Harnessing the Potential of Green Cryptocurrencies: A Path Toward Climate Change Mitigation

The rise of cryptocurrencies has introduced a paradigm shift in global finance but has concurrently raised critical environmental concerns linked to energy-intensive cryptocurrency mining. This chapter explores the concept of “Green Cryptocurrencies” as a promising solution to alleviate the ecological consequences associated with cryptocurrency ecosystems. Beginning with analyzing cryptocurrency mining's environmental implications, including its health and climate impacts, we underscore the importance of transitioning from proof-of-work (PoW) to more sustainable consensus mechanisms. “Green Cryptocurrencies” encompass a range of initiatives and strategies designed to reduce carbon emissions within the cryptocurrency ecosystem. We provide a comprehensive literature review on cryptocurrency environmental impacts and the development of green alternatives. Our statistical analysis reveals the relationship between electricity costs and the adoption of green cryptocurrencies. Furthermore, we detail the methodology for selecting green cryptocurrencies as case studies and report their characteristics. In particular, we focus on 13 green cryptocurrencies. Notably, we highlight that the adoption of these green cryptocurrencies can contribute to CO2 emission reduction.