Everyone seems to have an opinion about blockchains and cryptocurrencies these days; we have lots of them ourselves. Above all, we see these technologies as an open question, where organizational designs of the future are being invented—sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. One Colorado-based blockchain project we have worked with is Gitcoin, gig-work and crowdfunding platform for open-source "public goods." Gitcoin executed a partial "exit to community" last summer by distributing GitcoinDAO tokens to its community of users.
After nudging the CU Foundation to begin accepting crypto donations this month, we are experimenting with funding MEDLab projects through Gitcoin's "quadratic funding" model, which provides matching funds based on how many people contribute—even small amounts. Please consider contributing if you are able! Here are the MEDLab projects that qualify as tax-deductible contributions to the CU Foundation:
- Inclusive Media Economies Fellowship
- Modpol Is a Self-Governance Toolkit for Communities in Online Worlds
And some external projects that we participate in:
- Exit to Community Collective (E2CC)
- MetagovDAO - DAO governance research group (academic + industry practitioners)
Please pitch in before the grant round closes on March 24.
If you're concerned about Ethereum's energy-intensive "proof of work" design, we are with you. MEDLab director Nathan Schneider is currently editing the book Proof of Stake by Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin, which chronicles Buterin's efforts, among other things, to move the protocol to a less wasteful model. It comes out this September and is available for preorder now.