Green currency for Gdańsk - an international pro-environmental project | Gdańsk University of Technology

The ‘Greencoin’ research project is an international project, and its implementation will take three years. MSc. Eng. Arch Kacper Radziszewski from the Faculty of Architecture of Gdańsk University of Technology received nearly PLN 8.5 million for its implementation under the EEA Financial Mechanism and the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2014-2021 in the ‘IdeaLab Call for Full Proposals’ competition.

The aim of the research is to develop a currency alternative to the existing monetary system, rewarding and shaping the pro-environmental behavior of the inhabitants of Gdańsk.

–The assumptions of the project are multidimensional - explains the scientist - We want it to contribute to changing the habits of Gdańsk residents and to reduce social inequality by rewarding the system users based on their behavior and attitude, regardless of their economic situation.

Research work will be carried out simultaneously in three areas: economic and environmental, social and technological. Economic and environmental research aims to select behaviors and give them a value expressed in ‘Greencoin’ based on their environmental impact. Research on the community for which the system will be developed is an extremely important aspect of the project, decisive for its outcome. The Faculty of Architecture has signed a letter of intent with the City of Gdańsk regarding cooperation in conducting a pilot project in the city. Based on the results of research on the inhabitants of Gdańsk, their habits, behaviors and possible forms of involvement, an individualized method of system implementation will be developed. The third issue to be developed in parallel will be the technological possibilities of implementing ‘Greencoin’. As part of the research, an IT system managing the virtual currency will be developed, together with an application allowing future users to interactively use the system. The project plans to integrate with databases available to the city, external applications and the use of the Internet of Things to monitor and verify different behavior.

The project is carried out in an international consortium consisting of: City Initiative Association, Warsaw School of Economics, Maria Grzegorzewska University and Norwegian partners, Stavanger University and Oslo Metropolitan University.

The research team of Gdańsk University of Technology, which will be expanded in the next stages of the project, includes: PhD Paweł Weichbroth, MSc. Kacper Wereszko (Faculty of Electronics, Telecommunications and Informatics), Helena Anacka (Faculty of Management and Economics), PhD, Eng. Arch Hanna Obracht-Prondzyńska, PhD, Eng. Arch Piotr Czyż and MSc. Arch. Kacper Radziszewski (Faculty of Architecture).