Proposal Framework Tool - AIM

This proposal seeks to continue and build upon the work completed so far from the Fund 6 funded proposal:

Affiliated Proposal from Fund 6:

https://cardano.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Proposal-Framework-Tool-AIM/369300-48088

Why is it important?

Time is scarce and people are generally short of time and resources. SMART ideas and solutions are needed to solve global and local problems. Help for entrepreneurial Catalyst proposers and voters is needed.

Funds are scarce and global finance flows must be unlocked and redirected to help entrepreneurs and change agents solve global and local problems by implementing solutions at scale for maximum impact. A lack of experience and knowledge should not be an insurmountable obstacle to solving wicked problems.

Existing Catalyst funded projects tend to lack explicitly clear, measurable targets that connect with goals and frameworks seeking to solve wicked problems that may be external to Catalyst or the Cardano ecosystem, such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The competition and pressure to secure scarce funds is increasing, and has led to a systemic absence within proposals in allocating a portion of secured funds dedicated to monitoring and evaluation (M&E) for instance, and integrating measurable targets and goals derived from existing international, multilateral frameworks and target priority action areas.

In response to the Challenge Guiding questions:

• How can we ensure future developers benefit from the work that is funded today?
• How do we promote a decentralised and self-hosted ecosystem?
• How do we align between different open source community efforts?

We include a quote from SDG 17 Partnerships for the Goals:

"17.18 By 2020, enhance capacity-building support to developing countries, including for least developed countries and small island developing States, to increase significantly the availability of high-quality, timely and reliable data disaggregated by income, gender, age, race, ethnicity, migratory status, disability, geographic location and other characteristics relevant in national contexts"

Essentially, open source data is KEY to achieving all sustainable development goals: https://blogs.worldbank.org/digital-development/sustainable-development-goals-and-open-data

"We must undertake a concerted global effort to encourage and invest in the creation of digital public goods: open source software, open data, open AI models, open standards and open content." (United Nations, 2020)

"Even when the relevant digital public good or open source solution is found, support and additional investment are still required to scale them up and successfully implement them" (2020, p. 9). Hence here we are, in this decentralized innovation fund experiment that is Project Catalyst! *- https://www.un.org/en/content/digital-cooperation-roadmap/*

Proposal solution:

Our proposal is made up of two components:

Tool expansion: to include an additional framework to the Proposer Tool (exploring the integration of UN Human Rights Charter) to assist proposers in creating proposals ready for submission in Project Catalyst and other finance/grant sources. The Proposer Tool can help with planning projects that integrate connections to common global frameworks, as part of their Monitoring and Evaluation of KPIs, as well as impact measurement and communication.

Research: seeks to analyse Fund 8 funded proposals, the use of the Proposer Tool and present comparative analyses in an accessible database format.

It will be open access, providing stakeholders with insights into how Project Catalyst is financing projects, the type of projects, and their impact according to UN SDGs, and UN Human Rights.

This open access data and information can help inform decision making within the Cardano ecosystem, and across the different open source communities and sectors to facilitate multi stakeholder decision making, problem sensing and solving, using common global frameworks and languages as used in the UN Sustainable Development Goals and UN Human Rights.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):

*Number of users, using the framework tool - using social media metrics, downloads, feedback forms

*Difference in proposal review score of applicants using the toolbox and those not using the tools - comparative analysis

*Gaps that are filled in the entrepreneurial skills base of project teams from the start of ideation through project delivery - using the tool and feedback into input forms the user journey is captured

*Sustainability of venture plans beyond the scope of Catalyst development project- with the help of the tool, proposer/s learn of new frameworks and platforms to seek funding

*Use their tool facilitated documentation to seek/secure funds external to Catalyst

Relevant connections and links:

*In talks to build a partnership and collaboration with Positive Blockchain, an organisation building an open access global database of projects within the blockchain space that have social impact - https://positiveblockchain.io/

*Member of The Commonwealth Informal Network for closing the Digital Divide

*Member of Global Insights Panel - MIT Technology Review

*Connections to social entrepreneurs, seed funding stakeholders and incubators

*Participated in Building Bridges conference and sharing the info with relevant partners to initiate discussions https://www.buildingbridges.org/2021-edition/building-bridges-week/

Technical Specs:

The Proposer Tool development consists in three main parts already included and funded in our F6 proposal (Proposal link: https://cardano.ideascale.com/a/dtd/369300-48088, Delivered Proposer Tool: https://cardanocataly.st/proposer-tool-sdg/#/):

Frontend, the part with which the end users will interact, will be developed as a SPA (Single Page Application) based on the JavaScript framework Vue.js and it will be published as a static website. The frontend will interact with a centralized API.

API: this part will contain the database of the frameworks integrated in the tool (e.g. collection of problem statements, metrics, categorizations, etc.) and all the information that will be consumed by the frontend. This is the part responsible also for the authentication of the users that will be able to save their progress.

