Friday, June 07, 2024

The Evolution of Blockchain: A Continuation of the Democracy Journey

 **By Ryan Munn, Blockchain Advocate and Lifelong Student of Everything**

Blockchain is often misunderstood. It’s not merely a solution to a specific problem; it’s a fundamental evolution of our democracy, human collaboration, and empowerment. It offers unprecedented access to the tools of governance and the pursuit of happiness. Essentially, blockchain is about providing everyone with access to capital, knowledge, and power. It’s not just a venture capital thesis or a profit-making tool.


The drive for profit is what brings this open-source technology into our lives, making it impossible for the traditional world to ignore. The traditional world feels threatened only by the openness, accountability, and accessibility that blockchain promotes. Institutions, corporations, and traditional interests may feel threatened by blockchain, but they need to understand that it is an opportunity, not a threat. Blockchain is simply a continuation of human ingenuity, using new, stronger technologies to reinforce human rights and enable their exercise.


Embracing Blockchain for Better Governance


In every pitch or proposal, blockchain should already be baked into the accounting and governance models. It enables cross-jurisdictional regulatory compliance, community engagement, accountability, governance, and leadership. It also offers a range of flexible and dynamic financial instruments and tools that can empower individuals and communities.


This is our future if we embrace it. Complacency is our only enemy. Blockchain offers us the tools for collective governance, which has always been a significant opportunity and challeng. Historically, the empowerment of people was limited by technology, like the printing press, which enabled the dissemination of knowledge and information. However, large capital and wealth holders have always tried to control this dissemination.


Breaking the Paradigm


Over a century ago, efforts were made to control the supply of materials to printing presses, ensuring that the centralized control of the lumber industry remained dominant. This limited the sources of news to centralized entities. Before that, those who controlled the ink, quills, and books – like the church – restricted access to knowledge, maintaining it within a closed circle.


This paradigm has been broken many times through human collaboration and inventive technologies that enable the sharing and preservation of knowledge over long distances of space and time. Blockchain is simply the latest evolution in the preservation of knowledge across time and space.


Blockchain is not just a technological innovation; it’s the next step in our collective governance, human rights, and the sharing of knowledge. By embracing blockchain, we can take our future into our own hands and create a more equitable and empowered world.

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