[selfdriven|1] Integrating SSI, DID, and Soulbound Tokens with the Selfdriven educational framework for transformative education and credentialing. (Scientific Research)

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

Benjamin Heurich

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

Entity (Not Incorporated)

[GENERAL] Requested funds in ada

35000

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

6

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

No

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

Research contributes to the design of secure and decentralised systems for identity management, verifiable credentials, and educational achievements within the self-driven learning community.

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

No

[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?

Yes

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

Fully Open-Source CCO

[METADATA] SDG rating

• 4: Quality Education
• 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
• 16: Peace, Justice and strong Institutions
• 17: Partnerships for the Goals

Having not only an educational framework as the basis (Universal Skill Set, pedagogical goal), we encourage lifelong-learning, self-directed learning, social learning (with a community), skill and competency development, and adding all these values on-chain to an SSI/DID concept.

Additional connotations to the SDGs:

• 3: Good Health & Well-Being
• 5: Gender Equality

selfdriven UN SDG Goals & Sub-Goals 

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

• Research contributes to the design of secure and decentralised systems for identity management, verifiable credentials, and educational achievements, fostering trust, innovation, and growth within the self-driven learning community and the Cardano ecosystem.

• Research around the concept of Soulbound Tokens, which are non-transferable digital assets that can represent an individual's academic and professional achievements. These tokens are securely tied to a person's digital identity, making educational credentials portable and easily accessible, while preventing misuse or falsification.

• Learners and educators can accumulate a diverse set of credentials, all securely stored and verified. By securely storing and easily sharing educational achievements, individuals are encouraged to pursue continuous learning throughout their careers, adapting to evolving industry needs.

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

Establishing a robust theoretical framework is pivotal for advancing the Cardano community, both in academic discourse and practical application. Such a framework provides a solid foundation upon which further scientific exploration and real-world implementation can flourish. By offering a structured understanding of key concepts and principles, it guides researchers, developers, and practitioners in navigating the complexities of the Cardano ecosystem.

The exploration of potential use cases, particularly concerning innovative concepts like Soulbound Tokens and self-sovereign identity (SSI), holds significant promise for the evolution of Cardano. Soulbound Tokens, imbued with unique properties tied to an individual's identity, could revolutionize digital asset ownership and transfer within the ecosystem. Similarly, self-sovereign identity solutions empower users with control over their personal data, enhancing privacy and security in transactions.

Analyzing these use cases not only expands our theoretical understanding but also informs practical implementations within the Cardano network. Through rigorous examination and experimentation, researchers and developers can refine these concepts, ensuring their viability and scalability in real-world scenarios. Ultimately, this synthesis of theory and practice propels the Cardano community towards greater innovation, adoption, and impact in the broader blockchain landscape.

[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 selfdriven team supporting the projects have a wealth of experience in education and technology.

The selfdriven Foundation was founded in 2019 and the team is highly engaged within the Cardano community. It has a robust organisational structure.

Benjamin Heurich (Co-Founder) is a university lecturer and researcher in the departments of Sociology and Educational Sciences with a focus on digital education, educational equity and internationalisation.

Mark Byers (Initiator & Co-founder) is a qualified Engineer and has 30+ years experience delivering internet based high-grade solutions to market, including the vision to co-found the entityOS.cloud service in 2000.

Bence Lukacs (Co-Founder) is a former sports trainer and teacher and brings experience in school development, as well as teacher education projects and Media Education research.

Damian Noonan (Co-Founder) has over 20 years experience delivering technology projects as part of strategic transformation initiatives, with expertise particularly Salesforce, MuleSoft and its emerging technologies. As co-founder of recently acquired Tquila ANZ, Damian has experience in building teams and delivering enterprise solutions.

Diverse advisory team with over 100+ years experience

Advisory team includes Mario Altimari (Co-Founder) eLearningDAO.

About The Team

About The Organisation

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

(Research) Outlining the key objectives and compilation of relevant literature and theorems. This leads to an understanding of the fundamental concepts, features, and potential use cases of Soulbound Tokens within the context of Cardano.

(Theory and framework development) Refinement and development of theoretical models, frameworks, or hypotheses. Critical analysis of existing theories both in social sciences and the SBTs-paper, adapting or extending them, and proposing new conceptual frameworks that can guide your analysis.

(Data collection and writing) Collecting data through various means such as literature, surveys, interviews, or analysing existing datasets related to the adoption, usage and technical aspects. Feedback from peers, domain experts and the (scientific) Cardano community to validate research and ensure the robustness of the conducted analysis and found conclusions.

Lectorate and publishing

Final project completion report.

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

• Benjamin Heurich (Review)

Over 10 years of experience as a researcher and lecturer in the departments of sociology and educational sciences with a focus on digital education, educational equity and internationalisation. Several years of experience in digital branding and international marketing consulting. Current research and activity areas include DeSci, Open Science and Trust.

• Mark Byers (Tech Lead)

Co-founder of entityOS.cloud, an internet cloud services platform founded in 2000.

Co-founder of slfdrvn.io (this project)

30+ years experience in information technology.

Mechanical Engineer

• Damian Noonan (Tech Design)

Damian has over 20 years experience delivering technology projects as part of strategic transformation initiatives, with expertise particularly Salesforce, MuleSoft and its emerging technologies. As co-founder of recently acquired Tquila ANZ, Damian has experience in building teams and delivering enterprise solutions.

• Bence Lukacs (Design)

Many years of experience in e-Learning Instructional Design and Media Didactics. Driven by a passion for science (particularly Open Science and Decentralized Science), human learning, and digital worlds he's researching, conceptualizing and building decentralized education projects.

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

Breakdown: The milestones of the research process consist of these different phases:

• Research outline and compilation (5000 ADA)
• Refining models, theories and frameworks (6000 ADA)
• Empirical Work, analysing theories and collecting data (4000 ADA)
• Theoretical/practical Selfdriven framework development (10k ADA)
• Evaluation/Review/Feedback (5000 ADA)
• Final Report/Publishing (5000 ADA)

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

• Generally leveraging the considerable existing investment into selfdriven Framework & Services.
• All funds are applied directly to community returns as core framework exists.