Art Beyond Borders: NFT Global Youth Art Competition & Marketplace leveraging NMKR

[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)

Our solution comprises a new concept that engages youth and that empowers young artists globally, utilizing NFTs and NMKR API. It offers a space for funding and showcasing their artistic creations

[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

Our decision to maintain a non-open source approach is rooted in two key considerations. Firstly, we prioritise safeguarding our intellectual property, as our proposed solution incorporates proprietary algorithms developed through significant research and development investments. Lastly, to ensure the highest quality and consistency of our solution, a closed-source approach allows us to maintain control over the codebase, mitigating potential challenges associated with collaborative development. This strategic decision aims to preserve innovation, support our business objectives, and guarantee the excellence of the project's outcomes.

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

Goodwall is a skills-based social network for Gen Z to learn and earn. We serve 2 million+ youth in 150+ countries, 60% of whom are female, to become the best versions of themselves and impact society positively. Our mission is to level the playing field for youth everywhere.

Our proposed solution, Art Beyond Borders, addresses the problem of limited opportunities for youth in developing countries to showcase and monetize their creative skills while leveraging NFTs and the NMKR API to ensure they retain credit. With our scalable concept, we expect to drive creativity and build confidence in hundreds of thousands of young people, while introducing them to the value of the blockchain and NFTs.

Our approach is unique because we leverage the existing infrastructure of Goodwall and integrate it with NMKR, a marketplace for NFT art on the Cardano blockchain. By combining these platforms, we can create a seamless ecosystem that empowers young artists to submit their artwork through Goodwall challenges and have it minted using NMKR API and featured with an NMKR whitelabeled marketplace.

The initial concept provides a podium and fund for young artists to create and share their art and creative solutions. We believe in the transformative power of art and aim to create opportunities for these young artists to earn income and achieve financial independence through the sale of their artwork on NMKR and at the Cardano Summit that will take place in Dubai in October 2024, helping them retain credit and monetize their work.

Concept Deck: Art Beyond Borders _ NMKR NFT_Youth Art Competition_Cataylst_Cardano Summit

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

Youth in developing countries have limited opportunities to showcase and monetize their artistic and creative skills. According to the World Economic Forum, creativity is among the top 5 sought-after skills of tomorrow, and yet, youth in developing countries are discouraged to pursue the arts given their expectations of limited economic prospects.

While the internet expanded opportunities for emerging artists from developing economies to access the global art market, they still face systemic barriers, financial constraints, limited art industry exposure, and unequal power dynamics. This leads to unfulfilled potential, as many artists abandon their dreams and pursue alternative career paths. This not only deprives individuals of the chance to express their talents but also weakens cultural diversity. Even the few who do break through, receive very limited credit for their work.

NFTs could level the playing field, giving young artists the ability to monetize and gain global visibility for their art, but 82% of Gen Z think NFTs are a scam.

Our concept revolves around an experiential education program on NFTs using a global art competition, we can restore trust in the system and unlock the creative potential of young artists, provide them with platforms for recognition and income generation, and contribute to a more inclusive and vibrant artistic landscape globally.

Art Beyond Borders is a concept that will have the primary objective of introducing as many young people to the value of NFTs with NMKR and the Cardano NFT ecosystem. With Goodwall focusing on youth in developing economies, which accounts for 90% of youth globally, and 80% in the global south, this new concept to engage youth will give visibility and exposure to the Cardano NFT ecosystem. Art Beyond Borders will use the NMKR Dev API to both mint and auction the art, while also creating a white labeled Marketplace "GoodArt" using the API.

We will measure the success of our initial testing of our concept with the below KPIs that will benefit the Cardano ecosystem by organically building trust with youth globally and raising awareness on the benefits of NMKR NFTs, positively influencing youth participation in the ecosystem notably in the global south:

Youth Reached: measured by direct impressions of the competition and related art. Target 500’000+.

Youth Engagement: Active participation in the challenges, including comments, likes, and shares of the art submitted to the competition.

