[Proposal setup] Proposal title

Please provide your proposal title

Advanced Milestone Reviewer Course Led by Program Veterans

[Proposal Summary] Budget Information

Enter the amount of funding you are requesting in ADA

59636

[Proposal Summary] Time

Please specify how many months you expect your project to last

6

[Proposal Summary] Translation Information

Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated

No

Original Language

en

[Proposal Summary] Problem Statement

What is the problem you want to solve?

Voters depend on milestone reviewers to hold projects accountable. When reviews are inconsistent or superficial, the community cannot govern effectively, eroding trust in the entire process.

[Proposal Summary] Project Dependencies

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

Yes

Describe any dependencies or write 'No dependencies'

We will be dependent on the goodwill and the communications channels (i.e. Telegram channels) of the Catalyst Fund Operator to identify and contact top milestone reviewers and interested proposers.

[Proposal Summary] Project Open Source

Will your project's outputs be fully open source?

Yes

License and Additional Information

All the content created for this proposal will be released into the public domain using CC0 “No Rights Reserved”.

[Theme Selection] Theme

Please choose the most relevant theme and tag related to the outcomes of your proposal

Education

[Campaign Category] Category Questions

Who you’re targeting, how you’ll reach them, and why this matters for Cardano.

1. Target: Current and future Milestone Reviewers (MRs).
2. Reach: Direct engagement in Catalyst communities (Telegram, etc.) & social media.
3. Why it Matters: Our course will lead to more effective accountability over treasury funds and a smoother experience for funded projects. It will strengthen voter trust, through a more reliable oversight, and will reinforce Catalyst's integrity as Cardano's primary engine for decentralized innovation.

Provide a list of key activities of your project?

• Research and evidence gathering
• Drafting questionnaire for reviewers
• Interviews with top milestone reviewers and selected funded projects
• Compiling reviewer feedback from interview transcripts
• Compiling funded projects feedback from interview transcripts
• Drafting course outline
• Meetings with Catalyst Team to ensure alignment
• Project Management & Reporting
• Writing course material
• Building interactive course
• Promotion and launch
• Post-launch feedback gathering and improvements

What are your success metrics?

1. Project Completion: 100% of course materials and the online course are built and publicly launched. The course is also available as a downloadable PDF.
2. Course Quality: The Catalyst team signs-off on the course material.
3. Peer Validation: Top milestone reviewers (outside of the proposal team) provide testimonials for the course at launch, which will be compiled and presented.
4. Post-launch feedback: Receive positive feedback, based on a feedback form available to course graduates.
5. Course Dissemination: Present the course and its initial feedback at a Catalyst After Townhall.

[Your Project and Solution] Solution

Please describe your proposed solution and how it addresses the problem

Our Team & Vision

We are a team of 3 who have been active Catalyst participants since Funds 4 and 5, respectively. We have served as Milestone Reviewers since the role's inception in the Fund9 pilot program.

Additionally all 3 of us are also funded proposers, and have gone through the milestone review process from both sides.

We are experienced course creators in the Cardano ecosystem, having created the Cardano NFT Guides [https://www.nft-guild.io/cardano-nft-guides]. A complete course on Cardano NFTs that has received numerous positive testimonials.

Project Catalyst is a revolutionary experiment in decentralized innovation. Its long-term viability depends on the trust and accountability woven into every stage of its lifecycle. The Milestone Review process is the primary mechanism for ensuring this accountability, serving as the crucial link between funding and results. However, if milestone oversight becomes a mere formality, we lose the ability to differentiate between projects that are delivering real value and those that are faltering.

Currently, there is no formal pathway for a good reviewer to become a great one. We have a gap between expectation and execution. This proposal aims to close the gap.

Our solution is an advanced, interactive Milestone Reviewer (MR) course, designed to combat inconsistent reviews. This course will be built upon extensive research, including interviews with top-performing MRs and a diverse group of funded projects, and guided by our unique experience as program veterans active since its inception. The final output will be a professional, engaging online course, also available as a downloadable PDF for offline access.

Our Perspective on the Problem

If voters cannot depend on MRs to provide rigorous and insightful oversight, the entire chain of accountability breaks down. If left unaddressed, in time, this will lead to a crisis of confidence where voters cannot effectively govern the treasury, risking the misallocation of funds and devaluing the hard work of the entire community. It also creates a frustrating and unpredictable environment for the very projects we aim to support, hindering innovation rather than fostering it.

