[Proposal] Revamp Gitcoin 2025 Governance

Historical Context & Current State Gitcoin’s governance journey mirrors that of many pioneering DAOs. It began with community members and evolved through various experiments in decentralized decision-making. The current “steward” model emerged organically from the early days of Gitcoin Grants, reflecting the community’s initial needs but showing signs of strain as the ecosystem has grown and matured.

New stewards were often selected through informal forum posts, with selection criteria based more on community recognition than defined qualifications. While this organic approach helped build our early community, it has led to scaling and maintaining consistent governance participation challenges.

The current model faces several key limitations:

Informal Selection Process: Community members typically self-nominate through forum posts, and there are no standardized evaluation criteria or regular renewal process. This informality has resulted in an inconsistent governance body, with some members being highly active while others have drifted away. Unclear Responsibilities: Stewards need help understanding their role in the ecosystem, clear expectations or formal onboarding. The lack of accountability mechanisms means that participation varies widely, with some stewards actively driving decisions while others remain passive observers. Missing Incentives: Stewards volunteer their time without compensation. Justifying deep involvement can be challenging, especially for those with professional governance expertise who could add significant value to Gitcoin’s ecosystem. Structural Complexity: The overlap between governance bodies – stewards, community council, and other groups – has created confusion about decision-making authority and responsibilities. Proposal Overview This proposal represents a shift in how Gitcoin approaches governance. Rather than attempting to patch the current system, we propose rebuilding our governance structure from first principles - emphasizing professional capability, clear accountability, and strategic ecosystem building.

Key Changes from the Current Model The transition from our current steward model to a professional delegate system represents three fundamental shifts in our approach to governance.

Moving from informal to professional governance. Instead of relying on volunteer stewards with unclear responsibilities, we’ll establish a compensated group of professional delegates with explicit duties and qualifications. This shift acknowledges that effective governance requires dedicated time and expertise. Implementing term limits and regular reviews. Delegates will serve defined terms with quarterly self- reported performance evaluations. This change ensures the regular renewal of governance perspectives while maintaining accountability for active participation. Expanding the scope of governance responsibilities. Rather than limiting governance to proposal review and voting, delegates will actively drive ecosystem growth through partnership development and strategic initiatives. 2025 Governance Goals & Overview

In 2025, Gitcoin DAO’s governance mission is to build a governance framework that fosters progressive decentralization, incentivizes participation, and aligns decisions with the DAO’s long-term vision.

Key Goals for 2025:

Update and ratify the DAO Constitution to solidify core principles and provide clear decision-making guidance. Decentralize governance with 50% of proposals initiated by the community. Launch and onboard an additional 10+ high-caliber stewards through a structured training program with clear compensation and parameters. Publish governance updates and metrics Collaborate with 3+ DAOs on governance experiments.

Read the full strategy: https://gov.gitcoin.co/t/gitcoins-governance-strategy-for-2025/19845

Governance Structure The heart of our governance system will be a five-member Delegate Council, selected from three key constituencies, each serving one-year terms with semi-annual reviews conducted by the DAO Lead:

Professional DAO Delegates: Experienced governors from major DAOs who bring deep expertise in decentralized governance and can help forge strategic partnerships. These delegates should have a proven track record of active participation in at least one major DAO’s governance over the past year. Community Leaders: Representatives from values-aligned communities who understand public goods and can help bridge different ecosystem participants. These leaders should demonstrate successful community-building experience and alignment with Gitcoin’s mission. Ecosystem Contributors: Established participants with proven track records in both governance and public goods who understand Gitcoin’s mission and potential. These contributors should show evidence of meaningful contributions to the public goods ecosystem. Semi-annual reviews evaluate delegate performance against key metrics, including proposal participation, partnership development, and community engagement and deliverable execution. The community or any member of Gitcoin may recommend removing and replacing underperforming delegates, subject to vote.

Selection Process The delegate selection process prioritizes transparency and community input while maintaining high professional standards:

Nomination Phase (2 weeks) Self-nominations via standardized form template Detailed applications covering governance experience, vision, and partnership plans Clear articulation of intended contributions and time commitment Election Phase (1 week) Community vote using GTC tokens Top 5 candidates selected Minimum voting threshold to ensure broad participation

Delegate Responsibilities Our delegates will carry three primary mandates:

1. Core Governance

Active Participation: Maintain 90% vote participation, providing clear written rationales for major decisions. Governance Innovation: Propose 1-2 system improvements per quarter, contribute to creating and updating the governance manual, and maintain a public tracker of implemented changes. Budget Oversight: Review and approve community round budgets, providing detailed allocation rationales to ensure transparent fund management. Strategic Planning: Facilitate quarterly governance reviews and help shape Gitcoin’s long-term vision through regular strategic input and ecosystem analysis. Updates to the items outlined in Gitcoin’s 2025 Gov strategy 2 2. Lead the GG Community Rounds Decision-making

We have moved to a more decentralized future for Gitcoin Grants where we have begun to involve the community directly in vital decision-making when it comes to the community rounds that Gitcoin funds each quarter during GG rounds. The council’s responsibilities include:

Review and vote on GG community round proposals Collaborate on GG community round retrospectives (optional) 3. Ecosystem Growth

Identify DAO partnerships Help attract projects to Grants Lab The council will elect a ‘lead’ that will act as representative and report directly to the DAO with updates on a monthly basis.

Compensation and Incentives To attract and retain high-quality delegates, we’re implementing a professional compensation structure:

Direct Compensation: $2,500 per quarter per delegate, paid in GTC Voting Power: ~1M GTC delegated from the treasury to ensure meaningful influence across the 5 delegates Performance Reviews: Quarterly evaluations based on participation and impact - as self-reflected in the community (i.e., they need to post their quarterly engagement report) Total Budget: $50,000 annually (within the DAO budget)

Implementation Timeline The first 6 months will be a trial period

Q1 2025 Launch framework and documentation Run initial delegate election Distribute GTC delegations Begin council operations Q2 2025 Establish first partnerships Conduct the first quarterly review We will run a full evaluation after Q2 to asssess the effectiveness of the program as well as the value add. If deemed a success, we will continue for the remainder of the year.

Q3-Q4 2025 Evaluate and refine the program Expand partnership initiatives Adjust based on learnings

Expected Outcomes Through this governance evolution, we expect to achieve several key outcomes:

Professional Governance: A more accountable structure with consistent, high-quality participation from dedicated delegates with the time and resources to contribute meaningfully. Stronger Ecosystem Position: Enhanced relationships with other DAOs and communities through strategic partnerships and active collaboration, driving the adoption of Allo Protocol and Grants Lab. Scalable System: A governance framework that can grow with Gitcoin while maintaining our commitment to decentralization and community ownership.