Youth Participation: Art submitted by youth to the competition. Target: 250+

ADA raised: to measure the impact we have on crediting young artists and creating an evergreen art fund to sustain the competition year-on-year. Target: ₳35000

Youth Perception: qualitative survey post-competition to measure the % of them who trust NFTs and % of young artists who would use them, in particular using the Cardano Ecosystem

During the course of the concept testing, user surveys will be conducted in order to assess the impact of the program. These surveys are aimed at assessing the appreciation of the young participants of the Art Beyond Borders challenge in terms of challenge dynamics, rewards, and topics and asking questions regarding the potential impact in terms of upskilling. Goodwall has developed strong expertise in implementing programs globally and in specific regions, monitoring the implementation of programs through specific internal tools, notably:

A Performance Dashboard, which allows live monitoring of the performance of programs through specific metrics (e.g. impressions, user engagement, reach, qualified entries, etc.). A link will be made available to the Cardano community to access this information at any time.

[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?

Goodwall is an award-winning social enterprise recognized as a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer. Goodwall's founders were listed as Forbes 30 under 30.

Goodwall has delivered on more than 200+ programs to date, trusted by organizations such as UNICEF and the UNDP, governments, and Fortune 1000 companies like SAP and Accenture.

Recently Goodwall hosted a very successful Art Competition "Imagine2050" sponsored by Pictet, the private bank, that was exhibited in collaboration with the Tate Gallery at the London Zoo.

Goodwall has already secured a partnership with NMKR and received their technical green light to mint the art and jointly create a white-labelled Good Art Store to exhibit and auction the NFTs using NMKRs API.

Goodwall has been part of the Cardano ecosystem for years, successfully delivering on multiple Catalyst projects in Fund 8 and 9. Goodwall's CEO, Taha Bawa, spoke at the Cardano Summit in 2022. Goodwall also received a strategic investment from EMURGO and EMURGO Middle East & Africa to leverage Cardano's blockchain to level the playing field for youth everywhere.

Press Release: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/blockchain-for-social-good-emurgo-and-goodwall-join-forces-301755444.html

https://www.venturelab.swiss/Cardanos-commercial-arm-invests-in-youthfocused-talent-network-Goodwall

Goodwall other reputed investors include Randstad, the largest recruitment company in the world and the State of Geneva.

Our program's track record demonstrates the practicality of our approach, having successfully organized numerous global online initiatives tailored for youth. These programs were executed in collaboration with esteemed institutions such as UNICEF, SAP, and Accenture.

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

Challenge design - Design and Creation of Challenge and Competition

Milestone output(s)

• This includes the design of content and appropriate user journey including themes, guidelines, and submission requirements
• All related challenge assets such as educational videos, scripts, posters, and creative design elements

Acceptance criteria 

• Development of engaging and inclusive themes for the challenge.
• Clear and comprehensive guidelines for participants.
• Well-defined submission requirements for the challenge.

Info provided to verify the milestone achievement 

• Detailed documentation showcasing the themes, guidelines, and submission requirements for the challenge.
• Samples or previews of challenge-related content, including educational videos, scripts, posters, and all visual assets..

Challenge Launch: Launch the challenge through marketing and promotion and then maintain engagement on the challenge, manage and moderate community etc.

Milestone output(s)

• Dedicated program hashtag page with all info on the challenge.

Acceptance criteria 

• Documentation of promotional materials, such as social media posts, press releases, and email campaigns.
• Metrics demonstrating outreach and visibility, such as website traffic, social media impressions

Info provided to verify the milestone achievement 

• Metrics and analytics demonstrating sustained engagement levels post-launch.
• Dedicated program dashboard that allows live monitoring of the performance of the program through specific metrics

Winner Selection: Dates TBD: Selection of challenge winners and art to be minted with NFTs

Milestone output(s)

• Identification and documentation of winning entries based on predefined criteria.
• Compilation of a transparent and impartial judging process.
• Communication of results to participants and the wider community.
• Compilation of selected artwork that meets the established criteria for minting.

Acceptance criteria 

• Adherence to pre-defined judging criteria, ensuring fairness and transparency.
• Timely and transparent communication of winners to participants and the broader community.
• Compliance of selected artwork with challenge guidelines and themes.

Info provided to verify the milestone achievement 

• Documentation of selected artwork, including artist details and adherence to challenge guidelines.

Minting - Mint the artwork through NMKR

Milestone output(s)

• Successful minting of selected artwork on the NMKR platform.
• Generation of unique, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for each piece of artwork.
• Documentation of the minting process, including transaction details and smart contract information.

