Welcome back to episode 2 of AutoPGF: Funding Impact with Glo Dollar—a special podcast mini-series from Crypto Altruists that explores the future of Automatic Public Goods Funding, or AutoPGF for short, and the incredible organizations leveraging this new mechanism to scale their impact.
Today we’re honored to welcome Ilan Wallentin from GiveDirectly and Garm Lucassen from Glo. GiveDirectly was the first-ever cause supported by Glo’s AutoPGF model—and for good reason. With over $800 million delivered directly into the hands of people living in poverty, GiveDirectly is proving what’s possible when we lead with trust and dignity.
In this inspiring conversation, we explore the powerful story behind GiveDirectly’s impact, the bold vision behind Glo Dollar, and how automatic, decentralized funding mechanisms might just be the future of humanitarian aid.
We discuss:
❤️ Cash with Dignity - Direct cash transfers give people in poverty the power to choose what they need most—whether that’s food, education, medicine, or starting a business. Backed by numerous studies, cash transfers are the most researched—and misunderstood—form of aid, consistently proving that people use the money wisely and impactfully.
🔎 Trust Through Transparency - In a world where donor skepticism is rising, transparency is everything. From tracking every Glo Dollar to showcasing the real-world outcomes of GiveDirectly’s work, building transparency and trust ensures donors know exactly how and where their money is making a difference. Blockchain can be a key tool in making this a reality.
💸 Passive Giving, Massive Potential - AutoPGF flips traditional philanthropy on its head by making impact effortless. Just by holding stablecoins like Glo Dollar, users can passively fund life-changing causes. And with the stablecoin market booming, the potential to scale this model—and fund the future of humanitarian aid—is enormous.
02:35 - Reflecting back to your journey to Web3 and public goods funding, was there a defining moment that made you realize the potential of decentralized funding models to reshape how we support critical causes like climate action?
09:05 - To date, Climate Coordination Network has distributed over $4M in funding through various rounds. Can you tell me more about some of the causes funded and the impact generated?
12:20 - How did you learn about Glo Dollar and what did you first think about it?
16:35 - To lay the groundwork for the conversation, can you share your thoughts on the concept of AutoPGF? How does the idea of automatically funding public goods, simply by holding a stablecoin like Glo Dollar, change the game for organizations like CCN?
21:40 - Traditional fundraising often requires extensive outreach, complex grant applications, and navigating bureaucratic funding ecosystems, making it feel like nonprofits spend more time raising funds than creating impact. How do you see mechanisms like AutoPGF disrupting this?
25:05 - If you had unlimited funds and no bureaucracy, what’s the first thing you’d change about how climate action is funded today?
29:40 - With traditional philanthropy, and grant funding models, impact organizations often have to compete for limited pools of funding, creating a sort of zero sum game. How does Glo Dollar’s AutoPGF model help break away from this scarcity mindset?
38:20 - Throughout all of your work in the Web3 PGF space, what’s one unexpected lesson you’ve learned about PEOPLE or community?
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While we may discuss specific web3 projects or cryptocurrencies on this podcast, please do not take any of this as investment advice, and please make sure to do your own research on potential investment opportunities, or any opportunity. We host a variety of guests on this podcast with the sole purpose of highlighting the social impact use cases of this technology. That being said, Crypto Altruism does not endorse any of these projects, and we recognize that, since this is an emerging sector, some may be operating in regulatory grey areas, and as such, we cannot confirm their legality in the jurisdictions in which they operate, especially as it pertains to decentralized finance protocols. So, before getting involved with any project, it’s important that you do your own research and confirm the legality of the project. More available HERE.
