Radix, a full-stack solution for Web3 and DeFi, is being used to build a cutting-edge prototype for a blockchain-based system that reduces the carbon footprint of global tourism — after being identified as the only network with the infrastructure needed to make the project a success.

Researchers developing the Carbon Tokenomics Model, which was unveiled on stage at COP28 as a revolutionary approach to tackling climate change, tested multiple blockchains in their search for a platform that was scalable enough to cope with the demands of the multibillion-dollar travel industry.

High transaction fees and slow confirmation times meant many of the world's best-known chains were deemed unsuitable by the Surrey Academy for Blockchain and Metaverse Applications (SABMA) — except Radix, which boasts a unique consensus mechanism that can accommodate billions of users.

Speaking on stage at ITB Berlin, the world's largest tourism trade fair, Eduard Goean, Visiting Professor at the University of Surrey, said: "We are building a prototype to prove that what we are saying could become reality. In order to make this, we have a partnership with the only blockchain company that we think in this moment is suitable for the visitor economy and the tourism industry. Why Radix? Because we analyzed the atomic composability and scalability of the blockchain."

Tourism currently accounts for about 11% of global greenhouse gas emissions — equivalent to about 5.4 billion tonnes of CO2 — and there are fears that this figure could double by 2050 unless urgent action is taken. The goal of the Carbon Tokenomics Model is to help businesses and organizations across the visitor economy accurately measure their footprint, and take steps to mitigate it.

The efficiency of existing offsetting solutions has been difficult to assess, especially in the voluntary carbon market. Although such credits can enable businesses, including airlines to diminish the environmental impact of their operations, some schemes have faced criticism for over-representing the reduction of CO2 emissions they cause.

Full transparency on the blockchain has the potential to give the tourism and hospitality trade confidence that they're making a difference — and having a positive environmental impact. Some of the research being carried out by the University of Surrey is being partly funded by the U.K. government through a Knowledge Transfer Partnership, offering a vote of confidence into the importance and credibility of this project.

A detailed research paper on the mechanics of the Carbon Tokenomics Model is due to be published in the coming months, with Radix founder Dan Hughes now working with SABMA on bringing this concept to life.