Rally and the Environment
At Rally, we do not require or run an open network, meaning only a handful of computers (equivalent to a public cloud) are needed to complete our transactions. There is no solving of complex math problems or needing computers outside of these few in our network to compete for our transactions. The environmental impact to a social token or NFT minted on Rally (about .05 grams of carbon emission) is almost the same as sending a Tweet or performing any other equivalent storage and transmission transaction (estimated at about .02 grams of carbon emissions for Twitter). For comparison, a typical NFT minted through Proof of Work will generate about 2.3 kg of carbon emissions. In other words, minting an NFT using Proof of Work emits about as much carbon as a single user would generate with 115,000 tweets.
The key tradeoff is centralization. Individual creator coins and NFTs on Rally are on a sidechain and don’t rely on a distributed group of computers to process or service transactions. The primary tools of engagement for Rally.io exist on the sidechain. While some will argue this does not reflect the fully decentralized mission of true blockchain, we believe that creators and fans are willing to make this tradeoff for an environmentally friendly, regulatorily compliant, and user-friendly experience. With Rally, fans and creators can still experience some of the most exciting benefits that crypto offers, such as digital ownership and community-driven value. Not only is this a more-eco friendly option, but it’s also a more viable economic design for creators looking to engage their fans with tokens and NFTs without incurring high gas fees and transactions costs on mainnet.