrative throughout COP28 that carbon is the trojan horse that got people thinking about other important environmental markers that need to be addressed, such as water, soil, air, biodiversity, & social equity. Through this "Environmental Benefits Framework" we talk about the potential of blockchain technology to revolutionize environmental reporting, confronting the s...
2024-01-2541 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 6 Ecological Benefits Framework with Douglas Gayeton from The LexiconIn this episode with Douglas Gayeton of The Lexicon we explore the nuances of regenerative agriculture and the lessons gleaned from the organic movement's pitfalls. We discuss The Lexicon's forward-thinking activator model, developed alongside Google, to create a universal framework for ecological benefits. This "Ecological Benefits Framework" is at the integration of sustainable agriculture, regenerative finance & indigenous knowledge. We dissect the complexities of implementing blockchain technology in environmental initiatives, weighing its potential against its current constraints, and how it might evolve to support a more inclusive and multifaceted approach to ecological restoration.Our discussion concludes by...
2024-01-1642 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 5 ReFi Medellin & Topl with Tereza BízkováIn this episode we discuss the potential of blockchain for social good with Teresa Bízková, ecosystem communications manager at Topl and the founder of ReFi Medellín. Tereza and I disucss how blockchain is not just about cryptocurrencies, but a tool for real-world impact, fostering financial inclusion, and supporting environmental causes. Teresa recounts her transformation from blockchain skeptic to advocate, while we dissect Topl's role in emerging markets and furthering financial inclusion. I especially loved learning about Alternun's unique approach of incentivizing gold miners to NOT MINE GOLD, and instead keep it in the groun...
2024-01-0828 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 4 Funding the Commons with Beth McCarthyIn today's episode we explore the future of public goods funding with Beth McCarthy, my old UC Berkeley comrade and a big player in the regenerative finance space. Our dive into Funding the Commons illuminates creative infrastructure being built that is helping secure funding and reward impact in nontraditional ways.We discuss how the merging of on-ground MRV data with on-chain data is a pivotal innovation in the climate space. Beth emphasizes the importance of attestation and impact evaluation, the backbone of projects at Funding the Commons, and how these efforts are crucial in defining precise metrics...
2024-01-0228 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 3 Exploring the Future of Public Goods Funding with Sophia DewIn today's episode with Sophia Dew we dive into the future of public goods funding and explore the Public Goods Network, Gitcoin, and Funding the Commons. Sophia illuminates their collective efforts to develop a more transparent and efficient system for funding public goods. We discuss retroactive funding models and the role of hypercerts, a tool that has the power to verify and reward impact in a multitude of use cases. Sophia explains the distinction between the foundational protocol behind a hypercert, and the practical applications being built upon it. We finish by contemplating the future of...
2023-12-1640 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 2 ReFi Panel with Traditional Dream Factory, Avano & HypercertsEver dreamt of a world where finance fuels regeneration instead of depletion? That's what our guests TeRex, Sam, and Sophia Dew aim to create and we’re lucky enough to hear about their innovative projects on today's episode. We delve into the intriguing world of the Traditional Dream Factory, a groundbreaking endeavor to build a network of provable regenerative villages powered by blockchain technology. You'll also get a sneak peek to Refi Week @ Traditional Dream Factory.Bring your curiosity as we venture into the promising potential of ecological benefits Hypercerts for tracking impact claims, providing an additional so...
2023-11-0223 min
ReFi GenerationEp. 1 White Buffalo Land Trust with Kyle SullivanEver wondered how blockchain technology can support regenerative farming? Join us as we explore the fascinating intersection of regenerative agriculture and innovative tech with our guest, Kyle Sullivan, Director of Marketing and Communications at White Buffalo Land Trust. Kyle takes us on a captivating journey through their unique approach to land stewardship, illuminating innovative practices at the 1,000-acre ranch in Lompoc, California. From raising cattle to growing olives and pinot noir wine, Kyle shares how they are redefining farming while staying true to principles of land stewardship and regeneration.We explore the power of NFTs in fostering...
