[Rejected] Near Digital Collective Application Form | NEAR Impact NDC Budget Subcategory code HOM-004P-1-1-1

NEAR Digital Collective
1

Section 1 - DAO/Project Information

NEAR IMPACT NDC Presentation (2)
NEAR IMPACT NDC Presentation (2)960×540 292 KB

Section 2. Previous Funding

No, we have not received any funding, but we have been leaning on partners for brand awareness, talent. And development.

Guy did receive funding for writing the original impact charter of $1,000.

Section 3. DAO URLs

Relevant Links

Social Media Channels

App (Potlock) Information

Section 4. Applicant Information

Section 5 & 6. Team Members & Experience

Council & Contributors Members:

Our team comprises experienced community organizers, founders, and highly technical individuals deeply embedded in the NEAR, Web3, and Web2 ecosystems.**While this budget will not accommodate the entire team, we have been actively collaborating with partners to support the transformative shift in public goods funding within the NEAR ecosystem. We have also begun onboarding a decentralized contributor + volunteer network.

Shahirah Gardner Shah_g.near

  • Role in Project: Venture, Research, & Impact
  • Australia
  • Co-founder of Finch (Finder’s Best Digital Wallet , Best Personal Finance App and Money 2020 USA Global Fintech to Watch), Venture Partner at Skalata, Former Board Member and Head of PR at Girl In Tech Australia, Startup Mentor, Yogi
  • Shahirah Gardner - Team | Skalata
  • Twitter LinkedIn
  • Paid through this budget

Russ Ballard (ogruss.near)

  • Role in Project: Growth (Project & User Onboarding) & Events
  • Austin, Texas
  • Former Community Engagement Lead, NDC GWG, Co-Founder at Proof of Vibes, Co-Founder at 40Acres DAO
  • Paid through this budget

Roshaan Khan (roshaanx.near)

  • Role in Project: Non Profit Operations, Consultancy/Advisory, Incentive Design
  • Digital Assets Subject Matter Expert at Accenture Federal, Product Manager - Collectibles for NEM Group, Board Member, Minority Think Tank, Former Technical Product Manager - Blockchain @ BlockOne, Advisor for Sazmining Inc, Co-Founder of Koinstreet, Former Project Coordinator for Government Blockchain Association, Former Technical Analyst for FinTech4Good, VCU major in Informations Systems
  • x.com
  • Volunteer Role (not paid through this budget)

Guy Ntare (ntare.near)

  • Role in Project: Operations

  • Core-Contributor, NEAR Impact.

  • BS in Information technology major in Software engineering

  • with an engineering background and expertise in design systems, process management, and project implementation. His primary focus has been on creating projects that address real-world issues in green finance, such as carbon planning for workspaces, waste management solutions and supply chain management, all aimed at achieving net-zero emissions in organisations

  • LinkedIn , Twitter, Github

  • Paid through this budget

Ubong Ephraim (uibj.near)

  • Role in Project: Marketing & Product + Graphic Design
  • Current Web3 Product / UI/UX Designer (H2 Studios), Growth Lead at Hype, Ambassador at Polygo Technology, Oasis, Blockstack PBC. Former Ambassador at Waves Lab, Scallop, EasyFi Network, Algorand, Former Ecosystem Contributor at Phuture, Former Content Writer at EOS Nigeria.
  • https://www.linkedin.com/in/ubong-ephraim
  • x.com
  • Paid through this budget

Trophy David (trophy001.near)

  • Role in Project: Community Manager & Social Media
  • Nigeria
  • Community Manager at Popula, Former PM at Minority Programmers, Contributor at NEARWeek, Community Manager at Proof of Vibes, Contributor at MarmaJ
  • Paid through this budget

NEAR IMPACT NDC Presentation
NEAR IMPACT NDC Presentation960×540 186 KB

Section 7. DAO/Project Charter/White or Litepaper and Goals

For in depth view please check out our long form proposal nearimpact.org/impact-proposal

  • Mission: Create, measure, and fund impact on NEAR by building new composable open source funding mechanisms, & onboarding donors, supporters, projects, and capital.
  • Vision: Make NEAR the impact chain, bringing in new capital + new funding mechanisms, rather than a top down system and real impact use cases…
  • Core Programs: Quadratic funding pools, Impact based grants, Project & Donor Onboarding, Product Development
  • Team: Development Experience, Community Growth + Marketing, Venture, Blockchain Consulting,
  • Problem Addressed: User Acquisition, Project Acquisition, Respected in Ecosystem, On-Chain Tracking of Impact, TVL
  • DAO/Project Charter: NEAR Impact Charter https://nearimpact.org/charter
  • Alignment with NDC: Onboarding users (to multiple contracts), project, fundraisers. Building in external capital. Being respected in the Web3 ecosystem, Empowering ecosystem, Iterations through weekly sprints/sync.

