Every Wednesday I provide a weekly snapshot about what we are hearing and learning in the GWG (Governance Working Group) about the NEAR Digital Collective (NDC) for the entire community. This will NOT be a comprehensive, deep dive into everything that is happening, but insights, ideas, and questions for the entire community for a quick update.
Snapshot of how to learn more and get involved:
Tuesday: Community Call to Learn What’s Happening in the NDC
Wednesday: This Community Pulse goes live
Thursday: Live Polls from the GWG goes live
Friday: Matt’s Friday Reflections goes live
A TON is happening, so, let’s begin:
GWG Q2 Focus: We want to share with you what we are focused on at the high level for the next quarter (3 months)
Onboard 4000 people for on I-am-Human (to ensure voting)
Election Process ramps up
Launch V1 Governance
Here are three really important docs you should take a read of this week:
Decentralized Funding: This explains how and what it is! Decentralization is totally different than what most think it is – it’s really the ultimate in sharing and transparency and the term seems easy to grasp, though it’s a new way to live.
How to get Funding: This is the #1 question! And, now that we are finding a functional way to decentralize, the “signposts” for where to get to go to apply for and get your funding is even more crucial. Please check out this link!
So, please share far and wide these docs and this link! Share your ideas below!
Tons of AMAs are about to happen, plus a town hall soon. Stay engaged – We Are the NDC!
CONCLUSION
That’s it for this week. Please tell us BELOW what you think of these initiatives - Also - What’s on your mind? How can we support your leanings and involvement? What’s something we should keep in mind?
What if we don’t want funding, but we want a free and open ecosystem?
How can honest developers participate in the ecosystem when VC funds are being thrown at vaporware projects?
You don’t need a degree in economics to understand that these funds create an atmosphere of exclusion.
A vaporware project can show up with a token, take funds and get publicly listed on a NEAR exchange. Absent these funds, exchanges wouldn’t be able to set a high barrier to entry.
A vaporware project can show up with nothing but promises and a make a full tour of paid NEAR ‘influencer’ comms.
These projects can then move onto another chain after milking both grants and community goodwill.
The end result is a community burnt out on false promises and vaporware. Devs with delivered projects are excluded if they don’t tap-dance and politick for grants. This creates a trust deficit. Next, devs are expected to trust NF with all their personal data, regardless of the particulars of their living situation…
Hard to sell this as inclusive or transparent.
Hard to understand the ecosystem from a good faith perspective.
Hard to remedy this with buzzword laden documents and weekly reports.
Hi @Mayor_of_Pumpopolis thank you very much. I am really sorry that the updates feel cold to or buzzy for you – we’re trying to be as thorough as possible, and not give reports, and I will certainly work on language that feels more direct.
I’d like to address your great post. There are a few core areas that the GWG is focusing on that for me make this governance experiment really relevant and not “Hopium”.
As a community-led governance experiment, this one is the biggest test of on-chain governance in the world and so there is a lot on the line and the people engaged in the process really know it, and really want it to work. There is also a genuine desire to break away from old ways of engaging and the traps you describe.
The grassroots DAOs (Creative and Marketing) are reenabling funding to projects, and a new DEV DAO was created by the Dev Gig Board. These are DAOs of the community and advocate with a lot of passion.
As for exclusion, this is exactly what self-governance hopes to address – the community for the community-led and energized by the community. I hope that the NDC movement changes some of the things that are causing burnout, and develops your trust. Ultimately, the aim is to be decentralized (and we all hope this helps!) though it’s going to be bumpy for a while, though with everyone’s voice and involvement (of the community and those creating honest and great work) we know it will improve.