Our Approach and What Makes It Unique

Veteran-Led and Evidence-Based: Our team's historical knowledge of Catalyst and the milestone reviewing process is our foundation. However, the curriculum will not be based on our opinions alone. It will be data-driven, shaped by research and interviews with the ecosystem's most effective reviewers and selected funded proposers.

Community-Powered Validation: The course's quality will be validated from multiple angles before it is finalized. We will secure a formal sign-off from the Catalyst Team and collect public testimonials from a cohort of top peer MRs, ensuring the content meets the highest standards of the community it serves.

Engagement, Beneficiaries, and Impact

This project will primarily engage current and future Milestone Reviewers. However, the true beneficiaries are the entire Cardano ecosystem:

• Voters & the Community: Benefit from reliable oversight, protecting the treasury and strengthening their ability to govern effectively.
• Funded Projects: Benefit from a review process that is fair, professional, constructive, and predictable.
• Milestone Reviewers: Benefit from gaining the skills and confidence needed to perform their critical role.

We will demonstrate our impact through our clear success metrics, including the successful launch of all materials, sign-offs from key stakeholders, public peer testimonials, positive user feedback, and a public presentation of our findings to the community. This ensures our impact is not just claimed, but proven.

This project is vital to Cardano because it reinforces the trust and accountability at the heart of our decentralized innovation engine. By professionalizing a critical layer of governance, we ensure that the community's treasury is deployed with maximum impact and that Catalyst remains a credible and powerful force for growth.

[Your Project and Solution] Impact

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

Value to the Cardano Community

The success of this project will have a profound positive impact by reinforcing the trust and accountability at the heart of Project Catalyst. A professional, standardized milestone oversight process ensures that treasury funds are allocated effectively, and on time, maximizing the community's return on its investment and safeguarding against waste.

This brings direct value to three key groups:

• For Voters & the Treasury: It provides confidence that funding decisions are backed by rigorous, high-quality oversight, strengthening the integrity of our decentralized governance.
• For Funded Proposers: It creates a fairer, more professional, and predictable review experience, creating a more constructive environment for builders.
• For Milestone Reviewers (MRs): It offers a clear pathway for skill development, equipping dedicated community members to contribute more effectively.

Ultimately, by strengthening this critical layer of governance, we enhance Catalyst's reputation and effectiveness as Cardano's primary engine for innovation.

Measuring Our Impact

We have established a robust, multi-faceted framework to measure our impact, ensuring our progress and success are transparent and verifiable. Our key metrics include:

• Project Completion: We will deliver 100% of the course materials, including the interactive online platform and a downloadable PDF version.
• Course Quality: The course materials will be submitted for a formal sign-off from the Catalyst Team.
• Peer Validation: We will compile and present testimonials from top, active MRs who have reviewed the course.
• Post-Launch Feedback: We will gather and analyze positive feedback from course graduates via a dedicated feedback form.
• Course Dissemination: We will demonstrate community engagement by presenting the course and its initial feedback at a Catalyst After Townhall.

Sharing Outputs and Opportunities

Our primary outputs will be the interactive online course, the downloadable PDF version, and our compiled research findings from the interview phase.

We will share these outputs through a multi-channel approach:

• Public Launch: The course will be launched publicly and promoted widely across Cardano community hubs and social media channels (Telegram, X, Discord) to ensure maximum reach.
• Community Presentation: Our main sharing event will be the presentation at the Catalyst After Townhall. This provides a high-visibility platform to showcase the course, share our key learnings, and engage directly with the community.
• Direct Opportunity: The primary opportunity we create is for any community member to access free, expert-led training to become a high-performing Milestone Reviewer, directly improving the ecosystem's talent pool.

[Your Project and Solution] Capabilities & 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's Capability & Experience

Our team is uniquely positioned to deliver this project with the highest levels of trust and accountability. Our capability is built on two key pillars: unparalleled Catalyst-native experience and proven expertise in course creation.

