The Geo Web DAO (decentralized autonomous organization) is the entity established to support governance of the Geo Web Network (the “Network”).
The DAO is envisioned as the steward of the Network’s technology, funds, and other assets. It uses democratic, transparent processes to make financial and operational decisions for the Network in support of its constitution and mission.
The Geo Web DAO is necessarily launched with concentration in control and permissioned/manual processes, but the DAO will pursue an “exit to community” trajectory as the Network matures and effective governance mechanisms are established.
The current form of the Geo Web DAO is Aragon DAO on the xDAI network found here: https://aragon.1hive.org/#/geoweb/
The founding members of the Geo Web DAO are Cody Hatfield and Graven Prest, co-founders of the Geo Web Project.
The DAO is established as a Membership DAO with each member receiving a non-transferrable ERC-20 token that entitles the holder to one vote in all matters proposed within the DAO.
Current members can invite additional members to join the DAO by proposing a token distribution vote. Additional members should be invited and evaluated on the basis of demonstrated interest, contributions, and alignment with the Geo Web’s mission.
In time, a standardized, credibility neutral process will be established for interested individuals to gain membership in the DAO.
Geo Web Network, LLC a Delaware Corporation is the current legal beneficiary and fiduciary of funds generated through donations, grants, and SALSA fees (the “Network Funds”).
This corporation is solely owned and managed by Cody Hatfield and Graven Prest, co-founders of the Geo Web Project (the “Managers”). This legal entity was established to help limit liability and provide more legal, tax, and financial certainty as the Network is established.
While the DAO will not have binding control of Network Funds or operational decisions, the Managers have committed to act in accordance with the decisions made by the Geo Web DAO within legal and fiduciary bounds.
In accordance with the “exit to community” commitment, the Managers will work to transition to a unified LAO (Limited Liability Autonomous Organization) structure and non-profit status.
The DAO’s initial primary focus will be proposing and approving the use of Network Funds. The two first ways that the DAO will distribute funds to Network contributors are open bounties and SourceCred distributions.
Bounties are discrete tasks/projects posted as issues in the Geo Web Github Organization with a monetary reward attached. Bugs, non-technical work, and even larger projects can be entered as bounties. They should be thought of as one-off opportunities.
SourceCred distributions are regular allocations of funds based on the calculations of the Geo Web’s SourceCred instance. SourceCred allocations will start on a quarterly basis, but will move to monthly and eventually weekly as more regular funding becomes available. This is the preferred mechanism for consistently rewarding core contributions.
Other mechanisms to distribute Network Funds will be explored and developed with an emphasis on being credibly neutral and permissionless. The DAO can still retain high-level allocative authority of Network Funds with such mechanisms (e.g. the DAO votes to allocated 25% of SALSA funds toward rewarding marketplace content creators).
Some recurring and administrative fiat transactions will be completed without explicit, individualized proposals (e.g. web hosting, SaaS costs, administrative filings). One of the Managers will create a request for general funds that if passed will allow Geo Web Network, LLC to transact from it’s USD-based bank account up to the amount authorized by the request.
Strategic, technical, and administrative decisions will initially be handled “off-chain” for the most part as a practical matter to encourage nimble decision making. As the Network matures, the opportunity and necessity to involve more, diverse stakeholders in all decision making processes will increase. It is the responsibility of all DAO members to continually identify strategies and processes which increase participation in the governance processes that shape the Network.