henlo frens, this is the very first episode of Last Mile Defi! In this episode of the podcast, I had the pleasure of speaking with Nico Gallardo, a builder in the crypto ecosystem focused on the intersection of DeFi and decentralized social:

https://player.simplecast.com/f7b892eb-3fd7-4680-a70f-2fd90a4ccb77?display=iframe&height=200px

You will also find the podcast on your preferred content platforms:

Lens | Spotify | Apple | YouTube | Google | Simple Cast

In this episode, we explored the similarities between Bolivia and Guatemala in terms of their governmental, economic, and geographic backgrounds, as well as the lack of financial infrastructure in rural areas. During our conversation, Nico shared his journey towards becoming a builder in the crypto space and his thoughts on Bolivia's decision to prohibit crypto interaction. We delved into how people in Bolivia are currently using crypto and what the future of crypto looks like in the region. We also discussed the importance of building organic communities and the role that Eth Kipu, a post-Devcon community of communities across Latin America, plays in this process.

Nico also shared his thesis on how crypto is particularly well-suited to address the massive financial challenges that exist on the continent and the key role that decentralized social plays in onboarding the next billion people into the crypto ecosystem. Although the audio and video quality of the live recording wasn't as high fidelity as we would have liked, I believe that this conversation is a must-listen for anyone interested in the future of Latin American builders.

To stay up to date with the latest findings, you can follow along on Twitter and Lens as well. I’ll be publishing updates on the research and behind the scenes content, so make sure you’re joining us. You can also join us in our Telegram channel too!

Lastly, thank you so much for your feedback on v1 of the report I recently published. There’s still time to review v1 (the open review session will close on March 31st, after which I will go ahead and publish v2 in April), so if you haven’t read it and reviewed it yet, would highly recommend doing so:

https://marcus.mirror.xyz/j9gVZh4HQS1_2jog_uiZ4m69rbzrdSNdAW1sPrQgOow

This research and podcast is produced with the support of:

Ethereum Foundation Fellowship: The Fellowship program is a forum for leaders who are driven by leveraging Ethereum as a public good to help billions of people coordinate and thrive. The Fellowship program aims to support individuals who are passionate about identifying barriers to mass-adoption and breaking down the barriers for underrepresented communities to access crypto.

Celo Foundation: Celo is the blockchain built for the real world. Carbon-negative, mobile-first and EVM-compatible, Celo is leading a thriving new digital economy for all. Build together and prosper.