Community Oversight Member Elections: Meet the Candidates

[Cordtus]

@Cosmos_Nanny

in my experience, this is not a function of oversight.

It’s not a matter of experience or opinion, it would be an egregious conflict of interest. It was ridiculous and frankly constitutes disqualification in my eyes that such a thought even crossed his mind.
This is not the type of person I would ever want to see in this role.

Besides that, this is not the type of role you just see in a newspaper and jump into, especially without a background as a financial auditor. [a general accountant is no substitute]
To effectively fill this role requires a solid understanding of finance, and management or other business related experience is an asset, sure. Above all however it is imperative that the selected have a passion for the project, for ethics, and who can stand behind their word and stand their ground regardless of what the outcome may be.

Additionally, I think one of the three candidates has more or less already been unofficially performing this role for about a year now… that may be something to consider.

[Damien]

Hey @Cosmos_Nanny, Apologies for the delay in replying.

@Cosmos_Nanny

s it an absolute exclusion, or more of a de-facto exclusion from which exceptions can be made, per discretion of Committee Member #1 or #2 (and relevant qualifications of Committee Member #3)?

There are cases where an exception could be made to leverage certain skills of the newly elected member, however, It is important to note that (for example) Matt’s role with respect to auditing would be limited and he would only aid the Financial Controller if / when needed.

@Cosmos_Nanny

If Committee Member #3 is signing payment transactions for Grantees, is this not payment processing?

This was an error of explanation on my part here. The Oversight would not actually sign on the TXs but this refers to overseeing the TXs alongside the Financial Controller to make sure everything is in-line.

@Cosmos_Nanny

However, this does not preclude Committee Member #3 from remitting substantiated community concerns regarding AADAO’s personnel decisions. Please confirm if my reading here is correct. Thank you!

This is correct. The Community Elected Oversight is there to relay concerns to the AADAO if the community have some concerns about personnel.

Please note that we are also currently formalising our Internal Protocols which should bring further clarity over the roles and responsibilities of each committee and contributor. The protocols are around 1-2 weeks away from being finalised and ratified. We will then post them shortly thereafter.

[serejandmyself]

I have one question:

Will the role of the committee member include collecting feedback and ideas for governance proposals from the community and helping to shape them?

[Cordtus]

The oversight should have explicit veto powers, otherwise what is the point of even having that role?

[Matt_Brown]

@Damien

This is correct. The Community Elected Oversight is there to relay concerns to the AADAO if the community have some concerns about personnel.

Please note that we are also currently formalising our I

Hey @serejandmyself, I would imagine the first part regarding collecting feedback and ideas for governance proposals from the community would make sense and be reasonable. As for the helping to shape them part, I’m hesitant to give a firm answer. I would think the candidate in this role would be somewhat involved in the process - but I suppose it would depend on what it is that is being proposed? Hopefully that sounds like a fair answer.

[Cosmos_Nanny]

According to Transparency Report #5, the Oversight Committee now has “direct access to be able to VETO anything that they deem worthy as they are now part of the process flow.”

(You many want to reword this – a bit awkward to say that something/someone is “worthy” of a veto.)

@Damien, I have a few questions for clarification:

1. Could you define what you mean by “process flow”? Does this refer to the initial allocation of funds to grantees and any additional disbursements to be made, contingent on milestones?
2. What exactly does a veto accomplish? I assume that a veto by an Oversight member would halt funds being sent to a grantee. What happens after a veto is issued—does this suspend the grant entirely, or does it lead to a reevaluation of the grant or grantee involving both the Grants and Oversight committees?
3. Is a single veto (one out of three) enough to stop disbursement or to initiate a reevaluation, or is a two-thirds majority (or % veto threshold) required?

Additionally, I believe that when the Oversight exercises a veto, the reasoning behind the decision should be transparently communicated. What internal or external protocols are established/envisioned for the Oversight Committee to justify their use of the veto?

[Cosmos_Nanny]

From: AADAO Oversight Committee DAO DAO page

@Damien @Syed:

How will this veto power be redistributed once a third member is elected, and what percentage of veto power will the new member have?

[Cosmos_Nanny]

Hey @Better_Future, can you provide a quick status update re formation of Guernsey Trust?

