Georgia's Blockchain Implementation Studied By Harvard Business School

The Bitfury Group, the world’s leading full-service Blockchain technology company, discussed its partnership with the Republic of Georgia to build the world’s first Blockchain-based land-titling project at Harvard Business School and the United Nations.

Harvard Business School has authored an educational case study on Bitfury’s work in Georgia. Rachel Pipan, senior manager of communications at Bitfury, discussed Bitfury’s role in launching the project with students at Harvard Business School in Cambridge, Mass.

John Mercurio, deputy global chief communications officer at Bitfury, explained the land-titling project in the Republic of Georgia at the Humanitarian Blockchain Summit in New York. The summit is organized by the Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs at Fordham University in partnership with United Nations Office of Information and Communications Technology.

The invitations for Bitfury to discuss its Georgia project reflect the growing global interest in the ways that Blockchain technology can help improve vital government services for citizens around the world.

“The potential for Blockchain is vast, and we are excited to be a leading voice in an ecosystem that works every day to find ways to embrace it for the global good,” said George Kikvadze, vice chairman of Bitfury’s board. “We are honored to be presenting our Georgia project at the Harvard Business School and the United Nations, and we look forward to leading an ongoing conversation about this game-changing innovation.”

About the Georgia Land Titling Project

In April 2016, The Bitfury Group announced it would pilot the first blockchain land-titling registry in partnership with the Republic of Georgia’s National Agency of Public Registry (NAPR) and renowned economist Hernando de Soto. Bitfury and NAPR successfully implemented a custom-designed Blockchain system that is now integrated into the digital records system of NAPR.

This private, permissioned Blockchain is anchored to the Bitcoin Blockchain through a distributed digital timestamping service. Distributed digital timestamping allows NAPR to verify and sign a document containing a citizen’s essential information and proof of ownership of property.

This groundbreaking project will continue to advance to include smart-contract capabilities to streamline business operations for NAPR, including the sale of property, transfer of ownership and more.

About The Bitfury Group

The Bitfury Group is the leading full-service Blockchain technology company and one of the largest private infrastructure providers in the Blockchain ecosystem. Bitfury is a global team of experts in technology, business, communications, security and civil society. The Bitfury Group develops and delivers both the software and the hardware solutions necessary for businesses, governments, organizations and individuals to securely move an asset across the Blockchain. The expertise of The Bitfury Group ensures successful, easy, fast, secure and cost-effective connectivity to the Blockchain. The Bitfury Group believes the Blockchain can and will open new doors for global economic opportunity and prosperity, and its mission is to create and advance Blockchain applications that will further promote innovation and the advancement of the peer-to-peer economy. Bitfury recently launched Exonum, a custom framework that helps individuals, businesses and governments securely and easily bring their ideas and solutions to life.

Advancing STEM Education Outside the Classroom

Computing has become an integral part of the practice of modern science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

As a result, computational and computational thinking approaches are dramatically increasing the understanding of the world and society—from particle physics to biology and aerospace to Earth systems science. Computation is central to the practice of science and engineering. The translation of mathematical models of phenomena into computer simulations allows scientists to analyze systems, predict the future and reconstruct the past, on a scale far greater in complexity than previously possible. In addition, scientists now have the ability to collect, query, visualize and analyze unprecedented amounts of data. These computational capabilities are revolutionizing STEM disciplines.

Kartveli (left) at the chalk board

All students—but particularly students in STEM disciplines—need to understand the role of computation and computational thinking within disciplinary problem solving. Too few students, however, have the opportunity to gain these understandings and skills in or outside of school.

Computational thinking is a fundamental skill for everyone, not just for computer scientists. To reading, writing, and arithmetic, we should add computational thinking to every child’s analytical ability. Students can gain a better understanding of STEM and computing fields if they can see the creative modes of scientific exploration made possible by advances in computation, such as visualizations of scientific concepts, modeling and simulation in engineering design, use of high performance computing for physics, climate research and aeronautics, molecular chemistry, computational biology, and bioinformatics.

The Alexander Kartveli Association’s mission is to create awareness of Kartveli's scientific achievements and personal qualities that made his impact on aerospace engineering a vital weapon against the 20th century’s greatest tyrannical threats. Today, the Association promotes programs that support learning, innovation and STEM education as a reflection of Kartveli’s own life and accomplishments.

Last month the Association sponsored a week-long celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Voyager missions as part of its mission to support efforts to expand opportunities for young people in STEM initiatives in Tblisi, Georgia, where Kartveli was born. 

Key members of the original mission team attended included Rob Manning, Mars program senior engineer, and John Casani, Head of the Voyager satellite program. The U.S. Ambassador Kelly and Deputy Chief of Mission Elizabeth Rood also participated in the events.