[IMPLEMENTATION] Freeze All non-Platform Grant Spending

by 0x5b5cc427c1d81db4f94de4d51d85ce122d63e244 (Fehz)

Linked Draft Proposal

Freeze All non-Platform Grant Spending

Summary

This proposal will work as a complementary document to help outline the specification and implementation pathways for the recently approved “Freeze All non-Platform Grant Spending".

Abstract

This proposal outlines a clear pathway towards the implementation of the proposal aforementioned, specifying its timing, better defining the definition of Facilitation squads, and budget percentage allocation.

Motivation

The approval of the “Freeze All non-Platform Grant Spending” binding proposal has been an urgent measure, driven by community sentiment following multiple submissions and resubmissions of previously revoked and rejected proposals.

Furthermore, the primary objective of this proposal was to enact a freeze on grant spending for anything other than platform grants, to enhance and prioritize the technical capabilities of the Decentraland ecosystem throughout 2024 or until a proposal to reverse this decision is approved. The rationale behind this policy is that this is an intent to streamline focus, hoping to eliminate distractions and stress within the DAO, and allowing the prioritization of platform development.

The proposal functioned as a means to establish a policy and, although the proposal's spirit was distinctly articulated and garnered substantial community support, some gray areas needed to be clarified before implementing the changes. Consequently, the author and other community members recognized the necessity for an additional complementary proposal to outline these specifications.

Specification

• Freeze Grant requests for all categories, except Platform and Core Units.
• No new Core Units will be deployed. Only Governance Squad, Grant Support Squad, and Facilitation Squad will be eligible to apply in those categories for the remainder of 2024.
• Reduce the Core Unit budget to a maximum of 10% from its current 15% allocation of the quarterly budget.
• Leave the Platform budget at 50%, as was just passed.
• The remaining 40% would go towards the DAO treasury and will not be considered part of the Grants Program budget allocation. Therefore, it won’t be considered an unspent budget when it comes to other proposals looking to use unspent grant money for different purposes. (i.e. Treasury Diversification).

Impacts

• The outlining and definition of the implementation pathway for the Grants Freeze recently approved will allow more predictability and transparency. It will also set the expectations of all community members regarding the Grants Program till this measure is replaced or revoked.
• By reducing the allocated budget for Grants we will be able to save money from the DAO treasury.
• By focusing our spending on Platform-related grants we will empower builders in the Decentraland ecosystem to keep creating the technical foundations of the DCL infrastructure and tooling.
• By maintaining but reducing the Core Units budget allocation we will ensure the continuity of the DAO operations while optimizing the investment.

Implementation Pathways

1. All grant proposals that were created while the binding Governance proposal voting period was open (From Jan 26, 2024, 2:18 AM UTC to Feb 9, 2024, 2:18 AM UTC), will be considered valid. The approved Grant proposals will be funded.
2. All grant proposals that were created after the approval of this binding Governance proposal, would not be considered valid. Therefore, even if the proposal was approved by the community it won’t get funded by the DAO.
3. The Governance Squad will suspend the creation of proposals from other categories that are not Platform or Core Units immediately.
4. Once the budget allocation for the Core Units category is determined by the approval of this (or another) binding Governance proposal, the Governance Squad will update the quarterly budget allocation for the remaining categories.
5. The Grant Support Squad will update the Grants Program Documentation and onboarding following these definitions.

Conclusion

It is in the best interest of the long-term health of the Decentraland ecosystem to look towards building strong foundations. By aiming the Grants Program on platform improvements, we will hopefully be able to invest and solve the technical issues we’re currently facing, to enable a better experience and lower the barriers of entry to our decentralized virtual world.

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