The Suspension of the Change The Code Campaign: A Reflection on Bitcoin and Environmental Advocacy

Do you remember the "Change The Code" campaign that was launched a couple of years ago by Greenpeace USA in collaboration with other environmental organizations? Among its financiers was no other than Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen and this rogue publicity stunt aimed to pressure the Bitcoin community to change the code of Bitcoin from POW (Proof-Of-Work) to POS (Proof-Of-Stake) mechanism despite the numerous disadvantages of the latter. It was disguised as an appeal to the community for the adoption of a greener consensus model, but in reality, it was about crippling the effectiveness and security of the Bitcoin protocol. In this sense, I am very happy to report that as of December 2024, the campaign has been suspended, marking a significant moment in the ongoing debate surrounding Bitcoin's environmental impact.

Background of the Campaign

The campaign, launched in March 2022 and heavily funded by Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen, was cantered on the concerns of Bitcoin's energy consumption and its reliance on fossil fuels. Greenpeace emphasized that if major industry players could agree to change Bitcoin's code, it would go a long way in reducing its environmental footprint. The slogan of the campaign, "Change the Code, Not the Climate," aptly described the mission of the shift in Bitcoin toward a low-energy protocol.

Reasons for Suspension

After almost two years of campaigning, Greenpeace USA has stopped all activities regarding Change The Code. The campaign has not posted anything or provided updates in over six months, and many have come to a conclusion that it simply didn't work. According to reports, Greenpeace wasted around $5 million on this effort without changing anything significant in Bitcoin's code or convincing any major financial institution to change its stance on Bitcoin.

Several factors contributed to the campaign’s failure:

1. Misleading Claims: Initial assertions that Bitcoin mining predominantly relied on coal and reactivated mothballed fossil fuel plants were later discredited. Research indicated that a significant portion of Bitcoin mining utilizes renewable energy sources.

At the time, even our favourite conspiracist - Elon Musk, chipped in the conversation when he single-handedly crashed the price of the cryptocurrency by selling off a big chunk of Tesla's BTC holdings.

He tweeted about it and made his point quite loud on the platform.

Alex de Vries was publishing commentaries against Bitcoin that the press spread relentlessly and that have now been debunked . Then we learned that in March 2022, Ripple executive chair Chris Larsen gave GreenpeaceUSA $5Million to launch an anti-Bitcoin campaign.

All of these efforts to destabilize trust in the flagship cryptocurrency failed miserably in the long term.

2. Underestimating Community Resistance: Given the decentralized nature of Bitcoin, attempts at corporate shaming fell well short. The community was resoundingly opposed to this campaign in a defence of the value proposition and environmental benefits brought on by Bitcoin.
3. Lack of Support: Although Greenpeace USA was leading this charge, there was very little participation from other sections of Greenpeace or key environmental groups. This did lessen the impact of their argument to a degree.

The suspension of the Change The Code campaign provides a key learning point for environmental advocacy in the cryptocurrency space. This was also furthered by peer-reviewed studies that show Bitcoin mining has positive environmental impacts, such as firming up the power grid and enabling the transition to renewable energy sources. Misinformation undermines credibility and constructive conversation. The Bitcoin community remained resilient to external pressures and in solidarity. Grassroots movements within the ecosystem were able to combat narratives that positioned Bitcoin solely as an environmental villain.

What's worse, analysts estimate that Greenpeace might have lost around $35.7 million per year in funding by alienating the younger generation that is increasingly supportive of cryptocurrency innovations.

Even though Change The Code was put on hold, there's still a possibility that discussions of sustainable practices in cryptocurrency will continue. Major companies have already started to look into how they can use otherwise wasted renewable energy for Bitcoin mining. Such a shift might sit better with wider climate ambitions and assuage some of the concerns around energy use in cryptocurrency operations.

At the end of the day, the end of this campaign is a reminder of how difficult it can be to effect environmental change in decentralized systems like Bitcoin. The post-mortem from this can be used to spark better discussions about cryptocurrency sustainability that is based on fact and respect between environmental advocates and the blockchain community.
It serves not as a cautionary tale but also a catalyst for future initiatives to bridge the gap between technological innovation and environmental stewardship.

Sources:
https://www.batcoinz.com/p/anti-bitcoinchange-the-code-campaign
https://stacker.news/items/808697
https://cointelegraph.com/news/greenpeace-ripple-co-founder-campaigning-to-change-bitcoin-code
https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/change-the-code-not-the-climate-greenpeace-usa-ewg-others-launch-campaign-to-push-bitcoin-to-reduce-climate-pollution/
https://www.cbn.gov.ng/out/2021/ccd/volume%203%20number%202%20cbn%20update%20february%202021.pdf
https://www.batcoinz.com/p/anti-bitcoinchange-the-code-campaign/comments?triedRedirect=true