Solidarity Primitives for Web3 Social Security
Findings from Web3 Work Forum
This is the last post in our research series Web3 Work. Here are our previous posts:
Authors: Laura Lotti, Nick Houde, and Tara Merk.
To conclude our research project investigating web3 as a work environment, at the end of July 2023 we hosted Web3 Work Forum—a series of three encounters with aligned individuals and organizations in the ecosystem. We shared the findings from our ethnography with DAO contributors, and workshopped ideas to address contributors’ requirements for financial stability, psychosocial wellbeing and regulatory clarity.
Today we are happy to finally share the outcome of those sessions: a paper investigating the design and deployment of solidarity primitives for web3 social security through on-chain and off-chain mechanisms.
Abstract
This paper presents a preliminary exploration of the design and deployment of solidarity primitives for web3 social security, based on the insights generated during Other Internet’s Web3 Work Forum held in July 2023. The paper proposes a modular framework to develop solidarity primitives addressing the three dimensions of security for DAO contributors: psychosocial stability, financial stability and regulatory clarity. Additionally, it outlines a range of both on-chain and off-chain mechanisms and improvement proposals specific to each dimension. Lastly, it discusses current challenges to implementation.
Since we’ve started this research project, many DAOs have died—and we helped commemorate their existence and learnings at Schelling Point during Berlin Blockchain Week. Still, the vision of community-led digital collectives remains strong. We hope that the next generation of protocol organizations emerging from the ashes of our dead DAOs will benefit from these insights, contributing to make web3 a viable and legitimate work environment through novel forms of institutional support for digital workers.
We are grateful to the participants of Web3 Work Forum for their insights and ideas, without which this paper would have not been possible. Thanks to: Alexa Lombardo (Gitcoin), Anja Blaj (European Crypto Initiative), Bianca Kremer (Wharton), Cheeky Gorilla (Protocol Guild), Chris Wray (COALA), Connor Spelliscy (Decentralization Research Collective), Eli Zeger (Exit to Community Collective), Fredrik Svantes (Protocol Guild), Hazel Devjani (DAOstar), Isaac Patka (Shield3), James He (Protocol Guild), Joshua Dávila (Breadchain Cooperative), Joshua Tan (Metagov/DAOstar), Kyler Wandler (Decentralization Research Collective), Marina Markezic (European Crypto Initiative), Mario Laul (Placeholder), Mehdi Aouadi (Protocol Guild), Morshed Mannan (European University Institute/BlockchainGov), Rich O’Grady (Chinwags), Scott Moore (Gitcoin), Tina He (Station), Trenton Van Epps (Protocol Guild), Vyara Savova (European Crypto Initiative). Any errors or misinterpretations are, of course, entirely ours.