This is a follow-up on defeated proposals 742 and 754: a leaner way to continue funding Nouns Amigos, expand Nouns and Ethereum, create opportunities for builders in Latin America, and make Nouns Amigos a non-profit entity able to seek additional funding sources outside of Nouns.

TL;DR

https://www.loom.com/share/9099aaa9616d4fbe9f26a28bb7162f2f

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Intro

We are a group of builders and creatives in Latin America who believe that expanding a credibly neutral, smart-contract-based blockchain will positively impact the region. We believe this new global economy, powered by Ethereum, will improve how we coordinate and use money, improving transparency, accountability, and decentralization, which are very much needed in this part of the world.

Watch this video to get a glimpse of what we have built! 📺

We believe that grassroots movements like Nouns will play a significant role in massive adoption. At Nouns Amigos, we have bootstrapped a grassroots builder community and a decision-making body made up of builders who have executed a proposal, ensuring its growth is rooted in impact, accountability, and ownership.

We are hard-working builders putting our time and efforts where we believe it's worth it. We want to plug the region into this new global economy, improve people's lives, and give builders the means to be the change they want to see. We plan to do this with the community at the center, funding creatives, and expanding Ethereum through Nouns.

To do so, we request $95,000 + 1 Noun (566) to seed Nouns Amigos, which will support creative projects that aim to increase Ethereum adoption through Nouns and make Nouns Amigos the go-to destination for Spanish speakers.

But we won't do this alone—we aim to partner with other DAOs, L2s, wallet providers, exchanges, protocols, foundations, and Web3 companies that believe in this mission and want to expand in the region.

This is how we plan to do it:

Expanding Ethereum through Nouns (Grants)

We'll focus on creative projects that utilize Nouns as a gateway to Ethereum literacy and increase its adoption through practical and actionable initiatives, such as graphic fairs, animation jams, art residencies, music bootcamps, dance jams, collective drops, etc., meaning we will focus on doing and showing—not telling. Think of Nouns Amigos as a collective of creative builders bringing new talent on-chain who contribute to expanding the network, and Nouns as a movement and visual representation of Ethereum.

The program will follow a post-funding approach. Grantees will receive support from community members who have executed projects with Nouns Amigos to help them set a solid foundation for impact and potential growth. This, along with milestone-based proposals and constant accountability from the Nouns Amigos Gardeners, will ensure execution, impact, and maximize the use of funds.

We will look to fund creative projects that invite more creatives to participate in and use Ethereum. Our previous grant season guidelines will serve as the basis for our current guidelines (learn more in the About section below). Still, we'll likely need to make adjustments to comply with the non-profit's requirements (e.g., increased accountability, more substantial proof of work, a mix of upfront and retroactive funding, and a certain level of KYC and due diligence, to mention a few). Grant proposals will come in a Nouns DAO pace fashion, and Nouns Amigos holders will vote on proposals one by one.

Grants will also serve as the proper foundation for developing ideas, testing new concepts, and creating projects that have the potential to evolve into larger, more ambitious proposals.

We request $50,000 to seed the Nouns Amigos grants program, funds which will be distributed to the community. Nouns Amigos holders will vote on grants. To learn more about how we've done it before, jump to the About section below.

To enhance the program, we'll seek to partner with other DAOs, L2s, wallet providers, exchanges, protocols, foundations, and Web3 companies in the ecosystem to execute on this mission.

We are already in contact with several organizations that may be interested in participating in this mission. No closed agreements have been reached yet, but we will communicate them when they occur.

Expanding Nouns Amigos

Beyond creating an environment and setting incentives for the community to build, we'll ensure there are ways to consume, learn, gather, share, collaborate, and discuss all things Nouns. We are constantly expanding Nouns' footprint in the Spanish-speaking world and attracting new builders and fans.

We will continue establishing Nouns Amigos as an open and thriving community, ensuring it is the best place for all things Nouns in Spanish. We'll register Nouns Amigos non-profit legal entity (while it might not seem exciting at first glance, this move sets us up to handle the DUNA shift and explore a sustainable path forward—through regional write-off donations and meaningful partnerships); run the grants program and continue accountability measures such as Nouns Amigos Gardeners; develop Nouns Amigos website; hold spaces, livestreams and activate social accounts (X, IG); and seek for alternative funding sources and partnerships.

