The new non-fungible token (NFT) offering of National Geographic or Nat Geo is currently drawing a lot of flak online. According to critics, the new Genesis NFT is counter to the company’s ethical standards as the creation of these digital assets is deemed harmful to the environment.
Last month, Nat Geo unveiled its Genesis NFT Collection. The assets are comprised of artistical illustrations of a group of artists who call themselves Utopiea. They show depictions of diverse creatures and cultures worldwide with a special focus on Subsaharan Africa.
The total of NFTs under the collection is composed of 1,888 items with 118 editions. A total of 16 artists have been credited for these digital works.
The Criticism
The NFT collection of Nat Geo drew mixed reactions online though. Some of which heavily criticized the company’s direction toward supporting and engaging in NFTs.
The media’s target audience believes that promoting NFTs is contrary to the morals of a network that is nature-focused and has been championing environmental protection and conservation for more than a century. This is because the creation of such is considered to be detrimental to the environment.
The Trade-Off
Based on research by NFT Club, each NFT created in the blockchain requires around 83 kilograms of carbon dioxide (CO2). Unfortunately, the emissions do not end at the mining of the asset.
The existence of each NFT alone continues to generate CO2 emissions. The research found that it costs around 23 kg of CO2 every time a bid is submitted to an NFT. Once a sale occurs, an extra 51 kg of CO2 is emitted. Finally, 30 kg of CO2 is generated upon transfer of the asset to another owner, and the cycle continues.
The emissions produced at each NFT sale would require at least 1.37 trees for its offsetting. So, for example, every 5 million NFT sales would require approximately 6.85 million trees to offset the emissions.
Total of NFTs in Circulation in 2023
It’s hard to come up with the actual numbers of NFTs in circulation these days because of their ever-changing supply. However, they are estimated to number between 11 million to 13 million in 2023.
The prices of each NFT vary. It’s mostly determined by its creator and the ensuing demand it creates.
So far, the most expensive NFT to date is “The Merge” which sold for a total of $91.8 million in December 2021. However, it should be noted that this property is not owned by a single entity but rather by 29,983 individuals. With that, the asset was split into 312,686 coins, which were disseminated to the buyers.
Final Thoughts
Many critics, however, do ignore the fact that over the years, the network had its own magazine and channel that do require the utilization of natural resources. Although the former uses recycled paper during the process, it cannot be dismissed that energy is still utilized during its production. On the other hand, the carbon footprint of each hour of satellite TV reception translates to at least 21 grams of CO2. Translate that to the total number of viewers of its shows and you will get overwhelming numbers there.
Furthermore, the company now has its own YouTube channel with more than 21.2 million subscribers and around 5.47 billion views at present. The app users of Nat Geo are not even factored in.
Blockchain is now a way of life in this digital age. Businesses need to adapt and take advantage of the changes it brings about in modern enterprises. Nat Geo, on its part, has to keep itself relevant and afloat in these competitive times dominated by digital media. Therefore, its continuous adoption of new technology —albeit getting mixed reactions — is just one of its ways towards achieving its goals and agenda just like every else. After all, it is still a business entity.