It is almost 3.5 meters tall, consists of recycled electronic waste and sparkles promisingly at the viewer with its iconic laser eyes. The Bitcoin skull commissioned by Greenpeace USA is intended to ensure one thing above all: attention. Because the environmental organization started a petition against the oldest cryptocurrency in 2022 with “Change the Code, not the Climate”. The goal: A change of the Bitcoin consensus mechanism from Proof of Work (PoW) to Proof of Stake (PoS).
The art project, implemented by Climate activist Von Wong, generates the promised attention. The Bitcoin community is beside itself – with joy. Lina Seiche describes the current situation.
Because the art project is well received in the crypto space: numerous Bitcoiners express their thanks to Greenpeace or use the Bitcoin skull as a new profile picture. The artist Wong is happy about the positive feedback and seems no longer convinced of the Greenpeace petition. “PoS will never work for Bitcoin. It goes against his decentralized ethos,” he writes on Twitter.
Bitcoin PoS: Greenpeace can do it themselves
To attract supporters for the petition, Greenpeace lists four facts about Bitcoin. These should prove how harmful the cryptocurrency is under the current consensus mechanism. The environmental organization does not recognize the positive aspects of the decentralized financial infrastructure. It is precisely this decentralization that could help Greenpeace to implement their project.
New ideas can be suggested via Github. With a so-called “pull request” Greenpeace could discuss its plans with the community. In addition, the Bitcoin source code is publicly available and accessible to everyone. Greenpeace could also simply change the code themselves. However, it is questionable whether Bitcoin PoS will meet with the hoped-for approval.
The connection to Chris Larsen is also considered controversial. The Ripple founder supports the project and has already donated 5 million US dollars.
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