Summary
Delegation - whether self-delegation or to others - enables on-chain decision making. Some token holders have legal barriers or face other challenges that disincentivize them from participating in governance decisions directly. Redirecting their delegation to community members could be the key to unlocking the voting power locked up with these larger token holders. However, knowing who to delegate too can be a confusing process.
We believe that the need for better delegation infrastructure is multifaceted:
- RAD holders need better delegation onboarding to support active participation in the Radicle ecosystem. This includes education, accessibility, and tooling for self-delegation and community delegation.
- RAD holders need a simple & painless way to delegate (and re-delegate!) to community leaders.
- Motivated community members need a platform and process for becoming active delegates AND a set of expectations & responsibilities so they can participate effectively.
Active Delegates Platform
The creation of an “active” delegate announcement process and platform allows community members to apply and announce themselves as “active delegates” for other $RAD holders to delegate their governing power to. This not only helps make delegation easier to navigate for RAD holders who are unable to vote on proposals themselves, it will also empower motivated community members to take leadership in the Radicle governance process. Empowering RAD holders via delegation will distribute governing power within the ecosystem, thus increasing participation and preventing governance deadlock.
We have created an Active Delegate Platform where profiles from all self-announced active delegates can be viewed. This one-stop-shop for finding community delegates will make it easier for RAD holders to pass their voting rights passionate community members. This platform currently exists in the form of a Notion page that is updated by the Governance Working Group. We eventually want to turn this into a more formal site, something similar to MakerDAO’s recognized delegates platform. We have modeled Radicle’s active delegation platform with inspiration from MakerDAO and ENS’s programs and based on feedback from the Radicle community.
Expectations and Responsibilities of Delegates
Active delegates hold the responsibility to fulfill the following requirements:
- Keep a public profile outlining background, core values and what you believe in as a delegate
- Actively participate in the Governance forum i.e. contributing to discussions on proposals
- Publicly share positions on all proposals that make it to the Formal Review stage of the governance process.
- Actively vote in all formal reviews (Snapshot Polls) & on-chain votes
- Participate in monthly WG calls
How will it work?
Anyone who is interested in becoming a community delegate listed on the Radicle delegate platform will have to respond to the Delegate Announcement Process post. Respondents will be asked to follow a template that outlines their basic info & profiles, core values as a delegate and a delegate statement - basically an “application” to the community. The Governance Working Group will create a platform that reflects all of this information from each profile, as well as update these profiles with links to how each delegate is planning to vote on individual proposals from the corresponding forum discussions.
This model will allow any community member to assume a leadership role in governance as long as they take on the responsibility and meet community expectations . The Governance WG will also provide metadata on each profile that displays how often/how much each delegate has been delegated to. Aggregating these signals will help delegates build a reputation within the community.
Want to Participate?
If you are interested in becoming a Radicle delegate, please check out the Delegate Announcement Process page for further details.
Important Notes:
- This new active delegate announcement process and platform will be different from the self-announced delegates in the “Delegate Pitches” on Discourse. These delegates did not post any information on their philosophy around governance or consistently voices thoughts towards specific proposals. Active delegates are currently active community members who will be responsible for maintaining a public delegate profile (see next section) and upholding an obligation to the community to be as transparent about their voting choices as possible. RAD holders are of course still able to delegate to the delegates under the “Delegate” category, but they will not appear on the Active Delegate Platform and we advise you to make sure they are still listed on either Boardroom or Tally.
- You DO NOT have to announce yourself as an active delegate for someone to delegate to your address. This new process and platform are again meant to provide an opportunity for motivated community members to make themselves known to the broader Radicle community to let token holders know they are happy to vote on their behalf. All RAD holders, however, are able to delegate their voting power to any verified address they would like.
We are sunsetting the Active Delegate Platform and program for now. This does not impact any current delegation or the ability to delegate in general.