Acceptance criteria 

• Confirmation that the selected artwork has been successfully minted on the NMKR platform.
• Verification that the minting process adheres to NMKR's technical requirements and standards.

Info provided to verify the milestone achievement 

• Records or screenshots confirming the successful minting of each artwork on the NMKR platform.
• Metrics indicating the number of successfully minted NFTs

Create the Marketplace - Create and deploy the Art Beyond Borders marketplace on NMKR

Milestone output(s)

• Successful development of the Art Beyond Borders marketplace.
• Deployment of the marketplace on the NMKR platform.

Acceptance criteria 

• Confirmation that the Art Beyond Borders marketplace has been fully developed according to the specified requirements.
• User testing results or feedback confirming the ease of use for both artists and buyers.

Info provided to verify the milestone achievement 

• Documentation confirming the successful deployment of the marketplace on the NMKR platform.
• Metrics indicating successful transactions, user engagement, and any technical issues addressed during the deployment process.

Impact Report

Milestone output(s)

• Comprehensive report outlining the impact of the "Art Beyond Borders" initiative.
• Analysis of key metrics, including participation rates, artwork submissions, engagement levels, and financial outcomes.
• Identification of success stories and testimonials from participating artists.
• Insights into the overall societal impact achieved by the initiative.

Acceptance criteria 

• Inclusion of quantifiable metrics and qualitative assessments to measure the initiative's success.
• Detailed analysis of participation rates, showcasing the number of artists and community engagement.
• Metrics related to the quantity and quality of artwork submissions.
• Financial outcomes, including revenue generated for artists and the sustainability of the initiative.

Info provided to verify the milestone achievement 

• The complete impact report, accessible for review.

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

Omar Bawa - Co-founder of Goodwall, 

Role: oversight of the project 

Kyle Marquis - Program Director & 

Role: Program operations oversight

Byron Wang - Head of Engineering

Role: bugs, glitches and errors, proper functioning of the online platform for smooth delivery of the program.

Irina Ovary- Head of Product

Role: Roadmap planning of program to meet with all requirements and previously agreed deliverables.

Ross Foreman - Partnerships Director - Leads Business Development and Strategic Partnerships.

Role: Ideation and program feasibility within both Cardano and Goodwall capacities.

Oscar Rodriguez - Creative Lead and Designer:

Role: Visual graphic design for all digital assets destined to marketing, promotion and program visibility within the app.

Marcela Correa - Program Manager 

Role: Focal point between Cardano and Goodwall for all updates and clarifications that may arise through the program implementation.

Josh Taylor - Senior Community Manager

Role: Community manager and moderator, focusing on English Speaking contents; Coordinate moderators

Rusell Daries: Senior Data Scientist:

Role: Analysing data outputs, measuring KPIs, and drafting regular reports

Team website: https://www.goodwall.io/about

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/5001199/

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

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

• Strategic Investment: cost incurred by implementing Art Beyond Borders can be viewed as a strategic investment for the growth and development of the Cardano ecosystem. By supporting this initiative it promotes financial inclusion, empowers youth artists, and showcases a solid use of the Cardano NMKR platform.

• Increase the visibility of the Cardano Ecosystem: Notably across the global south and to youth via the Goodwall platform. Instead of advertising or marketing about Cardano or NFTs, through Art Beyond Borders and experiential learning, we show the value and encourage organic growth and word of mouth.

• Encourage Partnership Amongst the Ecosystem: Art Beyond Borders brings together Goodwall as a platform, alongside NMKR for minting the NFTs and hosting the marketplace, and the Cardano Summit and Foundation to showcase the use case results and auction the art. We would also invite the United Nations, notably UNICEF, UNHCR, and UNDP, with whom Goodwall is already a partner, to campaign for Art Beyond Borders together and therefore join the broader Cardano ecosystem.

• Positive Social Impact: Empowering youth at scale, inspiring creativity and a better future beyond borders using art

• Build Trust &: Credibility for NMKR NFTs: amongst Gen Z and youth. We would also potentially display the exhibition at galleries such at the Tate London and Art Basel giving more credibility and introducing future partners to the ecosystem.