Restaking 
Regen.
Authors: Kevin Owocki, with feedback/inspiration from Yalor Mewn, Michael Zargram
TLDR
- Being Regen is a source of alignment for Restaking projects
- Restaking is a source of yield for Regen Projects
- Therefore, Restaking/Regen are symbiotic.
Introduction
Vitalik Buterins recent challenge to the Ethereum ecosystem is “Ethereum is here to make the world a more free and open place, enable new forms of ownership and collaboration, and contribute positively to important challenges facing humanity.”
In this essay, we will connect two complementary pieces of this puzzle - Regen and Restaking - to address Vitaliks prompt: Ethereum contributing positively to important challenges facing humanity…
Regen
The Regen Web3 ecosystem uses blockchain to drive community-led solutions for creating & growing ecosystems with positive sum games. It powers regenerative finance (ReFi) projects that incentivize sustainable practices like carbon sequestration, ecological restoration, or public goods funding. Platforms like Regen Network enable transparent verification and trading of ecological outcomes, and projects like Giveth, CLRFund, Optimism Retro Funding, and Gitcoin (and more) enable more seamless public goods funding.
Regen Web3 faces a challenge with sustainable funding, as many projects rely heavily on short-term grants or speculative tokens rather than long-term, reliable revenue streams. This creates instability, making it difficult for projects to scale or maintain momentum. Without more robust funding models, many initiatives struggle to sustain their impact over time.
We believe that we are at the precipice of solving this challenge.
Biological parallels
In biology, “exothermic” refers to processes that release heat energy. Energy is a currency in nature, as many organisms rely on energy to survive and reproduce. For example, the heat from deep-sea hydrothermal vents supports unique ecosystems by providing energy for certain bacteria to thrive. Similarly, the sun’s heat enables photosynthesis in plants, driving life on Earth by supplying energy to ecosystems.
Similarly to their biological counterparts, economically exothermic systems generate more value or energy than they consume, driving growth and positive externalities. These systems produce surplus resources that can be reinvested into further development or to support community regeneration. By continuously generating excess value, economically exothermic systems create self-sustaining cycles of growth and innovation.
EigenLayer
EigenLayer is a decentralized protocol that allows Ethereum validators and stakers to restake their assets, extending their security guarantees to new services or applications. It enables developers to leverage Ethereum’s security for various decentralized networks, creating shared security while offering additional staking rewards. This enhances network scalability and innovation across multiple projects.
Eigenlayer is massively economically exothermic to the Ethereum ecosystem. As of September 2024, over 30.2 million ETH is staked, which is valued at approximately $85 billion. All of that economic value will be powering Actively Validated Services (AVS) in the Eigenlayer system, and allowing restakers to create sustainable yield for the communities involved.
Where might we direct this yield?
Restaking is Regen.
I write this essay because I am enamored with the potential here. Regen ecosystem has created many beautiful things, but lacks sustainable funding. Eigenlayer is here and could solve that problem.
Being Regen is a source of alignment for Restaking projects
Restaking is a source of yield for Regen Projects
Therefore, Restaking/Regen are symbiotic.
We challenge the Regen ecosystem to embrace this opportunity to build AVS on top of Eigenlayer, and we encourage the Eigenlayer ecosystem to make their Ethereum alignment legible by contributing excess yield to regen causes, exporting web3’s yield for positive sum games.
By doing so, we will realize Vitaliks dream for Ethereum to “contribute positively to important challenges facing humanity.”
Restaking + Regen = Re(Staking|Generation)