Aug 21, 2023

Greetings,

đź‘‹ Over the last few months we have been hard at work building a new Community-based Learning Series that kicks off in September. The program, Accelerating Makers, is designed to create the conditions for collaboration and knowledge-sharing among civil society technologists and practitioners integrating decentralized technology into their work. This explains our absence over the last few months. :-)

Accelerating Makers
Accelerating Makers, with support from the Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web (FFDW), will support early-stage creators to better understand, build and adopt decentralized technologies. Our programmatic orientation is focused on the themes of adaptability and impact, where participants can forge new connections, navigate their journey of inquiry, and engage with the topics that help them get things done.

Over the course of the next nine months, program participants will be able to:

  1. Find and develop high-impact use cases of decentralized technologies across the civil society sector,
    establishing a common point of departure for civil society leaders to imagine possible
    use in their own organizations.
  2. Deepen understanding of DWeb and DApps through review and engagement with critical projects,
    tools, and examples of responsible use of decentralized technologies.
  3. Through a series of events, peer-based learning forums and Office Hours, you will be able to connect
    directly with other Makers, exchange resources, decision-making frameworks, find mentorships,
    code and project examples to improve your ability to harness decentralized technologies for the greater good.

We’ll share more details about how you can get involved and join our online community, so hop in to learn more!

Going forward, you can expect to receive this newsletter on the first and third Mondays of every month.

As always, we welcome your feedback about the topics and issues you’d like us to cover, so please drop us a line and let us know what resonates and how we can improve.

And without further ado, here’s the 5-minute round-up of events, opportunities, and news from our community and ecosystem!

Good wishes!

Billy Bicket, on behalf of the Public Good App House team

Funding & Grant Opportunities

đź’° Funding the Commons Match Fund
The Funding the Commons Match Fund seeks projects that develop, explore, or celebrate public goods in diverse fields such as art, science, technology, and design. Curated projects will receive support of the Funding the Commons community and access to our network of practitioners, researchers, and creators, all striving for a world where public goods are celebrated and prioritized. Eligibility Details: Funding the Commons Match Fund

đź’° 100 Builders Match Fund for Open Source AI and Crypto
The funding Pool is for $20k to support "open source projects at the frontier of AI and crypto. Details: 100 Builders Match Fund for Open Source AI and Crypto

đź’° Mozilla Data Futures Lab Infrastructure Fund
The DFL Infrastructure Fund supports the development of open source software needed to foster a more fair and just data ecosystem. Awards of up to $50,000 USD, according to the development stage of the project. Deadline for a Letter of Intent is Aug 31st! Learn more and submit your LOI here.
đź’° Jewish Helping Hands Tikkun Olam Grant
Funding programs focused on women's empowerment, education, food, shelter, clothing, water, health, internet connectivity, and gender equity. Grants up to $10K. Apply by September 13.
đź’° UC Hastings Law School: Startup Legal Garage
Free legal advice to give your startup a kickstart! These grants are worth up to $30,000. The program focuses on supporting women, minorities, and veteran founders. Applications are open on a rolling basis.

Community Spotlight

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Introducing Deepa Chaudhary!

Deepa is a social entrepreneur and the founder of Impact DAO Media. She is passionate about technology and social impact and has interviewed over 60 DAO leaders and contributors to better understand how technology can support communities and organizations organizing for causes worldwide.

She recently presented on How to Create a Digital-First Community with DAOs for TechSoup Connect Western Canada hosted by Elijah van der Giessen (watch the video replay!). She explains the Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) structure and provides examples of the ways it can help give organizations the models and tools they need to create collective governance structures that distribute power and reflect their values. The event focused on the future of organizing for causes and the technology that supports this valuable work including decentralized apps for distributed communities and collective governance.

We Need Your Dweb Expertise

TechSoup is seeking passionate individuals who have been actively involved in the use or development of DWeb projects for social good. If you have first-hand experience or expertise in this field and would like to share your valuable insights, we would like to include your perspective in our research.
Please follow this link to schedule a 30 interview. We promise it’ll be fun!

TechSoup Events

Making Your Community Project Sustainable

If you are having a hard time figuring out how to organize your community and fundraise, you are not alone. Most communities feel they are operating in a silo, asking themselves the same questions: Should we start a nonprofit? Who should be the president? What if it doesn't work out? How do we close it? How much money should we spend on accountants and lawyers? This doesn't have to be the case. There are options to help you easily collaborate and fund your efforts.

🗓️ August 23, 9:00 a.m. PT.
🎫 Register now.

Support for Nonprofit Developers

If your project is a registered nonprofit, you’re eligible for TechSoup’s discount and donation program. The 100+ products include:

Finally, if you have something that should be in next month’s newsletter, let us know at MakerLabs@TechSoup.org

See you next month,

The Public Good App House Team