1. Milestone Reviewer Experience that can’t be Replicated: We are a team of 3 who have been active Catalyst participants since Funds 4 and 5. We have served as Milestone Reviewers (MRs) since the role's inception in the Fund9 pilot program. Crucially, all three of us are also successful funded proposers, giving us a 360-degree perspective of the entire process. This deep understanding of the challenges and nuances of the system is something no outside team can replicate.
2. Proven Course Creation Expertise: We are experienced course creators in the Cardano ecosystem. Our previous project, the Cardano NFT Guides (https://www.nft-guild.io/cardano-nft-guides) is a complete educational course that has received numerous positive testimonials from the community. This past success is direct evidence of our ability to manage a project from ideation to launch and deliver a high-quality, professional educational product that benefits the Cardano community.

Feasibility and Validation

Our approach is designed to be validated at every stage, ensuring the final course is not just feasible but also effective and relevant. We will validate our approach through a three-step process:

1. Initial Research: The project begins with extensive interviews with top-performing MRs and funded proposers. This isn't just research; it's our primary feasibility test to validate the core problems and ensure our curriculum addresses real-world needs.
2. Peer Validation: Before a public launch, we will provide beta access to a cohort of respected, active MRs. Our success metric of securing public testimonials from this group will serve as our core validation that the content is accurate, useful, and meets the standards of its target audience.
3. Stakeholder Sign-off: Our goal to secure a formal sign-off on the course material from the Catalyst Team is our final and most important validation check.

Trust, Accountability, and Financial Management

We are known entities who have built a reputation in the community over many years. Our commitment to transparent and accountable project management is demonstrated by the following processes:

• Clear Public Plan: Our proposal provides a detailed breakdown of all activities and a robust set of measurable success metrics.
• Transparent Reporting: As outlined in our activities, we have dedicated time for Project Management & Reporting, which includes providing transparent progress updates to the community.
• Prudent Financials: As experienced funded proposers, we are fully versed in Catalyst's financial reporting requirements. Funds will be managed responsibly and tied directly to the clear project milestones outlined in our budget, ensuring every ADA is accounted for.

[Milestones] Project Milestones

Milestone Title

Research, Interviews, and Course Outline

Milestone Outputs

1. A document with insights gathered from interviews with top Milestone Reviewers (MRs) and selected funded projects.
2. The questionnaires used during the interview process.
3. A course outline, ready for content development.

Acceptance Criteria

1. All scheduled interviews with top milestone reviewers and funded proposers are completed and transcribed.
2. The interview data is rigorously compiled and analyzed.
3. The course outline is drafted.

Evidence of Completion

1. Link to a PDF document with insights gathered from interviews.
2. Link to a PDF document with the questionnaires used during the interview process.
3. Link to a PDF document containing the course outline.

Delivery Month

2

Cost

17994

Progress

30 %

Milestone Title

Course Content Creation and Development

Milestone Outputs

1. The complete, written, and edited content for all modules of the course. A fully functional online course where the content is hosted and accessible.
2. The final, designed, and downloadable PDF version of the complete course.

Acceptance Criteria

1. All course material is written, edited, and formatted. The online course is built, populated with all content, and fully tested for functionality and user experience.
2. The downloadable PDF is generated, checked for quality, and finalized.

Evidence of Completion

1. A link to the live, fully functional online course, allowing reviewers to navigate all modules and confirm that the platform is complete.
2. A link to the finalized, downloadable PDF version, providing a permanent record of the course content.

Delivery Month

5

Cost

28353

Progress

80 %

Milestone Title

Launch and Final Reporting

Milestone Outputs

1. Sign-off on the course material from the Catalyst Team.
2. Course launch and promotion.
3. A compiled report of all feedback received via the feedback form.
4. A collection of public testimonials from top MRs.
5. A Catalyst After Townhall presentation is held to promote the course.
6. Project close-out report and video.

Acceptance Criteria

1. Formal sign-off on the course material is received from the Catalyst Team.
2. The course is publicly launched and promoted across community channels.
3. Public testimonials from top MRs are secured and compiled.
4. A feedback form is created for the course and the feedback received is compiled into a report.
5. The course and its initial feedback are presented at a Catalyst After Townhall.
6. The close-out report and video are public and meet all the official requirements.

Evidence of Completion

1. Link to the live course.
2. Link to a PDF document with the compiled public testimonials.
3. Link to a PDF document with the feedback report.
4. Link to the formal sign-off from the Catalyst team.
5. Link to the recording of the After Townhall presentation, if available or to slide deck of the presentation if not.
6. A comprehensive close-out report and video, which will detail the project's journey, successes, feedback.

