Season 7 Grants Council Charter [FINAL]

Governance Fund Missions 🏹 Grants Updates
1

I’m adding my draft of the S7 GC charter to the forum to get feedback from the Collective. S7 Budget TBD

This Charter outlines the structure and responsibilities of the Grants Council and its participants. It is authored and maintained by the Optimism Grants Council.

This is the Season 7 Charter, which supersedes and replaces the Charters of all previous Seasons.

Goals

The Grants Council will allocate funds from the Governance Fund to support projects that drive measurable progress in the following success metrics for the Superchain:

  • Support projects that drive measurable growth in the following metrics for the Superchain:
    • Increase Total Value Locked (TVL) denominated in ETH.
    • Increase Stablecoin TVL across the Superchain.
    • Increase Wrapped Asset TVL across the Superchain.
    • Increase Bridged Asset TVL across the Superchain.
  • Create a streamlined and consistent process for grant applicants.
  • Empower high-context delegates to make high-context grant decisions.
  • Reduce the workload of non-Council delegates to enable their focus on high-impact votes.
  • Coordinate with the Developer Advisory Board (DAB) and the Milestones and Metrics Council (MaM):
    • Ensure seamless information sharing to enable the DAB’s audit reviews and the MaM’s grant delivery operations.

Non-Goals:

  • Retroactive funding (managed by a separate team).
  • Programs that do not align with Superchain TVL metrics.

Structure

Normal Circumstances

  • All grants must comply with Collective Grant Policies, including milestones, no-sale rules, and token lock-ups.
  • The Council will review applications and allocate funds through a two-phase review system:
    • GrantNerds: Conducted by generalist reviewers to assess eligibility, alignment and guidance to applicants.
    • Final Review: Conducted by professional DeFi reviewers to evaluate TVL-driving potential.

Participants

Cohorts and Election Terms

  • Members are elected by the Token House at the start of the Season.
  • Elected members serve for one term and may seek re-election for future terms.
  • There are no term limits, but eligibility criteria for members must be met.

Key Roles

  1. Lead (1 Member):
  • Responsibilities:
    • Publicly represents the Grants Council in forums and governance discussions.
    • Oversees procedural and operational alignment.
    • Prepares cycle reports and the End-of-Season Report.
    • Breaks ties in case of deadlocked votes.
    • Ensures rubrics and selection criteria are published at the start of the season.
  1. Operations (1 Member):
  • Responsibilities:
    • Manages intake processes, tool coordination, and proposal tracking.
    • Ensures smooth execution of logistics.
    • Supports the Lead in maintaining transparency and compliance.

  1. Reviewers (7 Members) two subcommittees:

    • GrantNerds Reviewers (3 Members):
    • Perform proactive outreach to engage high-quality applicants and guide them through the application process.
    • Perform Intake review.

  2. Final Reviewers (4 Members):

    • Deep-dive into proposals’ DeFi and TVL growth potential.
    • Finalize rankings for grant allocations.

All Council members will be required to disclose all anticipated conflicts of interest when applying to serve on the Council and all actual conflicts of interest if engaged in a vote affected by the conflict. Where a conflict is known to be present, a reviewer should recuse themselves or provide a written voting rationale if the reviewer believes that they can vote impartially.

Operations Eligibility

Participants in the Operations role must meet the following criteria to ensure effective management of the Grants Council’s operational needs. :

  • Organizational Expertise: Demonstrated ability to manage complex workflows, track milestones, and oversee logistics in a high-volume operational environment.
  • Technical Proficiency: Familiarity with grants management tools, governance platforms, and on-chain reporting systems to ensure smooth execution of processes.
  • Problem-Solving Skills: Proven capability to address operational challenges quickly and effectively, ensuring the Council’s activities remain on schedule.
  • Commitment and Availability: Ability to dedicate sufficient time to manage intake processes, adherence to strict time-frames/deadlines, maintain transparency, and provide consistent operational support throughout the season.

GrantNerds eligibility

Participants in the GrantNerd role must meet the following criteria:

  1. Competency:

    • Proven ability to identify, connect with, and build relationships with builders in the ecosystem.
    • Experience fostering engagement with prospective applicants aligned with Superchain TVL objectives.
    • Strong capability to pitch the grants program effectively, emphasizing benefits and alignment with ecosystem goals.
    • Skilled in promoting grant opportunities and motivating builders to participate in the program.
    • Expertise in guiding applicants through the grants process, addressing pain points, and clarifying policies and procedures.
    • Ability to provide actionable and constructive feedback to improve application quality without overstepping into product design.
    • Demonstrated understanding of blockchain ecosystems, including basic DeFi mechanisms and grant evaluation processes.
    • Competence in assessing project eligibility and alignment with the Grants Council objectives and Collective Grant Policies.
    • Exceptional communication skills to guide applicants and represent the Grants Council effectively.
    • Professional and approachable demeanor to foster trust and collaboration with builders.

  2. Guidance Capability:

    • Demonstrated ability to explain complex concepts clearly and concisely.
    • Skilled in offering constructive feedback to applicants without overstepping into product design.

  3. Commitment:

    • Willingness and availability to engage with applicants, provide guidance, and ensure timely completion of intake reviews.
    • Dedication to maintaining high standards of transparency and fairness throughout the intake process.

  4. Conflict of Interest Disclosure:

    • Participants must disclose any potential conflicts of interest and recuse themselves from decisions where a conflict exists.

