This proposal is meant to be a transition from what Nouns Amigos has been to what it can become. To address some questions:
- Grants program: The idea is to run a pilot aligned with a more focused Nouns Amigos mission, which fits our direction toward becoming a nonprofit. The goal is to develop this mission alongside the community, empower builders to create impactful projects, and use those projects as examples when seeking additional funding. As always, all grants are voted on by the community using the Amigo token.
- Legal organization: Becoming a non profit was feedback we received and after much thought we decided to give this path a try, specially since we are receiving and allocating the grants and to get alternative funding via web2/web3 donations.
- Tools and gas: We created an accountability method where proposers receive funds upon completion of milestones, this means we deploy funds, constantly, and issue tokens on Mainnet. We also use tools like Notion, Adobe, ChatGPT.
- Resources and experiments: Nouns amigos as a brand, think physical products like a burrito plush toy. We want some room for experimentation but the goal is the same, test the amigos brand concept out there and find resources. Also, creating and maintaining Nouns Amigos website, our wiki in HackMD, art drops (collabs with artists), among other bi-weekly experiments we ideate to expand Nouns through Nouns Amigos.
- Team compensation: The grants program involves a lot of work and daily execution. There’s designing the grant program, establishing the rules of the game, deciding/setting up platforms, creating resources for people to understand Nouns and the process to apply, creating/maintaining a social accountability system (Nouns Amigos Gardeners). And pivoting every time is needed. You can read more about challenges faced in 2024 in our propdate (Prop 468). Plus, we would actively seek for new funding sources within web3 protocols, as well as web2 crypto exchanges, brands and donors.
These are steps into one direction. If this is not the path the DAO thinks we should follow we will find our way.
Los nuuuuuns!
First, thanks for acknowledging previous work. Just to clarify, there is no discretionary fund for grants and rounds—everything has always been voted on by the community through the AMIGO token. I actually think DaniB is a great example of what Nouns Amigos proposes. He discovered Nouns through the Nouns Fair in Colombia, won an Amigos round in Prop House, received a grant from our first season, and now wants to propose on-chain. We believe accountability is essential, which is why we created the Amigo Gardeners to validate the progress of grants. While Flows works amazingly for initiating initiatives, grants allow projects to grow and develop further.
Grants are capped at 2.5 ETH, which means the community can vote and fund at least 40 proposals through the year.
+1
> I love what Mono & Lex have done thus far, but I would prefer to see smaller proposals for specific initiatives such as the Barranquilla candidate by DaniB vs giving a $400k+ discretionary fund to the team. This is something that would also be great for flows.wtf so everyone could track the progress of the initiatives as well and give the community members monthly compensation.
A few thoughts on why we proposed to get 3 treasury Nouns for Nouns Amigos.
Nouns Amigos went from observers to builders when we launched our house in Prop House in Jan 2023. Then, we became delegates in Jan 2024 with 3 Nouns. We want to go further by being owners and becoming permanent members of the DAO.
The prior delegation initiated our weekly community call, focused on analyzing Nouns proposals. Builders now view on-chain governance as a benchmark, setting it as a goal for some. Exposure to on-chain proposals has raised Amigos holders' expectations for Amigos proposals. On-chain voting has integrated Amigos into Nouns, fostering a sense of belonging to Nouns rather than feeling a separate group.
Owning will open the door to continuously participate in the governance process and create a clear path for Nouns Amigos builders to go on-chain when appropriate. This will make Nouns Amigos a portal to the Spanish-speaking world with a clear and certain growing path.
Ownership is important because it consolidates the community- this feels as a collective win (putting up this prop was discussed in the calls). Governance is a means to foster deeper commitment and maturity among current and new Nouns Amigos members.
## The Nouns Fair & Nouns Prize 2023
In 2023, we embarked on a mission to bring Nouns to hackers worldwide. We took the Nouns Fair to 6 ETHGlobal hackatons and exposed Nouns to 6,800 hackers in 6 countries.
We introduced the Nouns Prize at those hackathons, receiving 291 submissions, representing 17% of the total submissions amongst 87 DAOs, protocols, and companies like the Ethereum Foundation, Uniswap Foundation, MakerDAO, ENS, Optimism, Arbitrum, Base, Polygon, Scroll, EAS, Aragon, The Graph, Lens, Safe, MetaMask, Wallet Connect, and many more.
Of the 291 projects, 30 won the Nouns Prize. On average, 2 out of 10 hackathon winner projects were built with Nouns. Since then, we have seen interest in keeping building with Nouns resulting in a successful onchain [proposal 459 ↗︎](https://nouns.wtf/vote/459) and a [Gardener Round winner ↗︎](https://prop.house/0x6c7f962819d04c5e95a1ca750e8f076c9735da2b/2).
This is what The Nouns Fair looks like in numbers.
