Good morning and welcome to the first edition of “w3 the North”! 

WTF is w3 the North?

Great question! We are a community of women, nonbinary, and underrepresented crypto-curious individuals.

A proud Canadian community, we're centring the "we" in web3 to emphasize that the future is for all of us and that community is at our core. Because let’s be real, the current world of crypto is looking too much like a fraternity from the early 2000s and no one wants that. 

Why a newsletter? 

Understanding web3 can be confusing AF (there is a lot of lingo and acronyms,) we want to make learning about crypto easy and digestible. So join us for this newsletter once a week and switch out your doomscroll with something a little different.There is a lot of web3 innovation happening in Canada and we want you to know about it!  

Quip of the Week

Is this take dystopian or utopian? Discuss this on Discord. 

What is it and Why Does it Matter?

blockchain vs crypto vs web3

What is it

• Cryptocurrency (Crypto) is a digital payment system that leverages blockchain to verify transactions and therefore does not require or rely on banks AKA it's decentralized. 

• Blockchain is the technology that enables crypto. It's a system of recording information in a way that makes it difficult to cheat, hack or manipulate the system because the information is in a digital ledger duplicated and distributed across a network of computer systems (vs keeping the information in one centralized system).

• Finally, web3 is the umbrella term used to describe the premise of an internet that leverages the blockchain to enable ownership and governance. A cynic would describe web3 as crypto with lipstick on, but an optimist would tell you that web3 is the promise of a better future internet. Web3 as an umbrella includes crypto but is often used to describe use cases beyond crypto, including governance (DAOs), gaming, apps, and more.

I know what you are thinking; it's season 6 of 2020, and I don't have time for another version of the web. But listen, web3 is not just a web2 new and improved. At its core, web3 (which includes crypto and is enabled by blockchain) revolutionizes trust. The theory is that it can shift power dynamics away from tech giants and big corporations (cough cough, Facebook) and towards users. Leading this charge, we need a diverse community of people who can think critically about we define trust in this new set of structures, that means you! 

The Latest

Web3 with women at the forefront

BFF launched last week to help bring more women into crypto (sounds familiar!) with a kick off event called "WTF is an NFT?" It was a star-studded cast for the 1.5h event; Mila Kunis and Gwyenth Paltrow were in attendance, as were Payal Kadakis (Founder of ClassPass) and Randi Zuckerburg. The highlight, however, was hearing from different (incredible!) NFT creators. Of note was Pakistani-American Maliha Abidi who founded Women Rise, an NFT collection representing women around the world with 7.5% of the proceeds going to global organizations fighting for girls' education, especially in the most marginalized communities, women's rights, violence against women, and gender equity. 

Lebron is working to make crypto education more accessible

Mila isn't the only celeb getting into the crypto game. LeBron recently partnered with crypto.com to offer students and families affiliated with his Foundation's "I Promise" program the education, tools and resources they need to succeed in web3 and associated initiatives. Though "Crypto.com Arena" (RIP Staples Center) still doesn't quite roll off the tongue, we love seeing LeBron's push to improve access to this space.

Beware of fraud

Sadly, not everything is sunshine and rainbows. A woman in Alberta, new to crypto, is sounding the alarm after she is out $2,500 from what she believes in fraudulent activity in crypto assets. Unfortunately, fraud appears to be on the rise, especially as more people flock towards what looks like an opportunity to get rich quickly. This is why you should always do your research, and keep in mind nothing we say here is investment advice! 

Okay, so what?: NFTs

We've likely all heard the word NFT. We may even know that it stands for non-fungible token. But what can be hard to grasp is how literal jpegs of monkeys and apes can be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. The projected market cap for NFTs in 2022 is more than $35 billion. Are we all insane? Maybe. But let's try to unpack it a bit:

1. Economics state that when demand goes up and supply remains the same, prices rise. It's for this simple fact that we're seeing the craze (and cash flow) around NFTs right now: more craze = more interest in NFTs = more money = more craze etc etc.

2. Ok, so why can't I just copy and paste the jpeg? You can, but that's not the point of ownership. In fact, the more you do that, the more you likely drive up the craze and attention. And at the end of the day, it's like comparing the real Mona Lisa to a photo you took of it on your phone. As someone who stood in the hoardes of people in the Louvre trying to photograph it, let me tell you: the latter is very underwhelming.  

3. Beyond the jpegs and pixels themselves, people are using NFTs as a way to gain access. NFTs can be a way for like-minded people to be part of a new type of elite social club (like Bored Apes Yacht Club, where our very own J Biebs just grabbed his own NFT for $1.3M) or be part of causes they believe in (like WoW Pixies). The more prolific the group, the more valuable the NFTs become. This concept of access is very interesting. It turns your NFT into a sort of digital pass.

4. A pass is one type of utility NFTs can start to provide. We've also seen examples of NFTs being able to act as a utility for earning money. For example, in the game Axies Infinity, people in the Philippines were able to play-to-earn using their NFTs, and notably, some were earning more than minimum wage during the height of the pandemic.

This is just the tip of the iceberg but hopefully this shows you why NFTs can hold value and the potential that they bring. Not to mention, it's been able to provide a lot of artists control over their work and an immediate entry into the web3 space! 

Do you want to dive in more?

Something to read

• The Essential Guide to Discord

• Learning, earning and web3

• Fighting Capitalism with Capitalism

Something to do

• Join our discord 

• Sign up for our first event

Something to try

• RabbitHole's learn to earn platform

Some Crypto Lingo

• "gm/gn" : good morning/good night

• "WAGMI" : we're all gonna make it

• "HODL" : hold on for dear life

• "BTD" : buy the dip

If you enjoyed this read, share it with a friend! If this was forwarded to you and you want to make sure you don't miss anything, make sure to subscribe below.

Till next time,

w3 the North