The Longevity Science Foundation (LSF) — a Swiss non-profit dedicated to advancing the healthy human lifespan — has announced today it will use blockchain technology in its funding selection process. To do so, the Foundation has created LSF Points, which will be distributed to all Foundation donators. These non-monetary tokens will empower them to vote on which projects and proposals they believe should be funded by the Foundation. All projects under consideration will first be chosen by the LSF Visionary Board for technical soundness, impact, and scientific quality. The executive summary of the programme can be found here.
“Beyond having a credible, strict and transparent evaluation and selection process, the LSF wishes to accommodate a system for donors to also express their opinion and vote for their favourites among the applications,” Visionary Board Chairman Evelyne Yehudit Bischof said. “This programme will not only encourage donor involvement but will also help us achieve our mission of bringing more longevity-based solutions to a wider audience within the next five years.”
The LSF Points are not an investment instrument and do not have any monetary value. The LSF does not sell nor exchange LSF Points to any currency–they are strictly an instrument for internal decision-making and governance. However, in addition to votes, donors can use points to earn rewards such as NFTs commemorating contributions, consultations with longevity specialists, and early access to treatments. Point transfers and report security will be managed via a smart contract on an Ethereum-based public blockchain.
“We aim to maintain full transparency while reducing bureaucratic burden in the funding process,” Bischof said. “Every funding decision the Foundation makes is fully auditable applying the new blockchain programme, which guarantees transparency around LSF work.”
After receiving funding proposals, a team of longevity opinion leaders pre-vets and shortlists selected proposals and defines priority vectors to deliver a comprehensive set of funding targets. These are reviewed by donors who then execute their voting rights through their holding of LSF Points. Details of the process can be found on the website.
The Foundation is seeking to fund projects that can facilitate and accelerate significant progress in longevity medicine as soon as possible. The Foundation’s Visionary Board is composed of leading longevity researchers like Bischof, Andrea B. Maier, Eric Verdin, Matt Kaeberlein, Michael Levitt, and Alex Zhavoronkov.
About the Longevity Science Foundation
The Longevity Science Foundation is a Swiss nonprofit organisation advancing human longevity by funding research and development of medical technologies to extend the healthy human lifespan. The long-term mission of the Longevity Science Foundation is to help make longevity-focused care accessible to everyone, no matter their background, by bringing cutting-edge science on aging out of the laboratory and into the mainstream. To learn more, visit www.longevity.foundation.
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