Tron founder Justin Sun is making a big pledge to climate control advocates, promising $1 million to Greta Thunberg after international talks failed to seal the deal on worldwide efforts against climate change.
It’s a global struggle, obviously – but as Marie Huillet reports in Cointelegraph today, global solutions put together by national stakeholders seem like weak tea to outside analysts. There were particular criticisms of efforts from the two big polluting superpowers, China and the United States.
In that context, the leader of the Tron firm, known for its decentralized apps and gaming innovations as well as its TRX token, is putting his money where his mouth is.
How did this go over in the crypto community? Huillet cites a lot of skeptics and naysayers piling on, suggesting that Sun is operating out of personal motives. Many of them also decry the climate science movement in general, suggesting that Greta Thunberg is really just window dressing.
However, not all observers are caustic about it, even if their admiration of Sun’s gesture is – well, muted.
Here’s how Tony Spilotro puts it at NewsBTC:
“The crypto industry is an unusual place, filled with eccentric characters, outspoken project founders, and dozens of influencers sharing analysis behind the guise of a cartoon character or dog. One particular controversial project founder, Justin Sun, is once again vying for the public spotlight, trying to bring additional attention to his cryptocurrency project known as Tron.”
Tim Alper at CryptoNews documents some of the other disdain coming through the Twitterverse,
“A number of internet users chided Sun for starting his refrain with the expression ‘as a young entrepreneur,’” Alper writes. “Sun is believed to be around 30…. Others dismissed the move as a ‘PR stunt.’”
Whatever you think, keep your eye on these kinds of controversial plays by crypto advocates. Crypto itself has been seen as a massive consumer of energy, even though reports show that the majority of Bitcoin is from renewables. The energy debate is expected to be central moving forward, as our world warms.
