Background: Chris Larsen, co-founder and executive chairman of Ripple, clarified that Ripple did not fund the "Change the Code, Not the Climate" campaign aimed at pushing Bitcoin's consensus mechanism to a more environmentally friendly model. This campaign sought to persuade Bitcoin miners and industry leaders to abandon the Proof of Work (PoW) mechanism in favor of the more energy-efficient Proof of Stake (PoS) mechanism.

Main Event: In early 2023, Chris Larsen collaborated with the environmental organization Greenpeace and artist Benjamin Von Wong to launch the campaign, targeting Bitcoin's transformation into an accelerator for direct air capture. Despite spending 5 million USD, the campaign failed to achieve its intended goals. Larsen emphasized that Ripple did not provide financial support for this campaign.

Bitcoin Energy Transition: Larsen pointed out that, according to research from the University of Cambridge, Bitcoin mining has significantly shifted in recent years toward using renewable energy sources such as hydroelectric, nuclear, and wind power.

Art Piece "Satoshi Skull": Greenpeace commissioned Benjamin Von Wong to create an 11-foot-tall "Satoshi Skull" art piece made from recycled electronic waste, symbolizing fossil fuel pollution caused by Bitcoin mining. The piece was donated by Ripple to the Bitcoin community and is now housed in the Bitcoin Museum in Nashville.

Potential Impact: This event reflects the controversies and efforts within the cryptocurrency industry regarding environmental issues and showcases Ripple's stance and contribution toward advancing environmental topics.

Ripple co-founder and Executive Chairman Chris Larsen has confirmed that the San Francisco-based blockchain payments firm did not fund the campaign aimed at changing Bitcoin to a more environmentally friendly consensus model.The “change the code, not the climate” campaign sought to pressure key industry leaders, Bitcoin miners, and influencers into moving over to a new consensus mechanism and ditch proof-of-work (PoW).Changing The Bitcoin Code — Mission Impossible?In early 2023, Chris Larsen’s Greenpeace teamed up with art activist Benjamin Von Wong for its “change the code, not the climate” campaign to convert Bitcoin’s consensus mechanism to a less energy-consuming model. The campaign at the time claimed that proof-of-stake was much less environmentally harmful due to its lower energy consumption.In arecent poston X, Larsen clarified that his primary objective while funding the campaign was to “turn Bitcoin into an accelerator for direct air capture.” He acknowledged that the $5 million campaign failed; however, he indicated that Ripple had not financed it.Moreover, the former Ripple CEO noted that Bitcoin has witnessed a “remarkable” energy transition in recent years, with mining now mainly relying on renewable sources such as hydropower, nuclear, and wind, based on a recent study conducted by the University of Cambridge.It’s worth mentioning that Greenpeace commissioned Canadian Art activist Benjamin Von Wong to create a unique art piece dubbed the “Skull of Satoshi” — an 11-foot skull featuring the Bitcoin logo and red laser eyes, a nod to the Bitcoin Twitter community who wear laser eyes in their profile pictures.Smokestacks growing out of the top the skull, which is made of recycled electronic waste, aimed to represent the “fossil fuel and coal pollution” caused by Bitcoin mining and the “millions of computers” used to validate network transactions.Instead of infuriating die-hard Bitcoin supporters, the Skull was ironically embraced by many because it was so “badass”.Ripple donated the Skull to the Bitcoin community. It is now being kept at the Bitcoin museum in Nashville.

Chris Larsen Clarifies That Ripple Did Not Fund Environmental Campaigns Promoting Changes to Bitcoin's Consensus Mechanism