The ApeCoin DAO Governance Working Group is excited to announce that our on-chain small grants program, spawned from AIP-408 Q2/Q3 2024 Governance Working Group Budget, has been officially launched to an unexpectedly overwhelming response.
On a personal level, this means a great deal to me. When I joined the GWG over a year ago, bringing small grants to ApeCoin DAO was one of my primary campaign focuses. On a team level, it has given newer Governance Working Group team members, such as @shotgun.tobi (Program Coordinator) and @BojangleGuy (DAO Secretary), opportunities to get more hands-on within the Working Group and be a part of this programās development.
What does this mean regarding potential overlap with other awesome groups like ThankAPE running similar initiatives? Well, thatās simpleā¦ It means collaboration, more opportunities for the ApeCoin DAO community and its builders, and co-developing a stronger infrastructure with a more focused and impactful approach moving forward. So, if youāre curious to learn more about how the GWG is approaching this initiative, and how we will gauge its overall effectiveness, take a few minutes to read the following.
Also feel free to drop us any questions that you may have in the comments, and most importantly, apply if you have an idea that the GWG could help bring to life for under 8500 APE.
AC
AIP-408 GWG INITIATIVE: UMA X GWG ON-CHAIN SMALL GRANTS
Project Overview
The GWG x UMA Small Grants Program is an AIP-408 GWG initiative focused on providing grant opportunities in six distinct categories, offering up to 8,500 APE to each recipient, with the aim of driving ecosystem growth for ApeCoin and the ApeCoin DAO.
The objective of this program is to offer the broader ApeCoin holding community, and beyond, a more streamlined way to receive grant funding. Applicants are not required to hold APE or lobby ApeCoin holders or delegates for votes. Instead, they will fill out a small grant application, which will be reviewed by a Grants Committee composed of 10 ApeCoin DAO community members and 3 ApeCoin DAO Governance Stewards.
Project Background
The GWG x UMA Small Grants Program was established after AIP-408: Q2/Q3 2024 Governance Working Group Budget was passed on May 1st, 2024.
UMA is a decentralized financial contracts platform with an optimistic oracle that records verifiable truth onto a blockchain, utilizing on-chain protocols like oSnap. This protocol was developed by Risk Labs, which first showed interest in ApeCoin DAO back in June 2023 by submitting AIP-276 Implementing oSnap for Optimistic Governance. The APE Foundation eventually returned this proposal for reconstruction.
In July 2023, ALL CITY (AC) was elected and introduced to the team through Amplify, the GWGās previous Steward.
After a few months of discussion to put the proposal back up, AC saw an opportunity to develop a program around UMAās value proposition by incorporating oSnap into a plan to bring small grants to ApeCoin DAO. Consequently, AIP-387 GWG x UMA On-Chain Grants was formulated. Given the timing of an upcoming GWG budget request requirement, it was determined that this initiative should be included in AIP-408 rather than being put up for vote as an independent initiative.
Program Governance & Operations
Oversight
ALL CITY will have overall responsibility for managing the program. This includes ensuring participantās compliance with our provided guidelines, maintaining transparency, and addressing any issues that arise during the programās execution.
Committee Composition
The Grants Committee will consist of 13 members: 10 Committee Members and 3 GWG Stewards. Each member will have an equal vote, and grant approvals will require a quorum of 7 votes. In cases where committee members do not meet the minimum participation requirement, ALL CITY may appoint replacements.
How To Apply
Applicants will submit their application forms HERE and will be able to track their progress on a user-friendly Dashboard on Notion. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis as long as the program is active and funds are available.
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Education: Initiatives that educate the community on ApeCoin, blockchain, and Web3 through courses, webinars, and workshops.
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Social Good: Projects that create positive social impacts, such as community development and charitable initiatives.
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IRL Events: In-person events like conferences, meetups, and hackathons that foster community and collaboration.
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Made By Apes and IP Building: Entrepreneurial and creative projects developed by ApeCoin DAO community members, promoting IP innovation within the ecosystem.
