Hey everyone! Do you ever see an article online and wonder if itâs too good to be true? Youâve heard of the source before, the author has street cred, the platform seems legit, but something about the idea doesnât land right? In the world of Web3, articles are being published left and right about the next greatest idea, hot take, or venture into Web3, and even for people like us who spend a lot of time in this space, itâs tough to know whatâs real or not. So in todayâs newsletter, weâre going to provide you with some tips on how to filter through thought leadership in Web3 and even share some of our own stuff weâve been cooking up đ
The problem with thought leadership in Web3 today.Â
If youâve been reading this newsletter for a while, or youâre new to the party, one thing has been consistent in Web3 - we are EARLY. We have yet to see what great innovations or ideas will actually end up being something, and therein lies the problem. Itâs tough to know who holds weight in the industry - is it the investor who spoke to a couple of startups and has a good idea of whatâs going on? Is it the startup founder who saw a problem in Web2 that they aim to solve in Web3? Or is it that celebrity we loved to watch on reality TV that plans to launch an NFT? Truth be told, it could be any of them. Everyone can have an idea, everyone can have some knowledge of the space, and anyone can gain an audience with their perspective.Â
So, how do you know which sources to trust in Web3?Â
Every week, itâs our goal to bring you all the latest news and/or break down a topic in web3. This wouldnât be possible without having a general idea of how to vet whether a news source, article, or even tweet is one thatâs worthwhile to bring to our audience. Of course we always run the risk of consuming false or inaccurate information even from a trusted source, but we know that on average our sources are usually certified.Â
As you progress on your own web3 learning journey, we want to share a few tips for how to make sure youâre learning from credible sources.Â
Follow sources that acknowledge the good and the bad â Even in Web3 for the Culture, one of our priorities for this newsletter is to be more objective and critical when necessary. Of course weâre excited about web3 and see immense potential, but that doesnât mean everything is perfect. Be cautious of people or sources that are extremely critical or optimistic. Thereâs a healthy balance that should exist, and sources that get this right are the real winners.Â
Check their track record â If you had the opportunity to choose a basketball coach between Lebron James and your uncle who is determined to relive his high school glory days, youâd probably pick LeBron⊠for obvious reasons. Whether theyâre a news source or a popular Twitter account, a quick Google or Reddit search about them can ensure that youâre not following a potentially problematic source. On a good note, if theyâre consistently pushing out content that aligns with other articles or research, thatâs a good sign that they can be trusted.
Crosscheck sources â Especially since weâre still so early in web3, whatever you learn should be double checked with another credible source, even if theyâre âestablishedâ in the space. Because the honest truth is no one 100% knows whatâs going on, not even those people who are great at pretending they do (*cough* FTX).
While weâre on this topic, we highly recommend The Milk Road â a 5 min daily newsletter that helps people get smarter about crypto. Bonus points: Theyâre actually pretty hilarious. We also love Crypto Tutors which is an e-learning platform thatâs designed to provide you everything you need to know about cryptocurrency. Â
Aside from these resources, we both have been taking on more opportunities to showcase our own thought leadership.Â
Kendall hosted a Web3 panel at Wharton!
Last weekend at the 49th annual Whitney M. Young Jr Memorial Conference hosted by the African American MBA Association, Kendall organized and led a panel entitled âFrom the Disruptors: Building and Investing in Web3.â The panel consisted of Solo Ceesay, CEO and Co-founder of Calaxy, Deshone Kizer, CEO and Founder of One to None, and Rosemarie Miller, Crypto Reporter at Forbes. Needless to say, the vibes were immaculate and the learning was high.Â
Chadâs Thesis đ€ Blockchain Technology
This past week, Chad submitted his thesis as part of his Master of Arts in International Studies at the Lauder Institute! (Congrats Chad!!) And the topic was also on Web3, titled: âBuilding By Block: Leveraging Blockchain Technology to Foster Community Organization and Innovation on the African Continent.â While we know youâd love to read 50+ pages and 12000+ words of content (youâre a real one if you really want to!!), weâre going to save you with a quick overview of what it was all about:
For countries where corruption levels are high and trusted institutions operate inefficiently, blockchain is a promising alternative that empowers individuals to operate without the use of a central authority. Given its poor digital infrastructure, Africa is often excluded from exploring how this technology can be applied. However, though use cases have been identified in growing or established industries, an evident application in Africa has yet to be fully explored: community organizing.Â
In his thesis, Chad explores applying blockchain to help communities in Africa organize and innovate. By assessing how other technologies that share similar traits as blockchain, such as mobile phones, electronic payments, and internet of things, have scaled on the continent, Chad identifies a proxy for the technologies adoption in Africa. We also assess how blockchain has helped other nations of similar stages of development or duress in organizing, focusing particularly on crypto-philanthropy through decentralized autonomous organizations. His paper concludes that the potential for blockchain to support communities on the continent is high; however, hurdles, such as the regulatory environment, may slow widespread adoption.
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We hope this has been helpful and interesting! Thanks for reading, as always!
Trust Issues: Thought Leadership in Web3 đ§
Love this take, and actually really interested in seeing that thesis, or hearing about more applications on the continent