Final reviewer eligibility

Participants of the Grants Council must meet the following criteria to ensure competence and alignment with the Council’s focus on driving TVL growth:

  1. Competency: Advanced expertise in DeFi and financial systems, with a deep understanding of Total Value Locked (TVL) metrics. Reviewers must meet all of the following characteristics:

    • Demonstrate in-depth knowledge of liquidity provision, staking, lending, and tokenomics with a focus on TVL-impacting protocols.
    • Show a track record of evaluating or consulting for blockchain projects with significant TVL contributions.
    • Be familiar with Optimism and cross-chain TVL dynamics in the Superchain ecosystem.
    • Possess hands-on experience in a respected DeFi protocol development or management.

  2. Reputation:

    • Participants must be trusted individuals or entities with a verifiable history of contributions to blockchain or related fields, ensuring alignment with the Council’s objectives.

  3. Conflict of Interest Disclosure:

    • Participants must disclose any potential conflicts of interest when applying and must recuse themselves from decisions where a conflict exists.

  4. Commitment:

    • Participants must be able to dedicate the time and focus required to perform rigorous reviews, validate milestones, and actively contribute to discussions and voting processes.

Resignation process

  1. If a member wishes to resign before the end of their term, it must communicate this change to the Lead at least 7 days prior to this change taking effect.
  2. The Lead or Grants Council members must appoint a replacement by majority vote.
  3. The Lead will then adjust quorum/ signing thresholds as needed and communicate the change through the structure’s Communication Thread.

Accountability

Grants Council members are subject to the following checks and standards to ensure transparency, integrity, and alignment with their responsibilities:

  1. Representative Removal:

    • Grants Council members may be removed for failing to uphold the responsibilities outlined in this Charter or for failing to act with honesty, integrity, and transparency.
    • Removal votes will occur before the end of the next voting cycle, as outlined in the Operating Manual.

  2. Re-Election:

    • All Grants Council members must stand for re-election at the start of each new Season if they wish to continue serving.

  3. Transparency and Oversight:

    • The Grants Council is required to operate transparently, enabling non-Council Token Holders to oversee its operations effectively.
    • Public reports will be issued after each review cycle and at the end of the Season to detail decisions and outcomes.

  4. Retrospective Review:

    • At the end of Season 7, the Grants Council will conduct a retrospective to evaluate its performance and ensure continuous improvement. The retrospective will be posted publicly for community feedback.

  5. Temporary Replacements:

    • In the event of a resignation or removal, the Lead or a majority of the remaining members may appoint a temporary replacement for the remainder of the term.

Iteration

  1. Canonical Version:

    • The approved version of this Charter will be published to GitHub and will serve as the authoritative document for the Grants Council’s operations during Season 7.

  2. Material Updates:

    • Any material changes to the scope, structure, responsibilities, or budget of the Grants Council must receive governance approval. Changes will be reflected with a new version number in the published Charter.

  3. End-of-Season Retrospective:

    • The Grants Council will conduct a retrospective review at the end of Season 7 to evaluate its performance, gather community feedback, and propose potential improvements for future terms.

  4. Reduction Over Time:

    • The role of the Grants Council, as with all structures, is intended to be progressively reduced over time as its functions are automated or absorbed by other mechanisms. The long-term goal is to support a governance model that can operate without the Grants Council when it is no longer essential.
13 Likes
2

Hi @Gonna.eth,

Understanding that you are looking for feedback, I am leaving here two things that came to mind when reading the charter. I think it would be a good idea to be a little more specific in the eligibility criteria, especially if we want this charter to function as an auto-filter for applicants.

Operations Eligibility

With that in mind:

→ Would it be possible to clarify what tools and/or systems have been used previously?

→ Would it be possible to clarify what amount of time has been sufficient in the past? Are there usually time bombs or anything out of the ordinary?

GrantNerds eligibility

As for GrantNERD eligibility, I would like to point out that the NERD suffix gives me the impression that this is a contribution path. Considering that the council is a representative structure and people are elected, I would suggest changing the name so as not to confuse it with this being a role that one can aspire to develop (wannabe > in-training > grantNERD).

1 Like
3

I agree with the eligibility and criteria outlined, these positions are crucial, and nominees must demonstrate the skills needed to perform these roles. My only question is: Who will be responsible for conducting due diligence and ensuring the nominees meet the outlined criteria?

4

I’d like to clarify, but there are some uncertainties at this stage. Retro Funding will no longer cover Charmverse in Season 7, so determining the tools to be used will require a vote by the Grants Council members on both the platform and its budget. While Charmverse is likely to remain one of the tools, this ultimately depends on the final Grants process design, which will also need to be approved by the Council through the Internal Operating Procedures. However, proficiency in Notion, Charmverse, Google sheets, and GitHub is essential.

Lead and Ops are full time jobs 40 ha a week
GrantsNerds and Final Reviewers commitment is 20 ha a week

If you look at how NERD programs typically evolve, they start with an election process for their initial members and later transition into a contribution path. This is the first step in that direction, but my vision is for this role to hopefully become a branch of the GovNERDs program. For that to happen, GovNERDs will need a dedicated lead to oversee and guide the process.

3 Likes
5

It is ultimately up to the Token House and the Collective to conduct due diligence. As nominees post their applications on the forum, it’s the responsibility of the Collective to scrutinize and question them to ensure well-qualified candidates proceed to a vote. While we could request supporting data from GovNERDs and rely on candidate attestations, no single entity can claim absolute authority over verifying qualifications. That said, I understand this is a key challenge and, over time, the collective will work to create an infrastructure that allows to effectively integrate attestations into the election process, ensuring candidates verifiably possess the required competencies

4 Likes
6

Hi @Gonna.eth
Nice to see this charter
On the GrantsNerd point, I think some internships or transition designs could be added, such as something like GovNerd, which would allow more people in the Optimism community to participate in the review, similar to (Wannabe - intern - GrantsNerd)

2 Likes
7

Hi Marcus! This was mentioned in a previous reply, which sees pretty aligned with your statement.

2 Likes