TiDi Nation - Grow Africa

[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem.

TiDi Nation (TN) KPIs can be identified: impression, cost effective, and customer life-time return. TN will on-board, educate and teach student athletes how to monetize using the Cardano ecosystem.

[GENERAL] Summarize your relevant experience.

The team is comprised of educators, former/current college soccer players, coaches, and enthusiasts. With a collective knowledge of 60+ years of coaching, mentor-ship, and leadership experience we aim to provide access, resource, and support to African student athletes.

[IMPACT] Please describe your proposed solution.

Problems being Solved:

• Lack of Ownership
• Traditional Monetary System
• Financial Literacy for African Students
• Cryptocurrency & Non-Fungible Token (NFT)
• Web3 literacy, education, and on-boarding.

Reason for Approach:

We have individuals within our organization who are of the African Diaspora and are current/former NCAA Division 1 and professional soccer/football players. To add to this, there's a combined coaching and mentor-ship experience of 60+ years at the youth, collegiate, professional and international levels. We are also entrepreneurs who want to encourage ownership to young athletes and creatives by offering educational videos, trainings, and courses for:

• Coaching
• Leadership
• Crypto & NFT News
• Photography
• Graphic Design
• Video Production
• Sales and Marketing
• Sports Management
• Operations Management
• Project Catalyst

With our direct experiences, we gain the foresight on how to reshape and invest in the development of African student-athletes by connecting, educating, and teaching monetizing on a local and global scale.

Audience:

• 16-28 year olds are our target audience as Gen-Z and Millennials are market Influencers.
• High Schools, Colleges and Universities
• Professional Sports Organizations
• Businesses, Corporations and Museums
• Aspiring Collegiate, Collegiate and Professional Athletes
• Artists (digital, hand-drawn, animation, augmented reality, 3D)

Implementation:

-On-boarding through virtual and in-person seminars with "The African Students Football Union LTD/GE under the auspices of International Students Football Union (ISFU)".

-Education of Project Catalyst for young creatives and developers.

-Ambassadorship Program for student-athletes

-TiDi Nation blockchain compatible dashboard/marketplace.

-Social Media: Twitter, Discord, Instagram, Reddit, YouTube.

-NFT Art Collaboration with Habtamu Tibebe who's a renown artist in Ethiopia.

-TiDi Apparel Collaborations:

• HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the US) starting with Denmark Technical College in South Carolina.
• Colleges and Universities in West Africa and the Caribbean
• Youth Clubs
• Professional Organizations and National Teams

Production:

• TiDi Nation Internships
• Merchandise with TiDi Apparel
• TiDi Athlete NFTs
• TiDi Athlete Metaverse

Outcomes:

More individuals in Africa are being taught how to utilize and monetize their gifts, skill-sets, and ideas while encouraging collaboration with others through genuine connections and relationships.

We also aim to research, identify needs, and provide the tools to develop local communities within the African Continent, starting in West Africa and expanding throughout.

[IMPACT] Please describe how your proposed solution will address the Challenge that you have submitted it in.

The way we prepare Africa for a wide-spread Cardano adoption is to simplify education and inform the next generation. The youth and young adults are overwhelmingly consuming information about cryptocurrency. TiDi Nation will filter the noise by showing how Project Catalyst and the Cardano Blockchain can contribute to the development of local communities, schools, recreational centers, professional organizations, start-ups, and dreamers.

We start by informing the student-athletes to create their own content about their ideas, skills, and projects. Information spreads like wildfire when easy to consume and digest. Word of mouth is still one of the most effective and contagious form of marketing and relationship building strategies to propel Cardano forward into Africa for adoption to happen.

[IMPACT] What are the main risks that could prevent you from delivering the project successfully and please explain how you will mitigate each risk?

The main risks that we face are funding, cardano community based marketing and consultation, back-end blockchain developer, and strategic placements and partnerships.

The funding will allow us to work on our project full-time, while also creating paid internship experiences for student athletes. The team is already dedicated to the project and making it successful. As we are collectively using our resources and time to build the framework and skeleton of TiDi Nation.