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Independent Artists: Artists creating digital art, music, literature, and other creative works.
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ApeChain Development: Support for technical projects that enhance the ApeChain ecosystem, including software development, blockchain infrastructure, and security improvements.
Ongoing funding requests may be approved on a case-to-case basis.
Evaluation Criteria
There are four key criteria for evaluation:
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Benefits to the ApeCoin and/or ApeChain Ecosystems: The enhancements the project brings to our ecosystem.
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Team Qualifications: The credibility and track record of the project team members.
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Funding Impact: The significance of the funding in accelerating development, ensuring the projectās sustainability.
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Cost Effectiveness: The project demonstrates efficient use of resources to achieve maximum impact relative to the funding requested.
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Feasibility and Viability: The project plan is realistic and achievable within the proposed timeline and budget.
Each submission will undergo an evaluation over a two-week deliberation period.
Program Coordinators and the DAO Secretary will grade proposals using a structured scoring rubric (seen below) focused on four key criteria. These evaluations will then be submitted to the Grants Committee for further assessment, feedback, and to serve as the basis for their voting. Only applications that gather a grade above 12 across the four criteria will move forward to Snapshot voting.
Grant Assessment Rubrics
Below shows the rubric that will be used to assess each Grant Application.
| Criteria | Excellent (4 pts) | Good (3 pts) | Fair (2 pts) | Poor (1 pt) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benefits to ApeCoin and/or ApeChain Ecosystems | Proposal demonstrates significant potential to enhance the ApeCoin ecosystem (e.g., increased user engagement, adoption of ApeCoin, growth of ApeChain). | Proposal offers some benefits to the ApeCoin ecosystem, but the impact might be limited. | Proposal has a vague connection to the ApeCoin ecosystem, or benefits are unclear. | Proposal offers no apparent benefit to the ApeCoin ecosystem. |
| Team Qualifications | The team has a proven track record with relevant experience and skills, demonstrating a high likelihood of successful project execution. | The team has relevant experience and skills, but there are minor gaps in their track record or project execution capabilities. | The team has limited experience and skills relevant to the project, raising concerns about successful execution. | The team lacks relevant experience and skills, making successful project execution unlikely. |
| Funding Impact | The requested funding is essential for the projectās success and demonstrates a clear cost-benefit analysis. | The requested funding is appropriate for the project, but the justification might be less detailed. | The requested funding seems excessive, or the justification is weak. | The requested funding is unclear or unreasonable. |
| Cost Effectiveness | The project demonstrates excellent cost-effectiveness, maximizing impact relative to the funding requested. | The project demonstrates good cost-effectiveness, with reasonable impact relative to the funding requested. | The project demonstrates fair cost-effectiveness, with some concerns about the impact relative to the funding requested. | The project demonstrates poor cost-effectiveness, with little to no impact relative to the funding requested. |
| Feasibility & Viability | Detailed plan with clear, achievable milestones and timelines. All resources identified, and risks addressed. High likelihood of success. | Clear plan with mostly achievable milestones and timelines. Most resources identified, some risks addressed. Likely to succeed. | Somewhat clear plan with vague milestones and timelines. Partial resource identification and minimal risk management. Moderate chance of success. | Unclear plan with unrealistic or missing milestones and timelines. Resources not identified, risks not addressed. Low chance of success. |
Voting and Execution
There will be a GWG-operated smallgrants.apecoingwg.eth Snapshot Space made specifically for this program and only the Grants Committee will be able to cast their votes. Voting will commence every Thursday for weeks with pending applications and will remain open for one week. In order for an application to be successful, more than half of the votes must be in favor and meet quorum.
Once the voting window is over, the UMA oSnap protocol will then trigger automatic on-chain execution for successful applications.
In certain cases, ALL CITY may grant funds without requiring a vote and, in rare instances, veto a proposal before it goes to a vote in order to protect the best interests of the ApeCoin DAO and the ApeCoin DAO Governance Working Group.