We request $25,000 to manage the grants program and make Nouns Amigos the gateway to Nouns and Ethereum. The legal entity will manage these funds to:

• Run the grants program and ensure its execution.
• Follow-up on grantees post-funding to help grow their ideas.
• Make partnerships with organizations and seek additional funding sources.
• Build and maintain the Nouns Amigos website.
• Ensure accountability measures (e.g., Nouns Amigos Gardeners).
• Activate Nouns Amigos social accounts to hold spaces, livestreams, post, and repost.
• Create design and multimedia resources needed to expand Nouns Amigos.

We request Noun 566 that will be community-owned, and we'll use it to:

• Resume our involvement in Nouns governance
• Sponsor candidate proposals from the community
• Delegate it directly to community members

We request $20,000 to cover legal expenses, including but not limited to:

• Legally register a foreign (non-US) non-profit*
• AML and digital assets compliance
• Accounting and legal advice

Notes and Disclaimers

• The Nouns Amigos non-profit will be a foreign (non-US) entity liable for its local jurisdiction's tax requirements. Most likely established in Mexico, aiming to get the legal status to receive tax-deductible donations.
• The cost of establishing the non-profit is primarily a one-time expenditure. The yearly cost of maintaining it will be considerably lower.

Outcomes

• Funding opportunities for builders in an underserved region.
• Grassroots Ethereum adoption in Latam.
• Potentially scalable creative projects built on Nouns.
• Nouns Amigos as the go-to place for all things Nouns in Spanish.
• Legal non-profit suitable to raise funds.

Total Budget — $95,000 + 1 Noun

• Grants — $50,000
• Expanding Nouns Amigos — $25,000 + Noun 566
• Legal expenses — $20,000

Funded projects by Nouns Amigos

These are a few examples of projects funded by Nouns Amigos in the previous grants program. We want to see more projects like these!

• Nouns Animation Jam in Argentina by Pauher

  • A multi-day event to onboard animators to get into Ethereum, get to know Nouns, and animate nounish shorts in an intensive 4-hour jam.
• Nounish Graphic Fair in Colombia by Nadie

  • A weekend event for creatives to drop a nounish NFT series, an IRL creative market, Ethereum literacy, and fun activities.
• Nounish Art School in Peru by Ivanna

  • Arts and crafts classes for kids and adults with art activities and crypto literacy.
• Nouns Dance Battles #2 in Chile by Merkén

  • A full-day dance practice and battle competition, culture, pizza, and a friendly entry point to Ethereum.
• Nouns to the Rescue: Park Restorations in Guatemala by Indeus

  • A multi-week journey for locals with art, music, food, sports, and crypto literacy.

  • Nouns animated series in Mexico by La Blocka, Reforestation in Peru by El chico de las plantas, Animation series in Argentina by Ann/Yuyarikafilms, Nouns Music Camp in Chile by Malbek, Nounsplat in Colombia by Dani B and more projects that can be found in our wiki, IG, X and Farcaster channel.

About Nouns Amigos

Nouns Amigos is the Nouns community in Spanish. We are a group of creative builders on a mission to expand Ethereum's reach through Nouns across Latin America since June 2022.

So far, Nouns Amigos has deployed 100 ETH to 100+ builders through funding rounds (Prop House), Farcaster (Rounds), and grants (Snapshot). These funding mechanisms have created opportunities for people to kickstart ideas, unlocking their builder's mindset and driving Ethereum adoption in Latin America.

Over the years, we have established social spaces, including weekly Discord calls and a Farcaster channel. They have provided a platform for sharing and debating ideas, proposals, and all things Nouns. This has strengthened the community and enabled collaboration between builders.

The AMIGO token, which is earned based on 'proof of work' (introduced in 2023), has generated ownership and a sense of belonging, which encouraged a more critical mindset while voting. We've used this token to determine which projects to fund, thereby spreading the decision-making process among the community. At the same time, the accountability measures we introduced as part of the grants program, such as retroactive funding and Nouns Amigos Gardeners validating milestones in proposals, ensured the resources were used effectively.

• Milestone-based proposals are submitted to Snapshot, and voted by Nouns Amigos holders.
• When a proposal passes, we assign a Nouns Amigos Gardener to follow up and validate milestones.
• Funds are deployed retroactively when a milestone is validated as completed.
• Nouns Amigos gardeners are holders elected by the community that rotate every three months.
• Amigo holders are the builders who won a round/grant and successfully executed their proposal—the community builds and then earns voting power, so we say they earn the token with 'proof of work'.

The Nouns Amigos community is a consistent group of high-quality builders pushing Nouns forward every day in Latin America. You can follow the community’s activity on IG, X, and Farcaster.

Check our propdate for a retrospective of Nouns Amigos in 2024 (proposal 468).

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