Formal Pathway for DAO Request for Information (RFI) from the Foundation

by 0x5b5cc427c1d81db4f94de4d51d85ce122d63e244 (Fehz)

Linked Draft Proposal

Formal Pathway for DAO Request for Information (RFI) from the Foundation

Summary

This proposal outlines a process to implement a formal pathway for the DAO to issue a “request for information” (RFI) from the Decentraland Foundation.

Abstract

The RFI process between Decentraland DAO and the Decentraland Foundation is designed to increase communication and collaboration between both entities. The RFI process will create a mechanism for the DAO to issue a formal request for information from the Foundation within a series of defined categories, which would require a formal statement from the Foundation in response. While the responses will be non-binding, this process will allow for the DAO to more efficiently communicate its, and help alleviate information asymmetry between the two core entities of the Decentraland ecosystem.

Motivation

Decentraland is a progressively decentralizing ecosystem, managed by two core stakeholders: the Decentraland DAO and the Decentraland Foundation. While both of these entities are themselves made up of a diverse and multi-interested group of stakeholders, a cooperative and structured institutional relationship between the DAO and the Foundation is beneficial, if not necessary to the success of our metaversal “way of life.”

The most important proposal to date outlining a formal relationship between the DAO and the Foundation was recently passed as a Binding Governance Proposal, delegating responsibility for determining and implementing the “reference client roadmap” to the Decentraland Foundation.”

In the reference client proposal, the Decentraland Foundation notes the following key point: “The project is currently in a state of asymmetry in terms of context/resources/contributions between the Foundation and the community.”

Specification

This proposal aims to establish a pathway for the DAO to issue a “Request for Information” (RFI) from the Decentraland Foundation via the DAO’s governance dApp and/or other complementary tools. A DAO RFI can be on any topic of interest or concern, and if passed, will require a formal statement of response from the Decentraland Foundation. While any response to an RFI will be non-binding, this is an important mechanism for the DAO to communicate its interests and alleviate information “asymmetry” between the Foundation and the Community.

1. General Guidelines - An RFI can be useful when there is necessary information which you do not currently have access to. An RFI can be about the “what”, “why” and/or “how” of a specific topic. It is highly recommended to limit the request and to be specific about what information is being requested in order to optimize the document for brevity, as this will allow the Foundation to read and digest the information in less time without omitting key data points.
2. Restraints - There may be certain topics that the Foundation is not willing or able to disclose in detail, and may provide only high-level answers or limited information. This includes the following:
   1. Revealing personal information about contractors and users.
   2. Details about contractor’s compensation and other contract details.
   3. Organizational chart of the Foundation and internal functioning.
   4. Legal issues related to the legal structure.
3. Liaison (DAO-Foundation)- DAO Facilitation Squad will serve as an Entries & Support Desk (ESD) to organize, prioritize, forward the questionnaires, and reach out to the Foundation technical areas. Meaning that the ESD will be responsible for managing a pipeline for all RFI, help with their writing and for verifying the feasibility of getting answers.
4. Channel & Functioning:
   1. The main channel for submitting RFIs and getting responses will be a Category created on the Forum for setting up the ESD.
   2. Each thread created within the RFI Category will remain open for a continuous period of 45 days for community members to submit their questions through the template form. The ESD Facilitator will moderate these threads and will possess the authority to remove posts that are not relevant to the RFI form.
   3. The questions submitted by the community will be ranked based on the number of votes/likes received within a period of 15 days after the first stage is closed. This ranking will determine the priority of the questions/topics for the community, and the questions with the most votes/likes will be forwarded to the Foundation.
   4. Once the current round of submissions is complete, another round will be opened to allow community members to pose their questions.
   5. The process must allow sufficient time for responses and provide an appropriate deadline for the Decentraland Foundation to respond to the RFIs. As a standard, the Foundation will have a 45 days period to send a response, considering the necessary time to gather and compile all relevant information and documentation.
   6. Time Extensions: If the Foundation considers that the posed questions are complex or require extensive research or analysis, will be able to ask for a time extension.
   7. Publishing: The response will be public and available for everyone through official channels such as the Governance dApp, social media, and/or other communication channels and complementary apps.

Impacts

The RFI procedure will allow the community to access information that they may not have had access to previously, increasing transparency between the Decentraland Foundation and the DAO by providing a concrete mechanism and pathway. With the expressed timelines, the community will have 6 RFI rounds every year. The RFI procedure will also serve as a complementary tool to the AMA Sessions.

Implementation Pathways

1. Create a dedicated category on the Decentraland Forum for submitting RFIs and getting responses.

2. Give administrator permissions to the Facilitation Squad to manage the Forum category.

3. Set up a space to ensure that the responses to the RFIs are made public and available to everyone through the dApp or complementary tools.

Conclusion

The proposed RFI process aims to establish a cooperative and structured institutional relationship between the DAO and the Foundation, benefiting the success of Decentraland's metaverse. The process will enable the DAO to communicate its interests, alleviate information asymmetry, and allow the Foundation to respond to community concerns and suggestions in a transparent and accountable manner.

This proposal is summarized due to technical limitations. To view it complete and vote on it, visit the DCL DAO Governance dApp