[Syed]

Just a quick note to bring attention to the “(DRAFT)” on DAO DAO page for that subDAO

This particular sub-dao is not yet operational - so the wallets could just be test ones (not checked - going by the subDAO description and the “proposals” currently in it)

[Cosmos_Nanny]

Haha. Thanks very much Syed.

[luisqa]

Thank you Max for this contribution, really summed up all of my thoughts regarding this matter.

Re: candidates

It is without a shadow of a doubt that I recommend Grace. All interactions I’ve had with her have been positive and she has always shown that she cares about the ecosystem as a whole. We need someone that is actually active in the community and understands the need to help AADAO be as transparent as possible and fulfill its role as a community funded organization, we’ve seen plenty of times what happens when DAOs move outside of their scope and responsibilities without proper oversight.

These are my personal opinions and do not represent any of the organizations I work with.

[Syed]

In case you missed the @ATOMAcceleratorDAO Twitter Space yesterday with the 3 candidates, you can listen to the recording below:
https://twitter.com/ATOMAccelerator/status/1785202441094603211

[clydedev]

Hi @erialos,

Thanks for your questions. I know it’s been a couple days but I wanted to take a chance to address it.

Q. What are your ideas and suggestions that you would like to bring as a potential AAO oversight member?

A. I’m of the opinion that AADAO does a decent job at transparency, but there are definitely things to improve, which is where my oversight will come in. If I were to be elected, I would indeed act as another layer of oversight to protect the community’s interest, while maintaining the agility necessary to run an Accelerator. My priority is preventing anything bureaucratic in the DAO’s operations and its oversight, while maximizing transparency. As an active builder in the Cosmos myself, I know how stifling trying to communicate with every possible stakeholder can be. I hope to represent the community in order to be an effective point of contact with Grant recipients, and for AADAO’s operations at large.

Q. How can we help inform validators with updated information that would be pertinent in knowing prior to a governance vote?

I think between the AADAO’s website, and cosmos forum, there is a lot of information on AADAO and its grants that aren’t disseminated properly. As someone with expertise on validator operations and with deep connections to the validator community, I think I would do a great job at disseminating the most relevant information we need to inform validators on governance happenings.

Q. How can we prevent further abuse of CP granted funds?

I think we’ve already come a long way in the Cosmos in addressing this. AADAO’s grants often run with vested rewards dependent on deliverables, I think this is a great approach. I’d be able to serve as another layer of oversight to ensure that promises by grant recipients are being carried out. I also have the experience necessary to be able to understand the resources and time many of these projects should take, I think my expertise sets me up for that nicely.

Q. I have applied for a grant in the past, but not on Atom. I personally found it hard to gauge what to ask for in a grant. Knowing what some were approved for, I felt like I was low balling myself or asking way too high. How would you help this type of scenario? I think there could be plenty of people like myself who have no idea how to come up with a number to request, but have been encouraged to file for a grant.

A. The AADAO shares its application rating criteria publically. Given the criticality of these criteria in the distribution of these grants, I think it’s important criteria need to be periodically reviewed, and that community feedback is solicited in doing that. I think I’d serve as a great point of contact to do exactly that.

Curious about your thoughts here!

[clydedev]

Hi @whitemarlin,

Thanks for your questions. I added some of my thoughts here:

Q. What has your involvement with AADao been to date? As part of this, please describe your current knowledge of AAdao?

I’ve supported AADAO since its inception. I met some of its original members while it was still in formative stages. In representing SG-1 as a large stakeholder on the Hub, we wanted to make sure that the AADAO was a truly ATOM aligned organization. In my meeting with the original members, I learned that they are truly do represent the interest of the Hub’s and have the interest of the community at heart. I understand the AADAO’s operations well. That all being said I think an additional layer of oversight to represent the community is a great idea, and I hope to play that function.

Q. Describe your involvement with the larger community to date (how do gauge sentiment/communicate within community?),

I am active on twitter, though I’m not the most popular. I attend Cosmos conferences regularly, I don’t think I’ve missed a Cosmoverse since I first joined the space 3 years ago. I also participate in many hackathons to stay up to date with the brightest and most active builders in the space. I have a broad network among key players including various validators, builders, and core protocol teams around the Cosmos.

