Tron (TRX) and BitTorrent’s (BTT) leader Justin Sun announced their support and contribution to ALS Association for their #VoiceYourLove campaign. ALS Association aims to raise awareness about ALS and also funds research to find a cure for ALS.
ALS or Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig’s disease is a group of rare neurological disorders that damages the nervous system making a patient lose control over their body. Currently, there is no cure nor is there a way to halt the effects of ALS. Over 14,000-15,000 people in the US are estimated to have ALS. It can be sporadic or genetic. Although much is known about the disease, we have not yet found a cure nor a way to prevent new cases.
ALS Association, established in 1985, is the only national non-profit organization dedicated to fighting ALS. It facilitates global research, provides assistance to people through local chapters, coordinates care through certified clinical care centers, building relationships with government bodies, and aggressively searches for new treatments and cure. ALS Association works with over 150 labs across the world.
The #VoiceYourLove campaign is planned for Valentine’s Day in order to raise awareness about ALS. The campaign focuses on uploading a video or photo on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter voicing your love about someone important to you using the hashtag #VoiceYourLove. The donations raised through this campaign will be used to fund research and find a cure.
“ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Over the course of the disease, people living with ALS lose the ability to move, to speak, and eventually, to breathe. ALS is always fatal, usually within two to five years of diagnosis.”, their press release says.
Justin Sun Giving Back
Justin Sun, via Tron and BitTorrent, donated a sum of $250,000 to this cause. Apart from the money, they contributed by providing their blockchain platform to help them track their donations. Tron’s platform will be able to track where the donations are coming from and where they are directed and allocated as well. The information collected through the blockchain will be made public at the end of the campaign. Sun mentioned that Tron and BitTorrent have united their efforts for this cause.
I’m supporting the @alsassociation with a $250,000 donation and voicing my love to the #TRON and #BitTorrent community! Passing on the torch to @CourteneyCox @cz_binance & @VitalikButerin to join #VoiceYourLove ? Together we can help find a cure for #ALS! https://t.co/MiR0eSL8Ng pic.twitter.com/HAvr2h9af6— Justin Sun (@justinsuntron) February 12, 2019
Executive Vice President of communications at ALS Foundation said in the press release, “The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge became a global media phenomenon in 2014, and continues every summer. Our new #VoiceYourLove campaign, conceived with our partner TRON, is a new awareness and fund-raising drive that combines cool heads and warm hearts.”
Bringing Stars Together
The campaign has partnered with popular celebrities to help bring awareness to this noble cause. Some efforts include a video where Courtney Cox – Monica of friends – spreads awareness about the deadly disease. According to a tweet by Justin Sun, a yet-to-be-announced four time Superbowl title holder is going to be a part of the campaign as well. In the video below you can see Renée Kathleen Zellweger’s emotional dialogue about ALS.
Binance, the leading cryptocurrency exchange, also donated $150,000 to the cause.
Blockchain Making a Difference
Crypto projects are working with charitable causes everywhere to help make a better world. In fact, there are more and more cryptocurrency-funded philanthropies being created because of the benefits that cryptocurrencies provide. You can read such examples here. In another example, BitPay partnered with Wikipedia to accept cryptocurrency donations.
Cryptocurrency has always been associated with illegal trade. But initiatives like these definitely help the image that the cryptocurrency sector has. There are many good things that can come from blockchain technology, we just have to demonstrate it.
Helping the ALS Cause
If you are in a financial position where you can contribute to the ALS cause, please do so at the official link. With the massive effort to combat this disease over the last several years, it should just be a matter of time before we find ways to hinder the disease and possibly cure it altogether. Just look at AIDS as an example. Thanks to hard work, donations, and research, AIDS has had huge breakthroughs over the last 20 years. I am very hopeful that we can say the same for ALS in the near future.
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