Unearthing Int(er/ra)operability at Tierra de Agua
by A. Nirvaan Ranganathan
The inaugural BICOWG Green House Retreat took place in early October 2022 at the Tierra de Agua Eco-Hotel in Cocorna, a rustic town outside the city of Medellín, Colombia. The goal of this summit was to convene key players across the web3 x climate space, and foster meaningful discussions about interoperable solutions and unified messaging. With tremendous logistical support from Loa Labs and the Ocean Plastics Leadership Network, participants gathered in the “Templo de Agua” for presentations, breakout discussions, working groups, a Jefferson dinner, and socializing.
In line with the overarching theme of “interoperability”, attendees represented a wide array of web3 companies ranging from relatively established blockchains, such as Algorand, to newly formed networks, such as Topl. Several targeted working groups of interest formed, including the ReFi L1 group (also known as “Chains with Benefits”) focused on building foundational infrastructure that will support cross-chain climate applications. This development will be informed by the “Interoperability Matrix” group, focused on identifying the gaps in current infrastructure that prevent cross-chain interaction, then prioritizing developments based on real world use cases.
Presentations from Regen Network and Ripple demonstrated contrasting but compelling approaches to existing multi-chain solutions, including specific projects such as Thallo and CarbonTitle that will deploy across Celo and XRP Ledger. The Climate Collective shared more about how Celo’s unique position as a mobile-first L1 further reinforces its inclusive and mission-driven ecosystem — first demonstrated by Celo becoming a central player in inclusive DeFi, and in recent months becoming the home of a vibrant and innovative “intraoperable” climate ecosystem.
A word on definitions: we define intRAoperability as programmatic interactions between projects on the same blockchain, and intERoperability as secure, functional integrations across two or more distinct L1 blockchains. For a concrete example, Regen Network and Celo use different mechanisms to achieve this intRAoperability within their respective (but very aligned) ecosystems, and will soon become intERoperable upon completion of the Toucan-Regen bridge currently in active development.
The Green House Retreat was a great reminder that climate x web3 players are often aligned in mission, but have much work to do to become more technically collaborative. Based on the Climate Collective’s “Interoperability Matrix” map, we identified that the L1 community still has some substantial gaps to fill before we will achieve much needed interoperability. The good news is that we now have a much better understanding of which gaps are important based on real world use cases. At the Climate Collective we’re rolling up our sleeves and getting to work. Reach out to research@climatecollective.org if you are interested in contributing to interoperability research and coordination — and stay tuned!
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