Switzerland for UNHCR to launch innovative collaboration with Cardano Foundation in benefit of forcibly displaced people
The Cardano Summit 2022 – an event bringing together individuals interested in blockchain technology and the largest ever in-person gathering of the Cardano community, took place from 19 to 21 November in Lausanne. While it was a great opportunity for many to come together and share their vision, the summit was not only destined for technology aficionados – it welcomed everyone wishing to join the ecosystem or curious about how Cardano’s blockchain technology is being used to create positive change worldwide. The event featured a virtual Summit Lodge, as well as 50 community-led events in multiple locations across the world with many presentations, workshops and panels as well as updates from those building Cardano. All of the speakers and prize winners were voted by the Cardano community.
Switzerland for UNHCR took the opportunity of the global event to announce a very promising collaboration with the Cardano Foundation at the core of their Annual Global Impact Challenge. This collaboration consists of a charity stake pool launched by Switzerland for UNHCR, with funding by the Cardano Foundation of 3.5 million ADA, the native token of the Cardano blockchain. Taurus, a leading Swiss-based digital asset infrastructure provider, will run the stake pool. Both parties are very excited about this opportunity to raise funds for the cause of forcibly displaced people and to prove that blockchain can be a force for good in the humanitarian world.
Frederik Gregaard, CEO of the Cardano Foundation, commented: “The collaboration with Switzerland for UNHCR is an embodiment of the Foundation’s ethos. We strongly believe in using blockchain to improve conditions for everyone, and doing so with the active participation of the Cardano community. Announcing this year’s Global Impact Challenge during the Cardano Summit 2022 was a great way of launching the conversation, giving ample opportunity for in-person dialogue, and ensuring the Cardano community, together with the Cardano Foundation, will help shape this year’s challenge. We hope this new Global Impact Challenge will make a real difference to the lives of displaced people globally.’’
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, will benefit from 100% of the stake pool rewards generated for Cardano Blockchain implementations of which 80% will go towards less mediated and sometimes even forgotten operations as well as to the organization’s other most pressing needs. The remaining 20% of rewards will be allocated to UNHCR’s Innovation programs and funds, promoting blockchain applications as solutions to real problems that refugees are facing. Cardano has an established history of stake pools donating to charitable organizations, most recently the Climate Neutral Cardano Stake pool. This project is an innovation in crypto-philanthropy and the first occasion where a registered charity will be operating its own stake pool as a fundraising tool.
Hovig Etyemezian, Head of Innovation at UNHCR, concluded: “The tech sector has a crucial role to play in helping humanitarian agencies innovate to better deliver assistance. In a time when more people have been forcibly displaced than ever before, this collaboration between the Cardano Foundation and Switzerland for UNHCR, our national partner in Switzerland, is a great example of how innovation can be a force for good and empower the most vulnerable. I look forward to seeing how this partnership can unlock the power of the blockchain community, in support of people forced to flee."