The API is developed with the Laravel framework and hosted on a web server.

Backend: an administration panel that allows to maintain the database of the frameworks included in the tool

For this specific proposal we'll integrate the UN Human Rights framework into the tool, updating the data structure in the backend and the user experience in the frontend to allow users to choose their preferred framework.

Budget and Roadmap:

Total request = $7400

Proposer Tool MVP Integration Development :

Frontend update development: $1500 (~ 30 hours)

API update development: $750 (~ 15 hours)

Backend update development: $750 (~15 hours)

Total: $3000

General admin and social media promotion: $250

How to guide for using the tool (video): $150

Research: $4000 (March - June 2022)

Research carried out during public testing of Proposer Tool during Fund 8 to investigate the impacts of having such a tool accessible to a proposer.

Tracking all proposals that use the tool in Fund 8 and those that go on to be successfully funded ( March 2022 - June 2022):

Using mixed research methods (qualitative and quantitative). Analysing the application of frameworks and datasets (Sustainable Development Goals in the first instance), interviews with Catalyst proposers connecting them to the Sustainable Development Goals Framework, surveys, tracking their proposal journey and project progress until Fund 8 Winners' announcement.

Collating all into an article/paper for public benefit ready for publication in June 2022.

Expansion of the Proposal Framework Tool to include another framework in addition to the existing embedded Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) framework, for use in structuring and making a proposal. The SDG Proposer Tool from the the Fund 6 funded proposal can be used now here:

https://cardanocataly.st/proposer-tool-sdg/#/

As per our objectives in the Fund 6 proposal, we are carrying out the public testing of the Proposer Tool in this Fund 7, and helping proposers for use and planning for Fund 8.

Affiliated proposals:

Title: Fund7Proposals + SDGs - Cardano AIM

https://cardano.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Fund7Proposals-+-SDGs-Cardano-AIM/383625-48088

Research carried out as a result of this proposal will feed into the development and expansion of the MVP Framework Tool.

Team:

Cardano AIM (Assembly Inspiring Masses) include Lucio, Victor, Phil, Razali, Yoram, Cole and a number of supporters. We are all active Catalyst Community members and currently design and build tools that support the community. These include the popular voter-tool (https://cardanocataly.st/voter-tool/#/), the Community Advisor Tools (CA and vCA-tools) (https://cardanocataly.st/ca-tool/#/ & https://cardanocataly.st/vca-tool/#/)))) as well as the community landing page (https://cardanocataly.st/) and Proposer Tool (https://cardanocataly.st/proposer-tool-sdg/#/)

Razali is an Educator, Editor, Digital Economy, Blockchain & Sustainability Researcher, Social Entrepreneur, Catalyst Proposal Mentor, Wada UN SDG and Education Coordinator, Co-Founder of Sustainable ADA & Catalyst School Core Member https://www.linkedin.com/in/razali-samsudin/

Victor is an active Catalyst Member, Community Advisor and Proposal Mentor, member of the 1st Catalyst Circle, leader of the Catalyst School, core member of the Catalyst Swarm, and has a strong professional and academic background in Engineering, Mathematics, Data Science and Machine Learning.

Lucio is a developer with 9+ years of experience (mainly focused on web/mobile. Languages and frameworks: PHP, Javascript, Typescript, Python, Ruby - Laravel, Ruby on Rails, Wordpress, Angular.js, Vue.js, Node.js). CA and vCA, co-creator of the Community Tools (Proposer/CA/vCA/Voter Tools).

Phil has experience as an accountant, UI/UX frontend and graphic design and business advisor amongst numerous other pursuits. He currently has a lead position in the development and direction of Cardano AIM and is co-creator of the Community Tools.

Yoram Ben-Zvi is a social entrepreneur. In recent years, Yoram is focused on combining impact and business. Yoram is an active catalyst member, CA, and part of the Cardano4Climate community.

Cole is UNITE 2030 Youth Delegate (https://www.unite2030.com/), a recent graduate in Economics & Sustainability, Founder of Sustainable ADA, Blockchain & Sustainability Researcher, & Social Entrepreneur, Ecoquest Education Foundation - Sustainability Research, B Impact Clinic part of UNH's Changemaker Collaborative - Kikori, Sustainability Splash Program Organizer, Bronze UNH Sustainability Award Winner https://www.linkedin.com/in/cole-bartlett/

SDG goals:

Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

Goal 12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development

SDG sub-goals:

12.6 Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle

17.16 Enhance the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology and financial resources, to support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in all countries, in particular developing countries

17.18 By 2020, enhance capacity-building support to developing countries, including for least developed countries and small island developing States, to increase significantly the availability of high-quality, timely and reliable data disaggregated by income, gender, age, race, ethnicity, migratory status, disability, geographic location and other characteristics relevant in national contexts

17.19 By 2030, build on existing initiatives to develop measurements of progress on sustainable development that complement gross domestic product, and support statistical capacity-building in developing countries

#proposertoolsdg