This intensive course aims to investigate the ecosystem of green cryptocurrencies and how they can help to build a more sustainable world.

We will start from traditional crypto-mining, the process of creating new bitcoins (or other traditional cryptocurrencies) by solving extremely complicated math problems that verify transactions in a specific cryptocurrency. Then we will look at some alternatives, such as Proof-of-stake and other energy-efficient techniques (e.g., PoC, PoC+). In addition, we will explore with data the environmental impact and energy implications of traditional and green cryptocurrencies.

Another core section is the one related to ESG and sustainability, where these topics are introduced and connected to the crypto context. After that, 12 interesting and promising green cryptocurrencies are presented, pointing out sustainability implications and technical details.

The main objectives of this course are:

• Understand energy implications (e.g., mining, staking) related to cryptocurrencies

• Understand the environmental impact of Bitcoin and traditional cryptocurrencies

• Understand aspects related to ESG and sustainability

• Present some eco-friendly cryptocurrencies

• Present technical details of green cryptocurrencies

• Reflect on future directions and trends for green crypto

There are 12 eco-friendly cryptocurrencies presented in this course, with technical details and peculiarities:

• Algorand (ALGO)

• Stellar Lumens (XLM)

• SolarCoin (SLR)

• Cardano (ADA)

• IOTA (MIOTA)

• Signum (SIGNA)

• Hedera (HBAR)

• Harmony (ONE)

• Avalanche (AVAX)

• NEAR Protocol (NEAR)

• Holo (HOT)

• Powerledger (POWR)