Q. What challenges do you foresee in this role?
There are many chasms within the Cosmos community that can be hard to bridge. While we all may have different visions and definitions of success for the Hub, I think there still exists a deep potential in our community through $ATOM alignment. I think I could serve as a good bridge between factions of the community, AADAO, and other major stakeholders like Validators and builders.

Q. How would you handle a difficult situation (such as potential conflict of interest situation of an AADao spend?)

It’s hard for me to answer this as it would really depend on the specific context. My understanding of this role would be to involve the community as much as possible in such a scenario, and maximize transparency.

Q. What are your plans to communicate with the community in this role?
I’d like to institute at least a quarterly call that AADAO has with the community, with the GM in attendance, in order to ensure AADAO and community alignment. If I were to be elected I could absolutely ensure this meeting takes place.
I think between the forum, twitter, and my high activity in Cosmos events IRL, I’ll be able to effectively interface with many facets of the Hub’s community. I’m curious what your advice would be on this point @whitemarlin as a highly active community member yourself

[clydedev]

Hi @Cordtus,

I really liked your breakdown of the ideal candidate for this position. I think you put it in better words than I could have.

I’d like to clarify my own standing here and let you know that I consider myself a Cosmos user and community member first and foremost, and I’m able to be full-time here thanks to my work as an engineer. I’m curious to understand if you feel if any of my previous experience makes you feel like I’d be partial in oversight. My affiliations are all very ATOM aligned, and I personally have deep vested interest in the Hub’s success, and since AADAO’s mandate is to drive value for the Hub, I am of course interested in seeing them deliver on that mandate

In terms of what I’d do from an ethics standpoint, I’d like to push for AADAO to both release it’s code of conduct or any ethics related policy. I think it’s critical that these policies are public for the community to review. I also would like to push for quarterly community engagement calls to ensure higher accountability between AADAO and the community.

Curious about your questions or concerns here

[clydedev]

Hi @tom,

Thanks for your messages.

While my affiliation with SG-1 and Evmos might lead you to believe I am not a true degen or a true nerd, I assure you it’s quite the opposite. My levels of Degen are precisely what have brought me to this position As large stakeholders of the hub, validators more frequently than not have the long-term success of the Hub in mind. And while they are larger entities, they are also key actors and members of the community. I’d be curious to ask you what your exact concerns would be given my involvement with validators and core protocols?

[common_spelling]

@clydedev

As large stakeholders of the hub,validators more frequently than not have the long-term success of the Hub in mind.

how is arbitrarily taxing delegators and pooling their funds to grant-farm contributing to the long-term sucess of the Hub?

[soi2tudio]

Listened in to the telegram call today and reminded myself to check in here and leave my two pennies.

Firstly, I think whoever is elected, the community will be well represented. I struggle to fault any of them from everything I’ve heard to date.

Secondly, I commend AADAO for their selections. The hub has been plagued by yes men in the past, and I don’t see that here. Particularly Grace, who I imagine would be an absolute nightmare to have looking over your shoulder. In part, this is why she gets my vote.

During my time in cosmos, I can’t think of too many people who have been challenged to demonstrate their integrity so publicly, and done so in such a convincing manner as Grace. Her persistence, transparency and obviously intelligence make her ideal for this position. I have no reason to doubt the other candidates, but knowing none of them personally, I can only vote based on what I see.

This oversight role will be vital in giving confidence to the community as the remit of AADAO expands. I know the importance of familiarity in establishing trust in the community, and believe Grace edges it on this metric.

Best of luck to all the candidates. Look forward to seeing the outcome.

Soi2studio,
Chief of Staff
Neutron

[Syed]

@soi2tudio

I commend AADAO for their selections

Can’t comment on the rest of your message, but thank you for recognizing this!

As Oversight Coordinator, @Damien’s running of this initiative has been a shining example of neutrality—cutting out the politics and emotions, focusing on what this oversight member is supposed to do—providing oversight on AADAO’s “executive arm.”