Delivery Month

6

Cost

13289

Progress

100 %

[Final Pitch] Budget & Costs

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Our budget is based on a transparent estimate of work hours needed at a single blended rate. We will calculate the budget in USD for clarity and request the equivalent amount in ADA.

We propose a blended hourly rate of $75 USD/hour.

This rate reflects our team's deep, veteran-level expertise and specific experience within Project Catalyst since its early stages. It is a competitive rate for the combination of senior-level research, content development, technical implementation, and community management required to deliver this project. The rate is also based on the location of the team members involved (US & EU).

Labor Costs Breakdown by Milestone

Here is an estimated breakdown of hours required by each team member for the three project milestones.

Milestone 1: Research, Interviews, and Course Outline

• Interviews, Meetings, Promotion: 50 hours
• Ideation, Research, Analysis, Outline: 100 hours
• Project Management: 10 hours

Milestone 1 Subtotal (160 hours @ $75/hr): $12,000

Milestone 2: Course Content Creation and Platform Development

• Writing, Editing, Building Interactive Platform: 210 hours
• Content Review & Feedback: 20 hours
• Project Management: 10 hours

Milestone 2 Subtotal (240 hours @ $75/hr): $18,000

Milestone 3: Validation, Launch, and Final Reporting

• Promotion, Community Engagement: 35 hours
• Testing, Feedback, Reporting, Townhall Prep: 80 hours
• Project Management: 10 hours

Milestone 3 Subtotal (125 hours @ $75/hr): $9,375

Fixed Costs

Online Course Hosting for 2 year (Squarespace): $204*2 =$408

Design Software Subscription (Adobe Photoshop): 39,64 € * 4=158.56 € = $185.30

Zoom Pro Subscription $16.99*6=$101.94

Fixed Costs Subtotal: $695.24 rounded to $695

Subtotal: $40,070

Contingency 5%: $2,003.5

TOTAL: $42073.5

The historical average closing price of ADA for the previous 90 days (05/17/2025 - 08/14/2025) is 0.7055 (source: https://www.investing.com/crypto/cardano/historical-data))

TOTAL ADA: $42073.5 / 0.7055 = 59636.42 ADA rounded to 59636 ADA.

[Final Pitch] Value for Money

How does the cost of the project represent value for the Cardano ecosystem?

An Investment in Treasury Protection

This project's cost should be viewed as a critical investment in the health and integrity of Project Catalyst's multi-million dollar treasury. Each funding round allocates significant capital, and the Milestone Review process is the primary safeguard ensuring those funds are deployed effectively.

The value proposition is direct: if this course prevents even one mid-sized project from failing due to poor oversight, it will have paid for itself many times over. By professionalizing the MR role, we are not just creating an educational product; we are building a more robust due diligence framework for the entire ecosystem. The long-term ROI is measured in a more efficient use of treasury funds, increased voter confidence, and a stronger, more accountable system for decentralized innovation.

Justification of Costs

Our budget is built on a foundation of transparency and fair market rates for the expert work required.

The proposed $75/hour rate is a competitive blended rate for specialized freelance work in the tech and education sectors, based on the high cost of living and typical industry rates in the US and EU, where our team members are located. This rate reflects our veteran-level expertise, a deep understanding of the Catalyst process that cannot be easily outsourced, and our proven track record in course creation.

The estimated 525 hours are meticulously broken down in our budget. This is not a simple content-writing task; it includes extensive research, stakeholder interviews, data analysis, interactive platform development, community engagement, and a multi-stage validation process.

Our fixed costs are minimal and cover only the essential software subscriptions (hosting, design, communication) required to produce and maintain a professional-quality course for a 2-year period, ensuring its long-term availability to the community.

A Sustainable, High-Leverage Asset

This project represents exceptional value because it creates a scalable and sustainable asset for the Cardano community. Unlike a one-off service, this course will train current and future reviewers for years to come.

This is a high-leverage investment. By training the trainers and vetting the vetters, we create a positive, cascading effect that will enhance the quality of governance across all future funding rounds. The course materials, being available as a free PDF in addition to the online course, ensure this knowledge remains an evergreen resource for the entire ecosystem.

[Required Acknowledgements] Consent & Confirmation

Terms and Conditions:

Yes