Governance tooling for DAO DApp to strengthen on-chain collaboration

[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)

We will extend our DAO DApp by integrating governance tooling, enabling DAO members to submit, discuss and vote on proposals on-chain, while driving robust, decentralized decision-making on Cardano

[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 governance tooling extension will initially be closed source to ensure security and protect intellectual property. However, we are committed to exploring the possibility of open-sourcing key components in future iterations.

[METADATA] Horizons

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

The governance tooling extension will enable:

• On-chain proposal submission: DAO members can submit proposals for community review and voting, all recorded on the blockchain.
• On-chain voting: Community members can vote on proposals using their DAO memberships (e.g., in fungible token staking, NFT staking and multisig DAOs) directly within the DApp.
• Automated proposal execution: Based on voting results, successful proposals can trigger predefined actions such as fund transfers or DAO rule changes, where applicable.

Key governance tooling features for DAO DApp:

• Ability to propose ideas and submit proposals for voting directly through the DAO DApp
• Ability to schedule voting sessions and define parameters of voting
• Ability to vote on proposed ideas, with votes recorded on Cardano
• Ability to create subDAOs within DAOs for efficient DAO management

Key design principles:

• Decentralized governance: All voting data will be recorded on-chain, ensuring transparency and immutability
• User-friendly: The interface for proposal submission and voting will be integrated into our DAO DApp, ensuring ease of use for all DAO participants
• Secure and scalable: Smart contracts will handle proposal processing and voting, ensuring both security and scalability
• Community focus: The governance tooling will facilitate community feedback mechanisms, allowing participants to provide input on proposed initiatives and decisions

Key beneficiaries:

• Cardano NFT and token communities will be able to take advantage of the enhanced governance tooling, strengthening community-driven decision-making
• Individual users can participate more actively in DAO governance, influencing community decisions directly through submitting and voting on proposals

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

Integrating governance tooling into our DAO DApp will significantly enhance participatory decision-making within Cardano NFT and memecoin communities. By enabling seamless proposal submissions and on-chain voting, the governance extension will foster a culture of transparency, inclusivity, and accountability. This will empower community members to actively engage in decision-making.

Key positive impacts:

• Enhanced community engagement: By enabling members to submit proposals and vote on governance matters directly within the DAO DApp, we encourage greater participation. This engagement cultivates a sense of ownership and responsibility among community members.

• Increased transparency and accountability: On-chain voting and proposal tracking will ensure that all decisions and outcomes are recorded transparently, making it easier for community members to hold each other accountable. This transparency builds trust within communities and strengthens the overall governance framework.

• Scalable decision-making: The governance tooling will provide a structured process for decision-making, allowing communities to efficiently manage resources, set priorities, and respond to challenges. This scalability ensures that as communities grow, their governance processes can adapt accordingly.

Key performance indicators:

• Number of proposals submitted: Achieve at least 50 proposals submitted within the first 6 months post-launch; 100 proposals submitted within the first 12 months

• Number of proposals passed: We will monitor and report the success rate of submitted proposals.

• Voter participation rate: We will monitor voter participation rates across DAOs created using the DAO DApp. Considering voter turnout in local government elections across Western-style democracies and among DAOs across the cryptocurrency space, we would consider a voter participation rate above 35% to be a strong measure of success.

Key qualitative metrics: Community feedback gathered through surveys, polls, community forums and discussion boards.

[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?

Our team has a proven track record in the Cardano NFT space. Since December 2021, we have pioneered several innovative on-chain solutions on Cardano - including multisig NFT minting, non-custodial NFT staking and a first-of-its-kind NFT portal - while remaining entirely community funded.

Between March 2022 and March 2024, we operated a gamified version of a DAO, Nemonium DAO. Over this period, Nemonium DAO members cast over 10,000 votes across 35 proposals, accounting for hundreds of thousands of ADA in transactions, using the off-chain Hazel Discord Bot.

