In the vibrant city of Oakland, a transformative movement is underway fueled by the power of onchain technology. At its heart lies OAK, a community currency dedicated to creating a thriving local economy and a more just political system.

You can find OAK at the West Oakland Farmers Market, week after week. Over the past few months the team has worked with over a dozen merchants to facilitate thousands of dollars of transactions, helping each of them bring their business onchain. This is the power of OAK, enabling residents and small businesses to share value without traditional financial intermediaries.. “In high trust environments we don’t need expensive financial intermediaries to siphon value from every transaction," Jones explains. The farmer’s market is an excellent showcase of the potential that onchain technology can bring to small businesses, promoting their growth and also keeping money circulating within the community.

Looking to the future, OAK envisions the integration of onchain transactions into more payment processing avenues. Jones notes, "Maybe the point-of-sale units these local businesses are using will make onchain transactions as easy as a click of the button." Such seamless adoption of onchain technology is essential to fuel widespread change.

Beyond financial empowerment, OAK is committed to empowering community governance. OAK launched a citywide quadratic funding round where 242 community members collectively allocated funding to 7 different local nonprofits. Collective governance, after all, is the cornerstone of a fair and community-oriented political and economic system

OAK stands as a model for other cities seeking to leverage onchain technology for community development. Part of the larger City3 project, OAK seeks to disseminate tools and strategies for bringing cities onchain, inspiring others to create communities that are more collaborative, abundant, and empowered.

The transformative power of OAK's onchain initiative extends beyond its geographical boundaries. With a vision for a fair and just economic and political system, OAK aims to create a blueprint. As Jones passionately states, "We want everyone to see that there is a faction of crypto that cares about community, that's very diverse, and is using the technology to bring about a better world."

By bringing small businesses onchain, OAK’s use of onchain technology in empowering small businesses and promoting community resilience in Oakland is a testament to the positive role of onchain technology in shaping the future of the internet

OAK promotes community resilience in Oakland by empowering small businesses with onchain technology. In so doing, OAK models the potential onchain technology holds in shaping the future of cities and the internet alike.