Lauren Weymouth, director of university partnerships at Ripple, said “The University of Wyoming is in an ideal position to contribute to the promotion and acceleration of the innovation of blockchain systems and real-world utilization cases such as cryptocurrencies issued by central banks, non-fiat currencies, and carbon credit markets because of the quality of its management and research facilities. We are delighted to have the University of Wyoming join our University Blockchain Research Initiative, and we are looking forward to collaborating with the University of Wyoming’s faculty and students to develop a worldwide blockchain environment that is both more resilient and beneficial for everyone.”
The Ripple Blockchain Collaboratory will have its home in the College of Law, the College of Engineering and Applied Science, and the Center for Blockchain and Digital Innovation at the University of Washington. This grant will help undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Wyoming who are passionate about blockchain, cryptos, and cybersecurity as they seek degrees and establish professions, guaranteeing that Wyoming will have a qualified workforce for its future technological endeavors. Furthermore, the University of Washington will be operating an XRPL validator on site, which is an essential piece of equipment that verifies trades.
Steven Lupien, director of UW’s Center for Blockchain and Digital Innovation, said “We are grateful to the Ripple Foundation, which has been very supportive of initiatives aimed at bringing blockchain technology into higher education all across the globe. Their valuable contribution will finance scholarship in the fields of law, cybersecurity, blockchain solutions in the energy sector, and blockchain education. Furthermore, by becoming members of our blockchain advisory board, they will contribute to the development of educational programs and university-level initiatives.”
Cameron Wright, dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Science, said “This extraordinary funding from Ripple will considerably boost our capacity to make advancements in these technology fields that are so vital to Wyoming’s economy, to our studies at the college, and for the aspirations of our students.”
Students will participate ineffective learning experiences such as academic assignments, journal articles, surveys, and analysis of application scenarios and regulatory infrastructure through the products in the College of Engineering and Applied Science and the College of Law’s enterprise development and business law practicum. These changes will be available to students in both colleges. In the past few years, the Wyoming Legislature has approved scores of legislation that foster a business climate that is favorable to crypto assets. These laws pave the way for future attorneys in Wyoming to operate in creative industries that are beneficial to the state’s economy.
Klint Alexander, dean of the College of Law, said “Blockchain technology and cryptocurrency are two examples of innovations that are quickly becoming the rule instead of the unusual as the digitalization and acceleration of the world economy continue to accelerate. It is essential that the legal system adapts to these shifting circumstances, and Wyoming has emerged as a worldwide nexus for the establishment of laws and regulations in this rapidly expanding and more significant field.”
This money will also boost study into blockchain’s potential applications in the field of conservation. For instance, Mike Borowczak and Soheil Saraji, assistant professors in the departments of Computer Science and Petroleum Engineering at the University of Washington, are top researchers in the field of power tokenization. Energy tokenization is a carbon credit environment that uses smart contracts and functions using blockchain technology. The tokenization of energy would bring about standardization in the carbon markets as well as an improvement in openness, accessibility, and liquidity. In addition to this, it would include participation from all relevant parties, such as the energy business, project validators, liquidity providers, nonprofit groups, concerned individuals, and governments.
This donation comes on the back of the latest approval by the UW Board of Trustees to start the School of Computing, which will be a center of computing leadership and effort at both the University of Washington and throughout the state.