Since January 2024, we have redistributed more than 500,000 ADA in royalties to Omen NFT stakers via version three of our non-custodial NFT staking platform, demonstrating our ability to manage large sums of ADA on behalf of a wider community.

In addition, we operate our own Cardano stake pool (ticker: OMEN). At the time of writing, 672 unique wallets, accounting for 1.2 million ADA in delegations, trust us to produce blocks for Cardano. Created in February 2021, OMEN stake pool has minted a total of 187 blocks.

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

Proposal submission framework (months 1-4)

Output: Implement functionality for DAO members to submit proposals directly through the DAO DApp.

Acceptance criteria: Proposals can be successfully created and submitted, with users able to define key details such as title, description, and voting parameters.

Evidence of completion: A demo of the proposal submission feature, showing successful submission on the testnet.

On-chain voting integration (months 2-5)

Output: Implement on-chain voting functionality, allowing DAO members to vote on submitted proposals using their DAO memberships.

Acceptance criteria: DAO members can cast votes on-chain, and results are transparently recorded on the blockchain.

Evidence of completion: Screen recordings and demos showing users voting on proposals, and a successful vote being recorded on-chain.

Security audit and final deployment (months 5-6)

Output: Conduct a thorough security audit of the governance tooling features to ensure robustness and safeguard against vulnerabilities.

Acceptance criteria: Completion of the security audit with critical vulnerabilities identified and resolved, followed by the successful deployment of the governance features on the Cardano mainnet.

Evidence of completion: Documentation of the security audit report, listing vulnerabilities found and fixed, along with the successful launch of the governance tooling on the mainnet.

Project close-out and final video (month 6)

Output: Compile a project close-out report and produce a final demonstration video showcasing the governance tooling features of the DAO DApp.

The project close-out report will include an overview of the project objectives, milestones achieved, key results, challenges encountered, and lessons learned.

The final video will visually demonstrate the functionality of the governance tooling and features, including proposal submission, on-chain voting, and the transparency of recorded results.

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

Nemo, founder (@_AskNemo)

Vivalacoin, community member (@VivalaCoinBTC)

Zeru, community member (@ZeruKami)

JT, community member (@UnstoicT)

Border Reiver, community member (@BorderReiver_)

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

Total budget: 100,000 ADA

Development costs: 70,000 ADA

• Proposal submission module: 25,000 ADA

Development of an intuitive interface and backend infrastructure enabling seamless proposal creation, submission, and tracking by DAO members

• On-chain voting module: 25,000 ADA

Implementation of a secure and transparent voting system, allowing DAO members to cast votes directly on-chain, with results recorded immutably on the blockchain

• Smart contract development: 20,000 ADA

Creation of robust smart contracts to automate proposal execution and governance processes, ensuring compliance with predefined voting outcomes and community decisions

Testing and quality assurance: 20,000 ADA

• Smart contract audit: 10,000 ADA

Comprehensive third-party auditing of smart contracts to identify potential vulnerabilities and ensure adherence to security best practices

• Performance and scalability testing: 10,000 ADA

Rigorous performance testing to evaluate system responsiveness and scalability under load, ensuring the governance modules can handle high user activity and transaction volumes

Project management and maintenance: 10,000 ADA

• Project management and milestone tracking: 5,000 ADA

Continuous oversight of project timelines, deliverables, and resource allocation

• Maintenance of governance modules post-launch: 5,000 ADA

Provision for ongoing support and maintenance of the governance tooling, ensuring stability and enhancements based on user feedback and evolving community needs

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

This proposal offers critical enhancements to our core DAO DApp at a modest cost. By introducing decentralized proposal submission and on-chain voting, we unlock the full potential of DAOs on Cardano, increasing community participation and strengthening on-chain governance.

This proposal is based on estimates solicited from leading service providers within the blockchain space, as well as our extensive experience in commissioning and operating blockchain and Web2 technology.