Aussie charity launches non-fungible token artwork collection

Tokens for Humanity is the first Aussie charity to use non-fungible tokens as a source of fundraising revenue  

An Australian charity is tapping into the hottest new trend in the world of cryptocurrency, issuing a collection of non-fungible token artworks to raise money for animal welfare groups.                          

Tokens for Humanity has recently developed 64 non-fungible token (NFT) artwork collectibles that will go on sale later this week, with prices ranging from around $150 to $35,000. 

NFTs are unique digital assets that exist on the blockchain, a decentralised method of storing data where transactions are recorded in a transparent and secure way. 

An NFT provides a verified digital certificate of ownership, meaning that while the asset may be copied and shared by others, you own the original version.  

NFTs have been in the headlines recently, with Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey last month selling the first-ever published tweet as an NFT for $3.8 million, and artist Beeple selling an NFT of his artwork for $90 million.           

Tokens for Humanity (TFH) co-founder Bryce Thomas told Pro Bono News TFH was the first Australian charity to use non-fungible tokens as a source of fundraising revenue. 

He said there were many opportunities in the NFT space for charities.

“We think it’s a really interesting time to get involved because there’s a lot that’s going on in this space right now. There’s a lot of hype,” Thomas said.

“What we’re focusing on is creating more social good. And we think that NFTs have a huge amount of potential to help Australian charities raise money.

“It’s kind of like the modern day equivalent of selling a pin or some sort of physical item for a charity. But in this case, it’s digital blockchain art.”

TFH’s NFT offering includes four families of animal artworks – Frank Fox, Sally Seal, Kenny Koala, and a bat called High-roller Roland.

Each family of animals is priced according to how rare they are. For example, there are many more in the Sally Seal series of artworks than in the Kenny Koala series, making Kenny Koala assets more valuable.

These artworks can be purchased using the Ether cryptocurrency and the person buying the NFT will be able to view their unique digital asset on the Ethereum blockchain. 

But they will be getting more than just digital artwork itself, Thomas explained.

“Each of these pieces of artwork have specific metadata assigned to them, which basically has information about that particular piece of artwork,” he said.

“This includes the story around [the animal] and the characteristics of that particular piece of art. For example we have Benevolent Kenny, who is the rarest because there’s only one of him. 

“And there’s a story around him being the most altruistic and thoughtful in the blockchain NFT animal kingdom.”

Proceeds from the sales will be used to support animal welfare organisations, and TFH already has a list of charities it is keen to support, such as WIRES and The Lost Dogs’ Home.

Other animal welfare charities interested in receiving proceeds from the NFT sales have also been invited to reach out and contact TFH.   

Fellow TFH co-founder Frederick Brien told Pro Bono News this NFT collection offered people the chance to make a difference in a unique way.

“This is an artwork collection where every purchase actually goes towards making the world a better place,” Brien said. 

“There’s not enough people working on altruistic projects in the blockchain space.” 

Thomas said TFH was already starting to develop future NFT offerings, and he encouraged other charities to work with them to help develop their own.

“We would love to work with charitable organisations to help them develop their own NFTs going forward, because there is a little bit of complexity there,” he said.

“But we think this is a [great way] to support charities.” 

You can take a look at the NFT artwork collection here.