What grant is being renewed?
GA032316. Renewal for RP Community Call Hosting - Host Ken Smith
What work from the previous proposal was completed?
Here is a listing of the Community calls I have hosted since the grant’s last renewal. Over the previous six months, 16 calls occurred.
- 2025-01-08 discord only (ft.. HAI)
- 2025-01-09 39 views
- 2025-01-16 43 views
- 2025-01-23 106 views
- 2025-01-30 38 views
- 2025-02-13 119 views
- 2025-02-17 Aztec hosted call
- 2025-03-11 49 views
- 2025-03-21 56 views
- 2025-04-04 48 views
- 2025-04-14 discord only
- 2025-04-30 39 views
- 2025-05-27 66 views
- 2025-06-11 discord only
- 2025-06-11 discord only
- 2025-06-24 discord only (Plaza Finance)
Note the last four are being submitted via a Retroactive grant.
What work from the previous proposal is ongoing or pending?
The proposed work is to continue hosting periodic Rocket Pool Community calls.. The Community calls are routine calls that typically feature either members of the RP development team or a business or marketing partner (“special guest”). The calls are usually 1-1.5 hours in length and are intended to inform the community about significant news topics, with weigh-ins from the core Rocket Pool team.
What work was not planned initially but completed, if any?
Over the last 6 months, Ken has hosted four additional community calls, bringing the total to 16 calls, exceeding the original grant amount of 12 calls. As stated in the H1 2024 grant application, additional calls would be submitted via a retrospective grant application.
The grantee for this round would like direction from the GMC on whether they would like the practice to continue or if the frequency of community calls should be either increased or limited to the number approved in the grant renewal (12 calls over 6 months).
What work is newly slated since the previous proposal?
This is a 6-month grant renewal for the ongoing hosting of the RP Community Calls. I request a prospective grant to host 12 calls in H2 2025 at the current media and communication rate.
Are the results of this project entirely open source (MIT, GPL, Apache, CC BY license or similar)? If not, which parts are not, and why not?
Recordings of the live Community calls are recorded and posted on the Rocket Pool YouTube channel for asynchronous listening after the event.
Benefits:
What metrics can you share on the success of the project?
See the listing above for the number of views from the YouTube recordings. I do not have statistics on the number of attendees present in the space or channel during the live call, but typically, the numbers are around a dozen attendees.
In less specific terms, how has this project improved the Rocket Pool ecosystem or benefited the Ethereum ecosystem?
The Community Calls increase the RP NOs’ knowledge of team development milestones and the road map process. Furthermore, they inform rETH holders and DeFi integrations about the LST. It’s a weekly (and sometimes multiple times a week) live Twitter or Discord space that covers topics of interest to both rETH holders and NOs. The Community Calls keep holders informed about the protocol and ecosystem, enabling them to make informed decisions. Most guest protocols either incorporate or will incorporate Rocket Pool within their protocol or service. The Community Call remains a foundational communication platform for three key stakeholders. The development team, the RP Community (in particular the pDAO), and the DeFi Ecosystem that is incorporating Rocket Pool into their various protocols and services.
Team:
Who has done the work, and have there been any changes to the team?
I have primarily hosted the calls for the last six months. For qualifications, I have been a long-term community member of RP, serving as a Rocket Scientist and continuing my third year as a Community Call host.
How have the individual constituents of the team been compensated?
I have previously received GMC grant funding.
How has maintenance been performed since the project was delivered?
Most community calls are re-uploaded on YouTube by @maverick and are publicly accessible via the YouTube platform.
Payment and Verification:
Have the acceptance criteria been met?
Yes.
What is the proposed payment schedule for the grant? How much RPL is the applicant requesting, and over what period is it requesting? Does this differ from the original approved amount?
I am seeking the newly established standard remuneration for media production. Payments can continue to be made routinely in the periodic (~monthly) reward cycles.
Is there a measurable Return on Investment for the project?
n/a
What is the breakdown of spending on development for the original grant vs. maintenance?
n/a
Conflict of Interest:
Do the person or persons proposing the grant have any conflicts of interest that need to be disclosed? (Please disclose here if you are a member of the GMC or if any member of the GMC would benefit directly financially from the grant.)
Yes. I serve as a member of the GMC, and according to the current RPIP-18, I will be required to recuse myself from deliberations on this application.
Will the recipient of the grant, or any protocol or project in which the recipient has a vested interest (other than Rocket Pool), benefit financially if the grant is successful?
Possibly. We routinely invite special guests from other DeFi and Ethereum-based protocols to the Community Calls. Mav or Grant usually selects them and is generally tied to the Rocket Pool ecosystem. Their DeFi protocol may benefit from being included on the call. I will disclose if I am an investor or hold any tokens of the guest protocols.