[FEASIBILITY] Please provide a detailed plan, including timeline and key milestones for delivering your proposal.

Our Roadmap for TiDi Nation and TiDi Athletes NFTs:

TiDi Nation Roadmap 2022-2023 

Development (Dev) Team

• Onyemachi Provost, Troy Rohr, Andy Salandy, Shaquille Salandy, Kendall Reyes, Paul Martin

September 2022

• Launch our Ambassadorship Program Application Process for student athletes 16-28 years of age
• Seminar with African Student Union: Blockchain Development, Coaching Education, Project Catalyst, NFTs and Use Cases, Financial Literacy

October 2022

• Outreach to local Universities beginning in West Africa for partnerships, internships, and hosting events
• Outreach to local artists, developers and entrepreneurs to partner for our NFT and metaverse project. Beginning with Ethiopian artist Habtamu Tibebe
• Create Leadership Teams and Hire for our Organization Chart and Division Chart

November 2022

• TiDi Nation Apparel Release in collaboration with:
• Ambassadorship Program Marketing Contest: Team Scholarship (2)/Individual Sponsorship (3)
• Internship Application Launch with at least 5 Universities, beginning with Denmark Technical College and Howard University. 
• Final 3 TBD

December 2022

• TiDi Nation Combine (Invitation to young African identified student-athletes)
• Launch TiDi Nation Internships for Colleges and Universities: Connecting African students to the North American Market.

Q1 2023: Initial Launch of TiDi Nation NFT Academy Division

-  6,000 TiDi Nation pfps mint

-  Marketing, giveaways and contests

-  Rarity chart and Player storyline

-  TiDi VIP Limited Edition mint

Q2 2023: Marketing 

-  Marketing/Collaborations/Promotion

-  TiDi Nation merch designs for holders: community designs and contests

-  Special edition mint: Badges, grounds crew, and home stadiums

Q3 2023: Tokenomics

-  TiDi Nation Metasystem token created

-  Staking and Team perks

-  Special edition token airdrop

-  AR biometrics for pfp

Q4 2023: Gamification

-  P2E gaming on TiDi Nation+/Metaverse land

-  Access to TiDi Nation Metasystem for Holders

-  Stadium and Clubhouse for Holders on TiDi Nation Metaverse/Pavia estate (Community Vote)

-  Marketing and promotion

-  Special edition mint with collaborators

[FEASIBILITY] Please provide a detailed budget breakdown.

Overall, the project will have a duration of 16 weeks dependent on the availability of participants.

This is based on up 10 to participants. Addition of 4 others for marketing and software development.

Answer

The total cost of this proposal is US$80,000

The cost rates that we have estimated are:

R&D & management team – US$200/hr

Workshop delivery team – US$500/hr

Freelance support (Admin, Artist, Marketing etc.) – US$100/hr

Project Management: - $10,000

R&D & management team – 50 hours – $10,000

Develop the Pre-programmed phase and get it fit for purpose: – $25,000

R&D & management team – 100 hours – $20,000

Freelance support (Admin, Artist, Marketing etc.) – 50 hours – $5,000

Refine, run and manage the Program delivery phase: - $30,000

R&D & management team – 50 hours - $10,000

Workshop delivery team – 30 hours - $15,000

Freelance support (Admin, Artist, Marketing etc.) – 50 hours - $5,000

Refine, run and manage the Post-programmed phase: - $15,000

[FEASIBILITY] Please provide details of the people who will work on the project.

1) Onyemachi (Machi) Provost - Machi is currently a College Soccer Coach and extremely experience in the Metaverse. He is the lead person on our team handling the entire organization of this project. He is responsible for the overall supervision and submitting of this grant proposal. Machi has been the lead person who identified this opportunity and have coordinated our meetings so we can all address particular areas based on our skill set and strengths to put this proposal together.

2)Troy Rohr - Has been involved in the internet and Social Media form it's early days. This experience along with his active involvement in the building of the Metaverse in invaluable to this project. Troy has also been very instrumental like Machi in helping identify this grant proposal opportunity and present it to our team. He works closely with Machi to help in the overall organization of each section in this proposal and help with the building of this project. Troy works on the Roadmap and along with Machi has created a way forward for our team.

