San Marino Republic adopts blockchain to become the first carbon-neutral country

San Marino
From the left: Sunny Lu CEO of VeChain; Andrea Zafferani, Segretario di Stato Segreteria di Stato per l’Industria, l’Artigianato e il Commercio, il Lavoro, la Cooperazione e le Telecomunicazioni della Repubblica di San Marino; Renato Grottola Global Director – M&A and Digital Transformation, DNV GL – Business Assurance; Sergio Mottola, Presidente San Marino Innovation - Istituto per l’Innovazione della Repubblica di San Marino S.p.A.

A microstate in Italy is set to become the first carbon-neutral country thanks to the adoption of blockchain technology to aid in defining models capable of incentivising sustainable behaviour from citizens.

The parties involved that are leading the way are the Republic of San Marino Secretary of State for Industry, Trade, Business, Cooperation and Telecommunications; Republic of San Marino Innovation Institute S.p.A; DNV GL Business Assurance Group AS; and VeChain Foundation Limited, who have signed a memorandum of understanding.

The ‘San Marino Low Carbon Ecosystem’ was proposed by DNV GL, in collaboration with VeChain. It aims to reduce CO2 emissions and, subsequently, implement circular economy business models. The platform will encourage environmentally friendly practices such as water saving, waste disposal and management. The practices will be rewarded through a utility token, the San Marino Innovation Token issued by San Marino Innovation, which can be used to access services offered within the Republic.

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The introduction of the low carbon ecosystem represents a first global example of incentivisation through the use of blockchain technology and a utility token. In the next days, two working groups involving technical and legal specialists as well as institutions will be established to guarantee swift and effective operations.

Republic of San Marino Secretary of State for Industry, Trade, Business, Cooperation and Telecommunications Andrea Zafferani said, “We are particularly proud of this Memorandum of Understanding that certifies the Republic of San Marino as the ideal place to foster a culture of experimentation and bring blockchain to our everyday lives.

“We’ll give life to a project that will directly engage citizens and reward their sustainable behaviour, while also meeting the country’s demands in regards to CO2 emissions reduction, water saving and waste disposal and management. Our ambitious goal is to become the first zero-emissions country in the world.”

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San Marino Innovation President Sergio Mottola said, “We demonstrated that the political strategies aimed to reward the citizen, which are already partially in place through the SmaC circuit, paired with blockchain technology, recently regulated by a Decree-Law ratified a few months ago, can successfully attract relevant partners. The San Marino Innovation Token is the right catalyst to encourage investments and deliver ambitious projects”.

“San Marino represents a unique opportunity to create a bridge between the digital and the traditional world,” DNV GL – Business Assurance global director – M&A and Digital Transformation Renato Grottola said.

“A major step toward the rapid adoption of such projects, that lay the foundation for a future of meaningful interaction among individuals sharing the same vision: creating a tangible, positive impact for our planet.”

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