Image credit: Blockchain Labs for Open Collaboration (BLOC)

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Blockchain technology and governance specialist, Blockchain Labs for Open Collaboration (BLOC), has won the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Solve Coastal Communities Challenge, for its work in developing emissions monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) solutions for shipping.

BLOC was selected from 33 teams participating in the Solve Challenge Finals, which included a live pitch event at the UN General Assembly in New York.

The Solver teams were selected by Solve's Challenge Leadership Group judges as the most promising set of solutions tackling large-scale global challenges.

BLOC's MRV application focuses on building digital infrastructure to enhance coastal community health and safety through traceability of shipping emissions.

The solution is designed to secure the chain of custody for marine fuel data using blockchain in a real-world setting, thereby creating a decision support system for enforcing and complying with global environmental regulations, including the upcoming IMO 2020 sulphur cap, which will see the majority of the international shipping industry switch from using heavy fuel oil.

The MRV application builds upon the Marine Fuel Assurance prototype funded by Lloyd's Register Foundation as part of BLOC's Maritime Blockchain Labs (MBL) initiative.

Deanna MacDonald, CEO of BLOC, commented: "We are proud to have been a part of the MIT Solve competition and a winner in the Coastal Communities Challenge. Not only does this validate the importance of a solution to the fuels challenges in the shipping sector, it also provides us with a platform to create awareness and partnerships to bring this solution to market. Shipping emissions affect every corner of the world and yet have been largely ignored, this system will be a part of the shift towards solving this challenge with better global regulations and low-sulphur, compliant fuel for the maritime sector and we are thrilled to have the MIT Solve community supporting us in this endeavour."

MIT Solve's Executive Director, Alex Amouyel, remarked: "We are incredibly inspired by each new Solver selected at Solve Challenge Finals as they advance solutions to four of the world's biggest challenges. We had incredible diversity of solutions-nonprofits, for-profits, academic projects, all ages, and over 110 countries were represented. The judges had the difficult task of choosing the most promising ones.

"Today is just the start of the journey for our Solver teams; this is when the real work begins to broker partnerships with Solve members and partners on behalf of these innovators. We want to support our Solver teams so they can access mentors and experts to help validate and scale their solutions, as well as additional follow-on funding and in-kind resources."

BLOC is an organisation established to drive open, collaborative research and the prototyping of solutions that bridge the digital and the physical divide to solve global challenges.

BLOC's work in maritime is handled through Maritime Blockchain Labs (MBL), an industry consortium made up of stakeholders across the shipping industry which is funded by the Lloyd's Register Foundation.