2023-07-2339 min
The Block Explorer#76 - GivePactIn this episode, we connect with Alicia Cepeda Maule and Steven Aguiar to discuss their project Givepact.io which is infrasturcture that allows for non-profits to easily receive donations in the form of crypto. We explore why they created this project, the unique advantages of crypto giving, and their perspective for how they see the future of philanthropic giving.
Episode Links
Givepact.io website
Alicia's Twitter
Steven's Twitter
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2023-05-0459 min
The Block Explorer#75 - Taylor Starr on Crypto Meets FashionWe connect with Taylor Starr, who's leading the charge in the integration with crypto and fashion. Taylor understands that crypto is about culture as much as it is about the tech and combined her background creating her own fashion line, she understands the landscape better than most. Enjoy this update on the convergence of web3 and fashion.
Episode Links
Taylor Starr Twitter
GlitchedNStitched Twitter
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2023-04-251h 09
The Block Explorer#74 - State of ReFi with Rex St. JohnWe get together with Rex St. John to discuss the state of the Regenerative Finance, what he's creating at the ReFi Summit in Seattle this May that he is hosting, and we explore what we can learn about cultural shifts and technology.
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2023-04-061h 02
The Block Explorer#73 - Carbon Markets & Thallo with Hayley MollerWe connect with Hayley Moller, who's the Chief Marketing Officer at Thallo, a blockchain enabled carbon market, to discuss:
How does Hayley define ReFi?
Hayley's background and how did she end up working in climate tech and blockchain?
What is Thallo and why did Hayley get involved in creating Thallo?
What’s it like building in this volatile and chilling environment?
Where is ReFi going in the future?
Episode Links
Thallo's website
Hayley Moller's twitter
Keep Cool Newsletter
Ministry for the Future Book
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2023-03-161h 06
The Block Explorer#72 - Topl with Chris GeorgenWe get together with Chris Georgen from Topl to discuss:
The intersection between impact, climate action, and blockchain technology
How Topl is an example of this interaction
What are some examples of how this is being applied
How can we scale this tech stack
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2023-03-0149 min
The Block Explorer#71 - DAO DropsWe speak with Ori and Magenta from DAO Drops to discuss:
What’s your take on public goods funding today?
How does DAO Drops work?
What are on-chain credentials and how can they be used?
What does the future of funding public goods look like?
Episode Links
DAO Drops twitter
DAO Drops website
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2023-02-1555 min
The Block Explorer#70 - Ekonavi & Impact Networks with BrenoIn this episode, we discuss what are impact networks and what role they play in the Regenerative Finance (ReFi) tech stack with Breno who works with the Brazilian based project Ekonvai.
Episode Links
Ekonavi Twitter
Ekonavi Website
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2023-02-0847 min
The Block Explorer#69 - ReFiDAO with Monty BryantWe get together with Monty Bryant of ReFi DAO to get his answers to these questions and more:
What is your definition of ReFi?
What're working on with ReFi DAO?
What is a DAO and what unique benefits and challenges arise from using a DAO structure?
How can crypto regenerate the world?
How are you looking at the world of crypto today?
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2023-01-2651 min
The Block Explorer#68 - ReFi Round-up #48We present ReFi Round-up #48 featuring Gitcoin's new AlphaRound which went live, ReFi's presence at Davos and, as always, the top news and events from the frontlines of crypto and climate this week!
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2023-01-2419 min
The Block Explorer#67 - ReFi & BasinDAO with TMOWe cover a lot of ground with TMO about ReFi and what's it like building a project in web3. We ask TMO:
What is your definition of ReFi and how has it evolved over the last year?
Your project BasinDAO and what you’ve been up to?
What are the biggest ways blockchain technology can promote restoration and conservation to solve the climate, nature and carbon crises?
What tools are you using to make this happen and why?
What is your vision for ReFi?
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2023-01-181h 13