NFT auction raises USD 6,000 for tiger conservation

Can NFT tradings be a sustainable source of conservation funds?

Yangyel Lhaden

In a first of its kind for Bhutan, the digital art titled ‘The Tiger in the Snow’ has been auctioned on the blockchain for 1.889 Ether (ETH), which is equivalent to about USD 6,000.

ETH is the crypto currency of the Ethereum blockchain, used to pay for transactions, computational services, and smart contracts within the network.

The ‘The Tiger in the Snow’ artwork, a watercolour painting created by a senior artist from VAST Bhutan, draws inspiration from a real tiger captured on camera during the second National Tiger Survey 2022-23.

The painting depicts a tiger in the snow with the iconic Taktsang monastery in the background. The artwork symbolises the tiger’s habitat shifting to higher altitudes, possibly due to climate change and human activities.

The sale of the digital collectible occurred at the tiger art auction and exhibition at the Sustainable Finance for Tiger Landscape (SFTL) Conference, which was held in Paro in April 22-23 this year to raise USD one billion fund for tiger conservation.

A digital collectible is a unique, scarce digital asset traded on blockchain platforms as non-fungible tokens (NFT), valued by collectors. An NFT is a unique digital asset that represents ownership or proof of authenticity of a specific item or piece of content.

The digital artwork was minted – the process of creating a NFTon the Ethereum blockchain – on OpenSea, a decentralised marketplace for buying, selling, and trading NFTs and digital assets. Druk Holding and Investments provided the technical support to convert the art into NFT and register on OpenSea.

The process of creating and listing the digital art on OpenSea for trading was done at the cost ofabout USD 400. Whenever the digital collectible is resold on OpenSea, the original creator also receives a royalty ranging from five to ten percent. The royalty from the sale of ‘The Tiger in the Snow’ digital art piece will be split between the Department of Forests and Park Services and the artist at 60:40 ratio.

The art auction, including the sale of NFTs, during the SFTL raised Nu. 737,644 for tiger conservation. The auction was organised by conservation agencies such as Bhutan for Life, Bhutan Trust Fund for Environmental Conservation, Royal Society for Protection of Nature, Bhutan Foundation and WWF Bhutan.

NFTs are gaining popularity globally for conservation fundraising through digital art collectibles. For example, The Ocean Foundation launched ‘CryptoCorals’ to fund coral reef restoration, and Rainforest Foundation US auctioned NFTs for rainforest conservation projects.

“Considering the price of the digital art sold during the recent Tiger Conference, NFTs show promise for conservation fundraising,” Kuenzang Tobgay from Bhutan For Life said.

However, he highlighted the current sustainability risks in blockchain trading, pointing out the carbon footprint from high electricity consumption due to substantial computational needs. He said that some studies suggest that the electricity consumed outweighs the benefits from NFT trades.

“As a global biodiversity hotspot, Bhutan could mint exotic species like tigers, snow leopards, golden langurs, black-necked cranes, white-bellied herons, and more on NFT platforms to fund conservation initiatives. But an in-depth study needs to be carried out before we venture further into NFTs,” Kuenzang Tobgay said.