Hello WF3 and Dotsama,
Here we are again. I am making another attempt as a DV but this time I would like to emphasis it under the delegate The Sons of Gavin. Those DV that don’t get selected I wish to merge them with this delegation and establish a popular vote system where each member gets 1 vote. Ideally voting on every proposal.
The Goal is to push forward web3 initiatives that will bring users to Polkadot and work on Polkadots UI. We will not be anti-marketing but work towards budget marketing for Polkadot.
I admire The Web3 Foundation so much. I’m a big believer of what I would call Web3 Gavinism. The true Web3 that I hope will one day take power from big tech and bring into fruition that “less trust, more truth” narrative in all aspects of our Technological lives.
As a Web3 Patriot, I view Polkadot as my nation. By staking $Dot and nominating validators, I fulfill my duty as a citizen to help secure our network. Similarly, when I endorse proposals via X platform or vote in OpenGov, I see it as fulfilling my civic responsibilities for the betterment of Polkadot.
This perspective is crucial because, within OpenGov, we’ve observed potentially poor allocations of Polkadot Treasury funds. The Polkadot treasury is now around 20 million $dot if you include asset hub. This is partially due to the Polkadot Community’s ambitious marketing push. Let’s face the facts… we funded some poor proposals that didn’t benefit the Polkadot nation. We overpaid for marketing content that was rushed, had poor viewership, and initiatives that didn’t really benefit Polkadot as we thought they would. In some cases, we funded creators to deliver content, and they went AWOL once they received funding.
There is a strong need this cohort to grant DVs to people that show some capacity of being a treasury conservative but are also willing to allocate our treasury resources towards Web3 focused initiatives that will further Polkadot. We need fluid thinking Dvs that are not just going to aye every proposal because Polkadot needs marketing or nay every proposal because it’s associated with a proposer they don’t like. We are approaching a point where we must start heavily considering the cost-benefit analysis of a referendum and the opportunity cost that comes with it.
So, I plead to the Web3 Foundation to carefully consider this cohort round of DVs because it can potentially set the precedent going forward. With that said I would like to put forth my candidacy for a decentralized voices grant.
My story really started at the heart of the “Open Anarchy” phase during Referendum 213 (x.com ) where a known community member appeared to be grifting and attempting to obtain treasury funds as a means to elevate his influencer career all while producing poor quality content for Polkadot.
However, I did make OpenGov awareness post before that: x.com
x.com
During the time of 213 I was also active in Polkadot Forums to try and come up with a solution to the content creator funding problem. ( [Subscription Based Tipping System Built into Polkadot J.S - Ecosystem - Polkadot Forum] (Subscription Based Tipping System Built into Polkadot J.S) which hit a roadblock since changes had to be made to the staking pallet and I couldn’t get in contact with Jaco (developer at Polkadot J.S)
However, I continued to spread OpenGov awareness and encourage voting. Here are some notable posts:
https://x.com/TheeWeb3Patriot/status/1727096982295200110
https://x.com/TheeWeb3Patriot/status/1728887762391011464
https://x.com/TheeWeb3Patriot/status/1785143292965114137
I also attempted to get the conversation going about OpenGov treasury delegation loans and revoking Kylin parachain slot/unlocking crowdloan:
Removing Kylin as a Parachain & Revoking crowdloan lock! - Governance - Polkadot Forum
Introducing Treasury Delegate Loans - Governance - Polkadot Forum
My X account speaks for itself… I went from 300 followers to 1100+ in 6 months of active OpenGov involvement with notable Polkadot community members following.
Recently, I paused my active contributions to OpenGov to focus on developing UI content that helps onboard new members to Polkadot, exemplified by tutorials like (x.com )Additionally, I’m advocating for an interoperability alliance between Polkadot and Cardano, as discussed in various post including an X Spaces session with Charles Hoskinson, enhancing our collaborative potential.
x.com (X spaces with Charles Hoskinson)
x.com (Cardano themed show)
x.com (about 52 minutes into spaces)
My philosophy within OpenGov is to be versatile and open minded on every referendum. I transformed from being someone who was relatively against using treasury funds for marketing… to someone willing to support productive marketing outputs like the Conor Daly referendum. My voting process would be fluid. I would take into consideration the treasury and its sustainability in every vote. I would ask myself “Are these resources being utilized in the most efficient way for the betterment of Polkadot?” This would be the focus of how I vote in the future. At its core I’m advocating for cautious fund management and strategic investment in growth initiatives centered around Web3. I would even use things such as polls and host open mic X spaces to talk with community members to get their opinion on referendums.
I would also advocate the formation of a DV committee with the other 9 DV voices. Hopefully, establish something that takes into consideration a reputation approval on referendums from the Polkadot community members (maybe via popular vote) and would use this in influencing my decision making when voting.
Ultimately, whether or not I receive the grant, my priority remains the same: safeguarding the treasury, fostering Web3 innovation, and serving the Polkadot community.
Wallet Address
12Edi9rmcgbJDDRkrZ789zfoKGr9stJvRxMuSmQ7yB7E2AEP (On-chain Identity TheeWeb3Patriot)
Delegate (The Sons of Gavin)
