On October 21st, a two-week cleanup initiative I coordinated under Plogging Nigeria (University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN)) commenced. This initiative would be the first where members of Plogging Nigeria, UNN made use of Web3 wallets because they were to upload pictures of areas cleaned to DeCleanup Network and submit a daily report on the Atlantis Impact Miner. Both actions served as participation proofs and those with the highest number of proofs would share a reward pool of US$150. At the end of the initiative, we had cleared an illegal dumpsite and cleaned over 20 locations on campus.
Upon discussing with the participants, the incentives promised provided more motivation for them to show up. On average, we had 19 people showing up each day. Because we had many participants, we covered 12.6km square of land and gathered over 800kg of waste. Some of the participants that were consistent but didn’t follow up with submitting their participation proofs regretted doing so when the rewards were shared. This was the first time since the history of the NGO in UNN participants were earning up to US$50 for doing cleanups.
Pondering on the reactions to the initiative, I started wondering what I could do to bring these traditional impact enthusiasts on-chain so they could key into ReFi projects that offer rewards for impact work done? At that moment, I decided to turn a hobby of ReFi-pilling my traditional impact friends into starting the ReFi Club, an initiative dedicated to onboarding traditional impact enthusiasts and their associated NGOs into ReFi.
Why we need impact enthusiasts
I was listening to Ebru Kaya’s episode on the ReFi Podcast and she mentioned something that struck me. She said that the flaw with key players in the impact sector is that they feel like they have all the answers and, at times, try to impose their thinking in unfamiliar contexts. Traditional impact enthusiasts will have a better understanding of the social/ecological problems in their local communities. Because of this knowledge, they can proffer seemingly unconventional solutions that ReFi projects foreign to that context have no idea about.
And although traditional impact enthusiasts sometimes know the contextual solutions to impact problems in their localities, they may not have access to funding that can help them implement these solutions. Getting funding from Global North NGOs is always hellish due to bureaucratic processes involved. Some may not even get through because they’re unregistered, a common feature of grassroots initiatives due to the registration costs. Bringing them on-chain would provide them with access to Web3 funding.
Potential challenges
Most non-Web3 users already have a perception bias towards learning to use Web3 solutions such as blockchain and crypto. They feel it is unnecessarily difficult and the reason isn’t far-fetched. I’ve read numerous online educational materials that should help onboard non-Web3 users and participated in several non-crypto native onboarding programs. Although these materials and programs are created for non-Web3 users, they are created from a Web3 native’s perspective.
Another challenge is that some ReFi projects distribute small rewards in tokens with fluctuating prices which aren't usually enough to sustain. Imagine a scenario where an impact enthusiast chooses to hold their rewards until they get to a tangible amount and the token price dips. It can be disappointing and disorienting.
Introducing the ReFi Club
The ReFi Club is an initiative dedicated to onboarding grassroots NGO members focused on traditional ecological and social impact, offering opportunities for learning, earning, and growing. The ReFi Club began as a hobby for me when I attempted to onboard five friends who were sustainability enthusiasts into the ReFi sector. In Q1 2025, it will be going from a group of five friends to a public community dedicated to onboarding traditional impact enthusiasts
The ReFi Club will be focused on the following:
Proper onboarding
ReFi onboarding means teaching people how to use Web3 to engage with ReFi projects, earn tokens for verified environmental or social impact, contribute expertise from their impact work, access funding for their own impact initiatives, and build lasting connections within the global regen community.
Most participants in the PESATHON initiative were new to crypto. Because of the suddenness of the integration, I spent just three hours teaching them how to use Atlantis, DeCleanup Network, and the Rainbow Wallet. Unfortunately, the knowledge imparted wasn’t sufficient enough. Only five out of 20 consistent participants followed up with the bounty on Atlantis and consistently uploaded their cleanup proofs on the DeCleanup Network.
Although participants came up with issues that needed technical support which I escalated to the concerned projects, I didn’t provide the solutions because I lost track of participants and their various support requests. The ones I identified had eventually forgotten that they needed feedback because of how long the feedback loop took.
Ironically, the five that won rewards for consistency haven't opened the impact miner again because I didn't establish a channel to consistently inform them about new sustainability bounties on the DApp and guide them on participating. The organisation I coordinated the initiative through has had subsequent cleanup sessions, and volunteers did not upload their cleanup proofs to the DeCleanup Network because they had forgotten how. In retrospect, if I had onboarded them properly, the initiative could have achieved much better outcomes.
Building on this experience, the ReFi Club would provide these impact enthusiasts with sufficient education on Web3 tools like wallets and ramps, common crypto transactions, cryptocurrency risks and security measures, and finally what ReFi is all about. We will be organising month-long Web3 workshops to ensure that the enthusiasts are grounded and comfortable enough in using the tech. Because interacting with some Web3 projects involve multiple processes, we will be providing ongoing technical support to help their navigation.
Funding
The ReFi Club will be providing funding in two ways:
- Regenerative earning opportunities - We intend to hunt for regenerative earning opportunities for the onboarded regens. These opportunities include X-to-Earn projects, Atlantis bounties, and partnership campaigns. Personally, we will be organising regenerative bounties for members to participate. In the future, we will be equipping them with skills to help promote their work and also the ReFi space at large.
- Micro grants for NGOs represented in the community - After the PESATHON initiative, one major problem was that although members of Plogging Nigeria, UNN got rewards, the organisation wasn’t reimbursed even though they spent resources in providing the cleanup materials. Although it seemed a bit unfair given that the organisation is a growing one, I couldn’t do anything to help. To make things fair for both impact enthusiasts and the initiatives they belong to, the ReFi Club will also be providing mini-grants to NGOs represented in the community to carry out service projects in their localities.
Conclusion
Mainstream "crypto Twitter" opinion says that the bull run begins when non-crypto natives are interested in getting in. Unfortunately, some unfamiliar users have become victims of scams and pump-and-dump schemes. We do not want our traditional impact enthusiasts to go down this path, hence the need for the ReFi Club. We’ve finished diagramming the operational framework of the initiative and submitted onboarding proposals to various grassroots NGOs. 2025 is going to be an activity-filled one!
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This article represents the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the editorial stance of CARBON Copy.