Following two days packed with technical presentations and workshops at Buidler Fest, 19 people gathered for a governance-focused workshop in Toulouse. This workshop took a different approach than previous ones we have hosted, with a goal to dive deeper into the tech surrounding Voltaire rather than the governance process itself.
DRep Code of Conduct Update
Eystein Hansen kicked off the workshop with a progress report on the DRep Code of Conduct, an initiative funded by Project Catalyst during Fund 10 that functioned as a backdrop for the Metadata handling discussion that followed.
Metadata Handling
The group then dove into a technical discussion on metadata handling and covering topics such as how to handle updates to the metadata such as DRep delegator notification tools, providing trust solutions for the bridges/platforms that provides the metadata anchors, social onchain mapping through multi factor auth social accounts and for organisations domain and handle verifications. We uncovered another problem in 3rd party UIs being able to manipulate the data been presented from the data anchors and requiring some form of trust/verification process. We had a very long discussion on the identity part of a disclosure and discussed how identity is on a spectrum and the more serious the governance related action is the more need there is for accountability and thus some form of identity. We also discussed the AI being a DRep and being agent based and suggested that they disclose themselves as an ai in the metadata as well.
Here is the Miro board reflecting this discussion as well:
SanchoNet
Next, the focus shifted to SanchoNet and how we can get projects involved to create a testnet that acts more like the current mainnet. Some of the topics covered were:
Easy to use APIs supporting Conway: Develop user-friendly APIs that seamlessly integrate with the Conway Plutus extension, allowing developers to effortlessly build and test smart contracts within the SanchoNet environment.
Developer tooling supporting Sancho (Maestro, Blockfrost): Ensure compatibility and expand functionalities of existing developer tools like Maestro and Blockfrost within SanchoNet.
DRep Onramp WG: Establish a dedicated working group focused on onramping DReps.
Protocol Developers: Introduce a rewards/achievements program for protocol developers who actively participate in building and testing dApps on SanchoNet. This incentivizes valuable contributions to the network’s growth and development.
Community Building for DReps
After a refreshing lunch break, Beatrice Anihiri led a session on community building for DReps where we talked about standardizing communication, cultural or geographical DReps, DReps for specific interest, incentives for DReps and more.
Idea Sprint
The workshop concluded with an Idea Sprint led by Thomas Lindseth. Participants divided into small groups (two instead of three due to programmer error) to brainstorm product, service, or any other concept that could benefit the governance process. The groups presented their ideas:
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DReps for Hire (or “Toulouse Bribery Index”)
- Problem: Acknowledging the potential for bribery within the DRep system and its impact on systemic risk. The concept explores a system for hiring DReps for specific votes, such as protocol parameter changes or treasury withdrawals.
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Bravely Beyond: DREPPFS
- This concept proposes a distributed file system (DREPPFS) where DReps can pull data and documents to support their rationale during voting. The discussion explored the potential use of Iagon, Mithril signing, and the system’s independence from L1 validation.
The DRep Workshop in Toulouse provided a valuable platform for technical discussions and brainstorming around the Voltaire governance system. By focusing on the underlying tech and focusing on how it can help better the governance process.
A big thank you to the Cardano Foundation for sponsoring this important workshop!
