The security benefits offered by the blockchain technology come at an environmental cost, especially with energy-intensive Proof of Work (PoW) systems. Sustainable alternatives, like Proof of Stake (PoS) and Layer-2 scaling solutions, can improve efficiency without compromising security.
When applying the sustainable design principles we need to take into consideration the solution that offers and energy-efficient result. Design solutions on PoS blockchains like Ethereum 2.0, Solana, or Algorand, which consume significantly less energy.
Optimize Smart Contracts to reduce redundant computations to lower transaction fees and environmental impact.
We must think of storing the non-critical information on decentralized storage networks instead of the blockchain to decrease on-chain bloat.
Aaaaand, last, but not least, we need to make our users aware of the costs, prompting them with the eco-impact indicators showing users how their actions (e.g., transactions, smart contract deployments) affect energy consumption.
Example: Ethereum’s shift to PoS reduced its energy consumption by 99.95%, demonstrating how blockchain security can be both robust and sustainable.