3) Kendall Reyes - An Educator both academically and in the soccer world brings a tremendous skill set and serves as our resident Editor in our team. Kendall is the former President of the United Soccer Coaches, Black Coaches Association. His Leadership skills and loads of experience in guiding this organization makes him an extremely critical member of this team. Kendall ensures that our written material in grammatically correct and we are identifying the key points needed to address the need and solutions we are bringing to the table with this grant proposal.

4) Shaquille (AJ) Salandy - Who is currently a student athlete at Howard University is an invaluable member of our team. AJ is a Business Management Major with a focus on Entrepreneurship. He brings an amazing perspective from the lens of the GenZ generation and he is full of great ideas and information that help us zooming in on identifying the critical needs that we are addressing in our proposal.

5) Paul Martin - similar to Kendall is an Educator and brings years of classroom experience along with his background in marketing and graphic design. Paul is also an active member of the Canadian Black Chamber of Commerce. This membership as well as all his classroom experiences and membership in other pivotal organizations allows Paul to bring a perspective that is critical to this project. He overseas the overall organization of our team and brings valuable insight into the identification of the problem that needs to be solved thus providing valuable solutions to the project.

6) Andy Salandy - A former Life Sciences Department Chair, College and Professional Athlete and Soccer Coach brings a wealth of experience to help with the overall supervision and guidance of the project. With his extensive global network and valuable connections he brings a level of networking with countless resources to help with the overall organization, support and execution of this project.

[FEASIBILITY] If you are funded, will you return to Catalyst in a later round for further funding? Please explain why / why not.

If funded we will be extremely thankful and grateful to Catalyst. Our goal is to receive initial funding to help us build a self sustaining ecosystem thus creating an ongoing profit to not need any additional funding. Our project is a huge undertaking with our goals and objectives. We believe have the right model through initial funding to generate ongoing funds to sustain this project.

Our long-term goal is to create a community that is helping student-athletes and all the talented young people in Africa (ages 16-28) to learn how to create wealth. With our plans to educate, empower and enrich through providing support and other critical resources, we believe we will build a community that will teach everyone involved how to generate wealth.

[FEASIBILITY] Are you or any member of your team working on any other proposals in this Fund9?

[FEASIBILITY] Are you or your team working on any other proposals from previous Funds?

[AUDITABILITY] Please describe what you will measure to track your project's progress, and how will you measure these?

TiDi Nation (TN) KPIs which are: impression, cost effective, and customer lifetime return are what we are going to measure to track our project progress. To measure impression we will take a look at the Social Media numbers in terms of likes, views, engagement and followers of our project looking at a before and after scenario and tracking that information. For the Cost Effective, we will have to measure the total cost in terms of money, time and continuity with the participants and ambassadors in the project. Finally we will track all initial participants and measure the duration of their participation as the project continues over time.

[AUDITABILITY] What does success for this project look like?

At the end of this project it is our hope that the student athletes on the African continent develops a better understanding on how to utilize their skills, talents and abilities to create wealth. Through the proper education and financial literacy, our goal is to have our participants properly empowered with knowledge and expertise to generate wealth for themselves and their families. Giving these students early access to the Blockchain and Web3 World creates a competitive advantage thus putting them in the forefront of one of the most disruptive and powerful global economic trends we have ever seen or experience in our lifetime.

[AUDITABILITY] Please provide information on whether this proposal is a continuation of a previously funded project in Catalyst or an entirely new one.

This is an entirely new project created and conceptualized by our team. Our TiDi Nation-Grow Africa project is not just an idea or concept, it's a movement.

Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Rating

SDG goals:

Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

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

Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

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

SDG subgoals:

By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship

Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services

By 2030, devise and implement policies to promote sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products

Key Performance Indicator (KPI):

Proportion of youth and adults with information and communications technology (ICT) skills, by type of skill

Proportion of informal employment in total employment, by sector and sex

Tourism direct GDP as a proportion of total GDP and in growth rate

Universal Human Rights Index (UHRI):

#proposertoolsdg