Section 8. Budget

Our full budget report can be found at nearimpact.org/q1-budget

Our budget encompasses a minimal allocation for onboarding projects, small grants for impactful initiatives, and subsidies for our growth and research core contributors. We have leveraged partnerships to subsidize development costs and utilized existing non-profit entities to subsidize legal expenses. We are allocating funding to the PotLock platform to finance NDC-related DAOs and initiatives primarily through quadratic funding. Additionally, we are reallocating a modest monthly amount of $5,000 for impact-driven grants aimed at fostering innovation in novel funding mechanisms, such as retroactive funding, direct grants, attestations, non-profit identity, etc…

Budget Link (Public) https://nearimpact.org/q1-budget

Area Justification Type Total December January February
Total $73,351.00 $13,117.00 $40,117.00 $20,117.00
Funding Pools Initial matching pools to pilot NDC program. Any addition to the budget will go towards more matching pools. Also to test out direct donations and create flywheel for donations in December as quadratic funding wont be live Reallocation Through Donations & Quadratic Funding $43,000.00 $3,000.00 $30,000.00 $10,000.00
Funding Mechanism Development of new funding mechanisms and strategies. Pool to apply for funding for impact based initiatives. Impact Grants $15,000.00 $5,000.00 $5,000.00 $5,000.00
Core Contributors Operations Contributor: Ops Lead $3,600.00 $1,200.00 $1,200.00 $1,200.00
Core Contributors Social Media Manager and Telegram mod Contributors: Social Media Manager $750.00 $250.00 $250.00 $250.00
Core Contributors High Level Marketing & Graphics & Product Contributor(s): Marketing $1,500.00 $500.00 $500.00 $500.00
Core Contributors Community: (onboarding projects on a part-time role) Contributor: Community Building $5,001.00 $1,667.00 $1,667.00 $1,667.00
Core Contributors Venture Partner: Market Research Remuneration. Compensation for research and evaluation Contributor: Venture framework $4,500.00 $1,500.00 $1,500.00 $1,500.00

NEAR IMPACT NDC Presentation (4)
NEAR IMPACT NDC Presentation (4)960×540 84.1 KB

Section 9. Project/DAO Longevity

As a fledgling startup, we are seeking one-time funding to establish a sustainable foundation for our operations. NDC’s support would serve as a catalyst and a testament to our project’s potential, paving the way for further funding opportunities. To achieve self-sufficiency, we envision generating revenue through platform fees, direct donations, chef fees, and decentralized BD fees. Our fee structure is transparently outlined in our documentation.

We are committed to fostering an open ecosystem by creating a system of easily composable components that empower open-source developers to contribute to our product’s development. Additionally, we have partnered with Minority Think Tank Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, to enable tax-deductible donations. We are also collaborating with other projects to develop essential primitives, such as sybil resistance and attestations, outside of our team while seeking external funding sources for these initiatives. Our ambitious goal is to raise over $1 million in the next two years through a combination of external donations and funding rounds, making PotLock the preferred funding mechanism for impactful projects on NEAR.

To delve deeper into our plans, donor acquisition costs, and our project’s overall vision, please visit our long-form proposal at nearimpact.org/impact-proposal. For a visual representation and a link to our November internal OKRs, refer to our slide deck. Our year-long roadmap is available at potlock.io/roadmap.

3 month

  • Launch Project Registry & Donation Portal
  • Sign Up 200 Projects
  • First $5,000 raised through simple donations
  • Launch PotLock pots (Quadratic Funding Contracts)
  • Run first Quadratic Funding Round
  • First $20,000 distributed through quadratic funding rounds (not including NDC QF funding ## Month over Month

November

  • 500 Unique Donors
  • 50 Projects (interact with 3 dApps)
  • First $2,000 raised through simple donations

December

  • 300 New Unique Donors, retain 20% of old donors
  • 100 Projects (interact with 3 dApps)
    • 50 projects continue to interact with updates to profile
  • $2,500 raised through simple donations

January

  • Start first quadratic funding round
  • 50 On chain applications
  • Redistribute $20,000 in funding
  • Get $10,000 in matched external contributions
  • 300 New Unique donors
  • 100+ new projects on registry

NEAR IMPACT NDC Presentation (1)
NEAR IMPACT NDC Presentation (1)960×540 115 KB

Conclusion

NEAR Impact unveils a well-defined strategy to foster user growth and increase total value locked (TVL) through strategic project onboarding, attracting unique donors, and channeling external capital into the NEAR ecosystem. We have devised a cost-effective approach to project onboarding, outperforming any other grassroots DAO or program within the NEAR ecosystem. Our internal growth team and extensive external contributor network will facilitate this achievement within the next quarter.

Additionally, we are pioneering groundbreaking funding mechanisms, such as direct donation referrals and quadratic funding, as an alternative to the traditional top-down funding model employed by the NDC. We also collaborate effectively with partners to efficiently subsidize PotLock’s development costs.

Our contributions to the NEAR ecosystem are evident, as we have successfully developed an MVP as a grassroots DAO, established operational structures, implemented a go-to-market strategy, and cultivated a strong brand through relevant Web3 activations. A substantial portion of the requested funding will directly contribute to achieving NDC metrics while simultaneously supporting the broader NDC ecosystem. We are not seeking continuous funding and aspire to phase out our reliance on NDC funding through our fee model.

In our view, we possess the most tangible strategy to directly help the NDC achieve its goals and become a beacon of success, unlocking additional funding from both the Trust and the NEAR Foundation.

4 Likes