Community Arts Mental Health Initiative

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

[GENERAL] Are you delivering this project as an individual or as an entity (whether formally incorporated or not)

[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)

[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language

[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem (200-character limit including spaces)

Through decentralized art, the community will come together to create/ experience art projects to work toward healing traumas/ other mental ailments. Through art, communities will heal, unify, & grow.

[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”

No dependencies

[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?

[GENERAL] Please provide here more information on the open source status of your project outputs

During the creation process of each issue of The Book of Bones, the community will be in control of the art direction, writing direction, editing, and design. So in a sense, yes, the community has the ability to modify the output. However, once an issue is published, there cannot be any editing or modifications.

The comics will be created by the team with community input, so even though the community will not have as much control over the comics, they will still be able to offer ideas and feedback.

[METADATA] SDG rating

#3: Good Health and Wellbeing

#4: Quality Education

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

• How do you perceive the problem you are solving
• This problem is a human problem. Mental health impacts everyone on the planet, and by working together, the community can help create something positive and life-changing. The mental health epidemic is a humanitarian crisis.
• What are your reasons for approaching it in the way that you have
• Currently, there are so many mental health advocacy organizations and campaigns, but the suicide rates are on the rise. It doesn't make sense. This approach is to put the power into the hands of the people who suffer the most. In order to help as many people as possible, there needs to be a people-focused approach, so that's what is being created.
• Who will your project engage
• Everyone from anywhere. People from across the world can engage with the project whether they are familiar with crypto or not. Everyone goes through tough times, and together the community can help carry the weight of life.
• How will you demonstrate or prove your impact
• Proving the impact is a tough challenge given that mental health isn't really something that can be tangibly measured. What can be demonstrated is the communities ability to work together to promote each other's voices, work, and creativity. Through the creation of community art, everyone will have a way to express themselves, communicate, and engage in positive ways--all while working toward healing and positive growth.

This project is important to Cardano and the broader ecosystem in that it utilizes current crypto technologies to address a very real-world problem. Millions and millions of people across the world suffer through mental health illnesses, and are often times doing so alone. By using crypto and art, we can bring the community together no matter where they are through a decentralized creative process. Building and creating collections of artwork and stories—written, edited, formatted, and curated by the community—while using NFT technology, current video game software (Unreal Engine) and other community collaborative measures, people will have spaces to engage with each other, share ideas, and grow. Creating comics that address issues that impact the community will also show our strength, unity, and ability to persevere together; all while raising awareness in real and tangible ways.

The project will illustrate the healing and unifying power that art possesses. Through the decentralized nature of the project, there will be no gatekeeping, tyrannical decision making, or personal hijacking of the community projects—it will all be decided by the community for the community. Art is essential to the human experience, and by creating a community incentive, we can all battle the mental health epidemic together.

Big aspects of the project are the annual collection of art and stories, decentralized submission/ editing process, positive and empowering comic series, and the future-to-be-created virtual world where members of the community can log in, chat, and interact, from all across the globe.

Summary of Major Activities:

1. The project will bring the community together through art and stories to unify, heal, and ultimately promote positive mental health practices and awareness among everyone.
2. The project will solicit the community to submit art and writings focused on given themes. The themes will be determined before each book is published by community vote.
3. The project will create a virtual world for the community to chat and interact.
4. The project will host art and writing submissions in digital galleries that are hosted both on the web and in the virtual world through community art galleries.
5. The project will publish The Book of Bones, an annual compilation of the submissions voted on by the community.
6. The project will publish a series of comics touching on various mental health topics such as challenges faced in seeking help, stigma, triumphs, debunking myths, and professional insights, and other issues that impact the community.

[IMPACT] Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

• In what way will the success of your project bring value to the Cardano Community? 
• The value created by the project will be a healthy and unified community. A strong community is paramount for the success of the wider ecosystem. By building and creating a healthy and unified community, all of Cardano will benefit and succeed.
• How will you measure this impact? 
• Through interactions and conversations. Communities succeed because individuals feel valued, welcomed, and appreciated. By addressing mental health concerns, everyone will be able to share and engage in healthy practices, which will translate to more positive interactions as a whole. The community sentiment will be a great way to measure the impact of the project's goals.
• How will you share the outputs and opportunities that result from your project?
• The outputs will be shared through traditional social media channels such as Twitter and Instagram. The Book of Bones will be published in eBook format on the project website, and the majority of communications will continue to be done through Discord.

The biggest impact the project will have is that it will bring the community together. The decentralized creative process and virtual world will connect people from the immediate and extended communities. By doing so, we hope to raise awareness about mental health, while creating something beautiful to showcase to the world.

Through the building of community engagement, we can all gauge the social sentiment and emotional well-being of our fellow community members. Immediate measurements would be assessed through (qualitative) community sentiment, and (quantitative) virtual world attendance and the readership/ contribution to the issues of the Book of Bones and comic series.