Restrictions and Compliance
Funded projects are strictly prohibited from:
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Directly endorsing or promoting tobacco or cannabis products.
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Engaging in illegal activities: Projects or activities that violate local, national, or international laws.
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Promoting harmful products: Goods or services that are known to cause harm to individuals or the environment.
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Supporting discriminatory practices: Projects that discriminate against individuals or groups based on race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or other protected characteristics.
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Participating in exploitative practices: Initiatives that exploit vulnerable populations or contribute to social inequalities.
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Directly involving high-risk investments: Projects involving speculative or highly volatile financial instruments.
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Non-compliance: Projects that do not comply with the guidelines, regulations, or standards set forth by ApeCoin DAO or relevant regulatory bodies.
Project Transparency & Reporting
Transparent Application Process
All approved proposals will be documented in a publicly accessible table reflected on the GWG Rewards Hub, detailing the project name, author, granted amount, summary, and current status (completed or in progress).
Rejected applicants will receive constructive feedback to help improve their future submissions, with opportunities for direct consultation from ALL CITY upon request.
Community Engagement and Reporting
Program Coordinators will engage with the community to raise awareness and educate potential applicants about ApeCoin DAO. Regular updates and success stories will be shared with the community to highlight the programās impact and maintain transparency.
Grantees must submit execution statements and proof-of-progress to, which will be internally logged and used for Governance Working Group community updates and quarterly reports.
Gauging Program Effectiveness
A Program Evaluation will be conducted and shared with the community before any subsequent funding requests, to assess the programās effectiveness in achieving its objectives.
View Grant Program Evaluation Criteria
1. Project Impact
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Did the recipient(s) deliver what they said they were going to
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Did the ApeCoin DAO ecosystem and/or brand get adequate value from the spend
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What was the community response to the execution
2. Application and Approval Process
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What are our intake and success rates
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Resubmission success rates
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Workflow effectiveness
3. Applicant Satisfaction
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Would the applicant go through our process again
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Did they receive a reasonable amount of support on their applications
4. Community Approval & Engagement
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Does the community feel that the program is having a meaningful impact
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Does the community feel that the funding allocated to the program is worth it
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Positive vs negative social media engagement
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New applicant intake
View Program Effectiveness Sample Rubric
Below is the rubric that will be used to assess the whole GWG On-Chain Small Grants Program.
| Project Impact | Delivery on Proposals | Did recipients complete projects as outlined in their proposals? | High | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ecosystem/Brand Value | Did funded projects generate positive value for the ApeCoin DAO ecosystem and/or brand? | High | ||
| Community Response | Was there a positive community response to the execution of funded projects? | High | ||
| Application & Approval Process | Intake Rate | Number of applications received compared to program timeframe. | Medium | |
| Success Rate | Percentage of applications successfully funded. | Medium | ||
| Resubmission Success Rate | Percentage of resubmitted applications that are funded. | Medium | ||
| Workflow Effectiveness | Percentage of applicants willing to re-apply for future grants. | Medium | ||
| Applicant Satisfaction | Repeat Applicants | Percentage of applicants willing to re-apply for future grants. | Medium | |
| Application Support | Did applicants receive adequate support during the application process? | Medium | ||
| Community Approval & Engagement | Perceived Program Impact | Does the community believe the program is having a meaningful impact? | High | |
| Funding Allocation Value | Does the community feel the allocated funding is worthwhile? | High | ||
| Social Media Engagement | Positive vs. negative social media sentiment surrounding the program. | Medium | ||
| New Applicant Intake | Number of new applicants entering the program. | Medium |
Team Members
This document was prepared by the ApeCoin GWG Lead Steward @AllCityBAYC, DAO Secretary @Bojangleguy, and Program Coordinator @shotgun.tobi, and will be executed with the help of APE_U AIP Coaches and ApeCoin DAO community members.
Kapow! Looking forward to the future here 