Statements on Ethereum Merge from Fight, Greenpeace, Creative Commons

In light of the September 15, 2022 Ethereum Merge, the following organizations have released statements that can be attributed as described:

Quote from Lia Holland, Campaigns and Communications Director, Fight for the Future

“So many people think that all blockchain projects are terrible for our climate by design—but the Ethereum merge shows real action from one of the largest chains to reduce its energy usage to 1/1000th of its former consumption. After a successful merge, mainstream DeFi projects as well as NFTs on the Ethereum chain will have a negligible climate impact. Such an important choice shows how community-run decentralized tools might lead us to an era where new, less opaque and more accountable institutions can bake human rights and justice into our digital lives. But, we have to fight for that future. Thank you to everyone who worked on the Ethereum merge, and to everyone who is working on finding a path for all our remaining energy-intensive digital infrastructure to transition away from fossil fuels and toward a future that centers climate justice. We also hope that these environmental impacts will drive greater restrictions on the use of fossil fuels from all industries, and never on the rights of people to build or use open source software projects and emerging technologies, including cryptocurrencies and digital assets. Ban fossil fuels, not software projects.”

Quote from Catherine Stihler, CEO, Creative Commons

“At Creative Commons we hope that new developments in decentralized technologies such as the Ethereum merge will decrease energy usage and carbon footprints. Our mission to empower the public commons with better sharing requires us to reckon with the full impact of digital tools as we collaborate to combat climate change by opening access to research and data.”

Quote from Rolf Skar, special project manager, Greenpeace USA

“We’re in a climate crisis and everyone has a responsibility to act. With ethereum’s move to an energy-efficient protocol, it’s time for bitcoin to end its growing reliance on fossil fuels. Companies promoting and profiting from bitcoin, like Fidelity Investments, BlackRock, Paypal and Block, have a responsibility to be a part of building a better, climate friendly bitcoin.”