We are all familiar with the conflict happening between Russia-Ukraine on the global front. Ukrainian property is being destroyed and it’s an ugly sight to behold. Amidst all this, the blockchain community of the country has taken it upon themselves to preserve the cultural heritage of their country, with the help of NFT technology.
Michael Chobanian, President of the Blockchain Association of Ukraine talked about how the country is planning to digitize every piece of art and history. Last weekend, the Consensus 2022 event was held in Austin, Texas. This is where Mr. Chobanian announced the new blockchain-related project.
“Today we are announcing a new project [aimed at] how we can save the DNA of the Ukrainian people, Ukrainian culture, and Ukrainian history.”
Michael Chobanian said
“Right now, they are bombing museums, churches, and cultural sites. So before they are destroyed, we’ll digitize every piece of art or history we have in museums. We’re going to NFT it and put it on the blockchain,” he further stated.
Since the start of this invasion, hundreds of cultural heritage sites and objects have been damaged or completely destroyed, as per the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine. The widespread damage is a huge concern for the country as Ukraine’s identity is at the stake here.
The above-mentioned blockchain project will provide interested people with a digital window into Ukraine’s cultural DNA. The main advantage of blockchain technology will be that, once all the heritage items are digitized, it’ll be impossible to destroy them. Chobanian states that not only will this help in preserving their heritage but due to the digitalization of these artifacts, a widespread of people will become aware of it. More importantly, Ukrainian citizens will have better access to their history and traditions.
Ukraine has already raised funds over $135 million in crypto from donors all around the world. This shows that they are using crypto and blockchain as a tool to finance their defense against Russia’s invasion. It’s also interesting to note that this is an initiative taken completely by the blockchain community of the country and the government is not involved in this.
This is also a good step toward the digitalization of these artifacts as NFT on a blockchain. This will be a testament to the fact that the artifact existed in the first place. Ukraine’s first government-led NFT project was MetaHistory NFT Museum.