• Greenpeace USA published an art piece called the “Skull of Satoshi” to depict the “ravenous consumption of fossil fuels” by the flagship cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC).
• Proponents of Bitcoin mostly seem amused by the piece and are quickly making it a meme within the community.
• Greenpeace first began crusading against Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in 2022 by launching a campaign to „change the code“ of Bitcoin to remove its proof-of-work (PoW) validation mechanism.
Greenpeace’s Attempt To Vilify BTC
Greenpeace USA published an art piece called the „Skull of Satoshi“ to depict the „ravenous consumption of fossil fuels“ by Bitcoin (BTC). The piece involves shadowy coders under a skull made of computer hardware with a backdrop of various industrial structures related to energy production. The Skull of Satoshi is part of Greenpeace’s „Change the Code“ campaign, which aims to vilify Bitcoin as an environmental hazard due to its electricity consumption in mining.
Crypto Twitter’s Response
Proponents of Bitcoin have largely responded with amusement to this art installation and have quickly turned it into a meme within their community. Analysis revealed that much of the hardware used in the skull was outdated and had nothing do with Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies. Additionally, some noted that many structures depicted were actually Nuclear reactor cooling towers, which emit water vapor and have no adverse impact on environment compared to fossil fuels.
Change The Code Campaign
In 2022, Greenpeace began campaigning against Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies by launching a campaign titled “Change The Code“. This campaign sought to push developers towards transitioning from proof-of-work (PoW) validation mechanism to proof-of-stake (PoS), such as Ethereum did back in 2022. Currently, BTC requires hefty amounts computing power for miners who are competing for rewards for over a decade now – increasing blockchain security at cost electricity consumption rate.
Environmental Impact Of Mining
The environmental impact from mining cryptocurrencies is still debated among experts; however, some researchers concluded that most energy sources used are renewable or low carbon emissions sources.. In addition, major players such as large mining pools are actively attempting reduce their carbon footprint while pushing others industry do same thing with renewable or alternative energy sources.
Conclusion
Although Greenpeace may have intended for its art installation become symbol environmental destruction caused by BTC, it seems instead have had opposite effect on crypto community who responded with memes rather than fear or concern about its potential negative impacts on environment. Despite this response though, there is no denying that miners must shift away from traditional sources if they want remain competitive industry while also protecting environment from harmful emissions at same time.