# Well hello, NEAR Academy!

We're proud to announce the launch of [near.academy](https://near.academy), a keystone of our educational onramp at NEAR Protocol.

Powered by the same team and technology behind Ocean Academy and Tezos Academy, NEAR Academy is purpose-built for web 2 developers looking for a hands-on introduction to blockchain concepts and code.

101Labs has done an incredible job of crafting an approachable narrative with a twist: **The Meme Museum**.

> _The year is 2029. The new internet is running on top of public interoperable blockchains. It seems crazy to think how the perception towards these technologies has drastically changed. The Internet of Value is more tangible than ever. Knowing how blockchain works is not considered a competitive advantage nowadays. It is a must-have._
>

Behind the welcoming facade of the meme museum are multiple smart contracts written specifically for this learning experience. These include a custom NFT token contract and an NFT generator. These contracts work together to create an immersive experience for developers learning about NEAR Protocol where anyone can enter and everyone leaves with an NFT.

The learning platform is friendly and responsive, making it easy for developers to set their own pace through the learning materials. Along the way, developers must confirm their understanding of the material using a playful and inviting interface.

Developers who complete this course will come to understand the basics of web 3, a high level overview of how NEAR Protocol works as well as an introduction to writing smart contracts for NEAR. The learning experience includes diagrams, code samples and links to resources for further study. A certificate of completion is issued for anyone who completes the course.


This is just the **first of many modules** we expect to launch with 101Labs this year and we welcome your feedback. Our single mission is to educate the world about web 3 technologies using NEAR Protocol.

Visit [near.academy](https://near.academy) today for a tour of the future.

NEAR's mission is to enable community-driven innovation to benefit people around the world. The NEAR platform provides a decentralized application platform that is secure enough to manage high value assets like money or identity and performant enough to make them useful for everyday people, putting the power of Open Finance and the Open Web in their hands.

The NEAR platform, NEAR Protocol, and associated tooling are being built by the NEAR Collective, a collection of the best engineers in the world who work across teams, companies and countries similar to other large scale open source projects.