[CAPABILITY & FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

The project is run by individuals with expertise in book editing, design, formatting, and publishing; community advocacy; and professional virtual reality development. We are open minded and research focused, meaning that if there is something we do not know, we will study and find answers. Having a background in grassroots initiatives, we are not wasteful with spending, so we do a lot of research before making any purchases, signing contracts, or hiring personnel. Being able to evaluate costs in a effective way will enable us to utilize all funds and capital appropriately. We are also very big advocates of true transparency, which means we have no problems sharing where and how the funds are utilized.

The focus of the project remains mental health and the community. If there are costs that do not directly aid in the ability to fulfil that mission, we will not waste the resources.

[PROJECT MILESTONES] What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Milestone 1

• Milestone:
• Community growth - Raising awareness about the project and growing the existing community.
• Acceptance criteria: Active Discord and social media channels
• Evidence of Milestone completion: Measurable social media growth and increase in Discord members.

The first milestone is to build on the community that current exists. Growing the community will be done through marketing, social media outreach, and active participation and engagement with community members. Target demographics are crypto enthusiasts, writers, artists, and anyone across the world.

Milestone 2

• Milestone:
• Art and theme proposals/ discussions. Voting on the proposed ideas for the collection. Submissions collected and voted upon.
• Begin creating virtual world
• Acceptance Criteria:
• Voting completed
• Virtual world internal testing
• Evidence of Milestone completion:
• Drafts of The Book of Bones (stories, art, etc...)
• Behind-the-scenes look at the creation of the virtual world

To accomplish this milestone, the team will open up the proposal window to the community to submit and discuss possible directions for The Book of Bones. The virtual world (The Catacombs) will also begin to be created. This would most likely be drafts of the virtual world landscape, art style, and overall aesthetic qualities. The project will be working with Eikonikos to create the virtual world.

Milestone 3

• Milestone
• Editing, formatting, and design of the collection
• Acceptance Criteria:
• Digital galley/ proof of completed collection
• Evidence of Milestone completion:
• Holders-only access to digital galley of The Book of Bones

Milestone 3 will be the creation of a digital proof of The Book of Bones. The proof will be used to determine what edits are necessary before final publication.

Milestone 4

• Milestone
• Publication of The Book of Bones.
• Internal testing of various aspects of virtual world
• Acceptance Criteria:
• Live access to digital book on website for holders
• Testing of virtual world
• Evidence of Milestone completion:
• Behind-the-scenes look at virtual world testing
• Readings and discussions of the collection

Milestone 4 will be publishing The Book of Bones on the project website as well as conducting internal testing of the Catacombs. These tests could be movement, environment, and building structures.

Milestone 5

• Milestone
• 30 Mental Health Comics created
• Acceptance Criteria:
• 30 Comics released to community through discord and social media channels/website
• Evidence of Milestone completion:
• Comic social media account live and public

The team is currently working on the very first comic strip (to be published on its own social media account), and the milestone would be to have 30 comics created and released over the duration of the fund.

Final Milestone

• Final Milestone
• All materials complete and published on the website and limited-access alpha testing of virtual world
• Project Close-out Report and Project Close-out Video
• Acceptance Criteria:
• All materials live on website and virtual world testing
• Evidence of Milestone completion:
• Live access to publication(s)
• Limited access to test the virtual world
• Published Project Close-out Report and Project Close-out Video

By the end of the fund, the first issue of The Book of Bones will be published and shared on the website. The virtual world by the same time will be available for limited testing within the community. The PCR and PCV will also be released.

[RESOURCES] Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

RB - Organizer, writer, editor, website designer, NFT artist, formatter, developer, marketer, promoter, social media manager.

Comic Artists - to illustrate the comic series.

Future Team Needs:

• 2D/3D artist(s)
• Discord manager(s)
• Marketing/ promo specialist(s)
• Social media manager(s)
• Developer(s)

[BUDGET & COSTS] Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

• 25k ADA to build virtual world
• Details: Asset creation, animation, planning, designing, testing, artwork
• 10k ADA General upkeep/ website maintenance/ fees
• Details: Website and hosting, mailbox subscription, maintenance, housing the issues of The Book of Bones and comics
• 5k ADA marketing/ promotion/ social media
• Details: Community engagement, marketing, posts, ads.
• 10k Editing & Formatting
• Details: Editing and formatting The Book of Bones and Comic series. Publishing and uploading to site.
• 50k Administrative
• Details: Paying artists, writers, contracts, funds for emergencies, overhead and tech requirements

[VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

The project plans to last forever. To continue to grow and build and create with the community nonstop. It is not just one collection of work, but annual collections of work to showcase the community and continuously heal, build, and unify. Beyond the annual issues of The Book of Bones, there will be continuous comics that promote mental health and wellbeing. The way the project is structured is that there are so many doors and possibilities for growth. The value is in the longevity and the outcomes of creating something generational and working toward ending the mental health epidemic. As a community, we are strong and can overcome all of life’s challenges. Utilizing decentralization and crypto technology, the community can connect from all over the world to build and create something truly powerful for us all.