- 6 Nouns Fair events in 6 countries
- 6,800 hackers exposed to Nouns
- 291 project submissions to the Nouns Prize
- 30 Nouns Prize winner projects
- 2/10 hackathon finalists built with Nouns
- 17% of total projects in six hackathons built with Nouns
## 🇵🇹 Nouns Fair Lisbon
The hackathon was held at the Convento do Beato from May 12th to 14th, 2023, in Lisbon, Portugal.
* 650 hackers from 51 countries, 29% new to web3 - [source ↗︎](https://twitter.com/ETHGlobal/status/1658127992332210178).
* 184 projects, 34 applied to the Nouns Prize, 2 winners.
Inspired by Portugal’s tiles, food, and traditions, the photoset consisted of a wooden house with nounish tiles, surrounded by games such as ping pong, foosball, jogo do sapo, donkey, and more, as well as a swag station with t-shirts, stickers, pins, noggles, and POAPs.
We designed an 8 page fanzine to explain Nouns, the Nouns Prize and how to get involved.
[Check out the photobook ↗︎](https://www.flickr.com/photos/196499305@N03/albums/72177720308311703/)
### Lisbon Nouns Prize Winners
* Best Public Good x 1 :trophy:
* Best Use of Nouns Artwork x 1 :trophy:
ETHGlobal Lisbon was the first hackathon were the Nouns Prize was introduced to incentivize and reward hackers for building with Nouns. Check out the [Winners, Nouns Prize x ETHGlobal Lisbon ↗︎](https://nouns-fair.notion.site/Winners-Nouns-Prize-x-ETHGlobal-Lisbon-4d2b46845ee842d98a65cca435a35665)
## 🇨🇦 Nouns Fair Waterloo
The hackathon was held at the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics from June 23rd to 25th, 2023, in Waterloo, Canada.
* 650 hackers from 29 countries, 47% new to web3 - [source ↗︎](https://twitter.com/ETHGlobal/status/1673315173011161089).
* 169 projects, 39 applied to the Nouns Prize, 2 winners.
Inspired by The First Nation’s totems, the photoset consisted of vertical structures with head animals, surrounded by games such as ping pong and bubble hockey, as well as a swag station with t-shirts, pouches, stickers, pins, noggles, POAPs, and our Zine!
[Check out the photobook ↗︎](https://www.flickr.com/photos/196499305@N03/albums/72177720310158114/)
### Nouns Prize Winners
* Best Public Good x 1 :trophy:
* Best Use of Nouns Artwork x 1 :trophy:
[Check out all Winners, Nouns Prize x ETHGlobal Waterloo ↗︎](https://nouns-fair.notion.site/Winners-Nouns-Prize-x-ETHGlobal-Waterloo-b4de7e1a3972423caf923fb30ad1c99f)
## 🇫🇷 Nouns Fair Paris
The hackathon was held at the Palais Brongiart from July 21st to 23rd, 2023, in Paris, France.
* 1,400 attendees, 965 hackers from 67 countries, 22% new to web3 - [source ↗︎](https://twitter.com/ETHGlobal/status/1683454687461232643).
* 321 projects, 53 applied to the Nouns Prize, 10 winners.
Inspired by pain au chocolate and croissants, the photoset consisted of a stage replicating a boulangerie pure style Nouns. Surrounded by games such as ping pong and foosball, a swag station in an old ice cream cart with t-shirts, bucket hats, stickers, pins, noggles, POAPs and the Nouns zine!
[Check out the photobook ↗︎](https://www.flickr.com/photos/196499305@N03/albums/72177720310141580/)
### Nouns Prize Winners
* Best Public Good x 5 :trophy:
* Best Use of Nouns Artwork x 5 :trophy:
[Check out all Winners, Nouns Prize x ETHGlobal Paris ↗︎](https://nouns-fair.notion.site/Winners-Nouns-Prize-x-ETHGlobal-Paris-7524834cb0e74d7c8cd00e3e8c555bce)
## 🇺🇸 Nouns Fair NYC
The hackathon was held at Pier 60 from September 22nd to 24th, 2023, NYC, USA.
* 1,400 attendees, 950 hackers from 49 countries, 33% new to web3 [source ↗︎](https://twitter.com/ETHGlobal/status/1706405866377793879).
* 303 projects, 50 applied to the Nouns Prize, 10 winners.
Inspired by the streets of New York, the photoset consisted of a wall of nounish motifs inspired by the city that never sleeps. Surrounded by games such as ping pong and foosball, a swag station in a traditional hot dog cart with trucker hats, beanies, stickers, pins, noggles, POAPs and the Nouns zine!
[Check out the photobook ↗︎](https://www.flickr.com/photos/196499305@N03/albums/72177720311525792/)
### Nouns Prize Winners
* Best Public Good x 5 :trophy:
* Best Use of Nouns Artwork x 5 :trophy:
[Check out all Winners, Nouns Prize x ETHGlobal NYC ↗︎](https://nouns-fair.notion.site/Winners-Nouns-Prize-x-ETHGlobal-New-York-130e13f7a26640b5a12baa12c918b2ba)
## 🇹🇷 Nouns Fair Istanbul
The hackathon was held at the Istanbul Congress Center from November 17th to 19th, 2023, Istanbul, Turkey, in the DevConnect week.
