A Bitcoin educator in Tanzania, known as Kweks (not his real name), successfully funded his climb of Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest peak, using Bitcoin and Nostr donations. Kweks raised over $1,700 in Bitcoin, equating to 0.0018 BTC, to cover the expenses of his hike. This climb also served as a promotional event for a new Bitcoin education academy in Tanzania that he is launching.
Kweks and his wife have recently relocated to a new city in Tanzania to establish an educational center named the “Proof of Work Academy,” or POWA. Kweks explained to Cointelegraph that the name POWA is a play on words. It references the proof-of-work consensus protocol used by Bitcoin and also alludes to the Swahili word “Poah,” which means fresh or cool.
To support the new school and demonstrate his preference for decentralized protocols, including Bitcoin and Nostr (notes and other stuff transmitted by relay), Kweks funded his ascent to the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro, which is nearly 6,000 meters high, using satoshis (sats). Sats are the smallest denomination of Bitcoin, with one satoshi equaling one hundred millionth of a Bitcoin.
Donations were received from around the world through Geyser Fund and Zapraising, a Bitcoin Lightning Network crowdfunding platform via Nostr, also known as Zaps. During his multiday hike, Kweks proudly carried a giant Nostr flag and shared status updates on various platforms including X, Nostr, and WhatsApp.
Kweks explained to Cointelegraph that while the money raised was significant in covering the costs of the climb, the educational impact was the primary goal:
“I thought it [the ascent] would be a great case study to show what Bitcoin can do and then introduce some people to Bitcoin as well.”
This ascent showcased to his local community and the global audience of Nostr users (Nostriches) and Bitcoin supporters that there is a willingness to support educational endeavors in Tanzania.
Additionally, during the hike, Kweks received a tip from one of the guides, demonstrating a grassroots adoption of Bitcoin in Tanzania. While there is some awareness of Bitcoin in the country, the absence of major cryptocurrency exchanges like Coinbase, Kraken, and Gemini poses a challenge for converting Bitcoin to local currency and vice versa.
During the hike, Tanzanians inquired about how Kweks funded his adventure and what Bitcoin is. Kweks believes that while Bitcoin adoption in Tanzania differs from that in the United Kingdom, where he lived for 25 years, the key to Bitcoin education is to use relatable terms.
Kweks continues to share educational resources on Nostr and X, while the Proof of Work Academy offers free educational classes to Tanzanians living near Kilimanjaro.
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