Good luck to all three of you: @Matt_Brown, @Cosmos_Nanny, @clydedev

[Damien]

Hello all,

In an effort for the community to review the Proposal text, we have made the decision to post it here before going on-chain.

Please feel free to leave any feedback.

Prop title:

AADAO Oversight Election: Vote for CANDIDATE NAME

This proposal is to elect CANDIDATE NAME to be the community-elected member of the Atom Accelerator DAO (AADAO)’s Oversight Committee.

Three candidates were shortlisted for the role, each with a separate Cosmos Hub governance proposal, so that governance may select a candidate.

Please vote YES only on one proposal—for the candidate you support.

The candidate for this proposal:

This proposal is for CANDIDATE.

CANDIDATE BRIEF DESCRIPTION.

You can learn more about CANDIDATE NAME HERE and listen to our Twitter Space with all three candidates here.

What is the Oversight Committee?

Reporting directly to Cosmos Hub Public Governance, the Oversight Committee provides oversight over all AADAO Committees, ensuring compliance and integrity. It has the authority to VETO new grants, discontinue existing grants, and initiate the termination of any AADAO Contributors in case of serious misconduct.

The Oversight Committee is currently a team of 2, seeking to expand to become a team of 3, whose main role is to ensure all AADAO members act in the best interests of the ATOM community. This committee also acts as a counter-power to the Strategy Committee in a classic check and balance system.

The Oversight Committee’s responsibilities are as follows:

• Interface with the community on key topics
• Ensure full disclosure of conflicts of interest and ensure the right policies are in place;
• Maintain robust internal controls & fraud prevention mechanisms;
• Exercise veto power over new grants and discontinuation of existing grants when not in line with expectations;
• Sign-off on contributors’ performance assessments;
• Publish periodic transparency reports.

The role of the Community Elected Oversight Member:

We are looking for a new member to join our Oversight Team to ensure proper representation of the $ATOM community. The elected member would be working alongside the Oversight Coordinator and the Internal Auditor and Financial Controller.

The role is a Part-Time (PT) role with max. 35% FTE.

The duties and responsibilities of the community-elected member are as follows:

• To oversee the overall community sentiment, to interface, alongside the Coordinator, with the community, and to address community concerns.
• Attend internal AADAO meetings (Strategy Committee, Grant Committee) and share outputs with the community on the relevant channels whenever needed.
• Providing feedback on internal protocols for AADAO, and ensuring AADAO adheres to its protocols.
• Signing off on grantee payment TXs with best faith (2 out of 3 oversight members).
• To support the Coordinator with the content to be included in all Transparency Reports, ensuring all relevant aspects are disclosed.

What is NOT part of the role and therefore out of scope:

• Under the defined roles within the Oversight Committee, it is understood that all areas of responsibility designated for Oversight Committee #1 (Coordinator) and Oversight Committee #2 (Internal Auditor/Controller) are expressly excluded from the scope of responsibilities for Oversight Member #3.
• Conducting Payments
• HR-related topics such as, but not limited to hiring and termination.
• Internal processes implementation given this falls under the Internal Auditor role. Suggestions on process improvements will be discussed among the 3 members, while their supervision is assigned to the Internal Auditor.

Governance Votes:

The following items summarize the voting options and what they mean for this proposal:

YES - This person is your preferred candidate for AADAO’s Oversight Committee.

ABSTAIN - This person is not your preferred candidate (please remember to vote Yes on your preferred candidate’s proposal), or you wish to contribute to the quorum but you formally decline to vote either for or against the proposal.

NO - No votes on this proposal will not have any impact on the election.

NO WITH VETO - A ‘NoWithVeto’ vote indicates a proposal either (1) is deemed to be spam, i.e., irrelevant to Cosmos Hub, (2) disproportionately infringes on minority interests, or (3) violates or encourages violation of the rules of engagement as currently set out by Cosmos Hub governance. If the number of ‘NoWithVeto’ votes is greater than a third of the total votes, the proposal is rejected and the deposits are burned.

Election Results:

While we understand that the three proposals may not “pass” or meet the quorum, we plan to tally the final “Yes” votes for each candidate, considering the number of ATOMs (not the number of wallets voting).

Results will be deemed final for this election cycle, at the end of the voting period of all three proposals.