* 2,000 attendees from 90 countries [source ↗︎](https://twitter.com/ETHGlobal/status/1726506357698814359).
* 428 projects, 65 applied to the Nouns Prize, 3 winners.
Inspired by the city’s cultural heritage, the photoset consisted of a wall of nounish motifs inspired by Turkish tiles, baths, and mosques. Surrounded by games such as ping pong and foosball, a swag station in a traditional street sweet corn cart with t-shirts, hoodies, stickers, pins, Nouns NFC chips, POAPs, and a Nounish postcard!
[Check out the photobook ↗︎](https://www.flickr.com/photos/196499305@N03/albums/72177720312903866/)
### Nouns Prize Winners
* Best Public Good x 3 :trophy:
[Check out all Winners, Nouns Prize x ETHGlobal Istanbul ↗︎](https://nouns-fair.notion.site/Winners-Nouns-Prize-x-ETHGlobal-Istanbul-379dbc955ac04a3f9998ee2c86fbc822)
## 🇬🇧 Nouns Fair London
The hackathon was held at The Truman Brewery from March 15th to 17th, 2024, London, England.
* 700 hackers from 61 countries [source ↗︎](https://twitter.com/ETHGlobal/status/1770854429849194657).
* 241 projects, 50 applied to the Nouns Prize, 3 winners.
Inspired by the famous English novel "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," the photoset captured characters such as the Cheshire Cat, the Queen of Hearts with her cards, and the White Rabbit. Surrounded by games such as a vintage arcade and foosball, a swag station with Nouns NFC chips, stickers, noggles,t-shirts, POAPs, and a Nounish postcard!
[Check out the photobook ↗︎](https://www.flickr.com/photos/196499305@N03/albums/72177720315594986)
### Nouns Prize Winners
* Best UX/UI Implementation of Nouns Art x 3 :trophy:
[Check out all Winners, Nouns Prize x ETHGlobal London ↗︎](https://nouns-fair.notion.site/Winners-Nouns-Prize-x-ETHGlobal-London-fd6907f809474b58bb19183a62eb92d2#9d34b68e24fb4b9b899b79dddfacdaa0)
## 🇲🇽 Nouns Fair Ethereum Mexico - extra event
This confeence was held at Foro Indie Rocks! on October 21st, 2024, Mexico City, Mexico. [Recap ↗︎](https://x.com/NounsFair/status/1717318961044611190).
- 600 attendees.
Inspired by popular street letterings and street food, the photoset captured the street vibe with a little popsicles cart, with real posicles!, and a few metallic yellow tables to feel the full street vibe. Surrounded by a swag station with t-shirts, stickers, pins, noggles and POAPs.
[Check out the photobook ↗︎](https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjB1aR3).
## 🇲🇽 Nouns Fair ETH Cinco de Mayo - extra event
This hackathon was held at El CIEN from February 2nd to 4th, 2024 in Cholula, Puebla, Mexico. [Recap ↗︎](https://x.com/NounsDAOAmigos/status/1755457424880714040).
- 300 attendees.
Inspired by popular street letterings and street food, the photoset captured the street vibe with a little popsicles cart, with real posicles!, and a few metallic yellow tables to feel the full street vibe. Surrounded by a swag station with t-shirts, stickers, pins, noggles and POAPs.
[Check out the photobook ↗︎](https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBdozN).
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## Learnings
After these 6 editions of the Nouns Fair, we've witnessed the significance of crafting a fun and meaningful first experience with Nouns. By creating an environment that captivates and engages participants, we foster receptivity towards understanding the DAO. We also witnessed the enthusiasm for building with Nouns. It was really thrilling to review all submissions at the end of the hackathon, sometimes even a bit overwhelming with so many, but hey, that's just a happy problem! For some editions, we listened to up to 30 teams pitching their projects, ranging from games to DAO governance tools, account abstraction solutions, social reputation, DeFi, and many more!
A few take aways are:
- People have seen/heard about Nouns at some point but don't know if they can build with them or get funding.
- People immediately connect with Nouns by looking at the characters or the booth's design or by simply listening to or seeing the wide range of projects Nouns has funded.
- People react positively and are willing to keep learning when a person is in front of them willing to help.
- People find it hard where to search for specific resources or references to help inform/build their ideas.
- People want to keep learning and building with Nouns after every event, and the lack of funding mechanisms, other than onchain proposals, makes it hard to continue their builder path.
- People love Nouns and the Nouns Fair! It's a vibe.
Additionally, you can find:
- Design files [here ↗︎](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1fr0ZQPHIJaKpOXIFH88MBdlehUKO-P-D?usp=sharing).
- Photobook [here ↗︎](https://www.flickr.com/photos/196499305@N03/albums).
- X account [here ↗︎](https://twitter.com/NounsFair).
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Thank you!
Lex & Mono
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