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Revolutionising Public Goods Funding

· 2 min read
Vee
Vee
MACI contributor

What are Public Goods?​

Public goods are services or products that are available for everyone to consume, regardless of whether they contribute to their creation. Examples include clean air, public parks, and open-source software. These goods are essential for community welfare but often face funding challenges due to their non-excludable and non-rivalrous nature. This is where blockchain technology steps in, offering a decentralised approach to funding these vital initiatives. Through blockchain, transparency and community participation in funding decisions are greatly enhanced.

What is MACI and how does it help fund Public Goods?​

At its core, MACI is a tool that ensures privacy and prevents collusion in voting and decision-making processes. This function is crucial in public goods funding scenarios, as it ensures that the allocation of funds is fair and uninfluenced by external factors.

Current state​

MACI can be used in different forms of decision making and voting.

Quadratic funding is one of the ways in which we could utilise MACI for public goods funding. Quadratic funding is a democratic mechanism for crowdfunding that seeks to promote equitable, inclusive funding for public goods such as open-source software, scientific research, and public art initiatives. By incorporating MACI, these platforms guarantee that votes on how funds are distributed are not swayed by bribery or external pressures. This approach ensures a democratic and equitable distribution of funds, leading to more effective and genuinely representative support for public goods.

Another way in which MACI is utilised is for communities to be able to vote in Retroactive Public Goods Funding (RetroPGF) rounds. For example, Optimism runs RetroPGF rounds which involve allocating funds to projects based on past contributions to the ecosystem, incentivising and rewarding valuable contributions retrospectively. We’ve incorporated MACI to the RPGF stack and thus communities would be able to independently run future rounds in a private and secure manner using maci-rpgf!

The Future looks bright​

As we look to the future, the potential of MACI in reshaping public goods funding is significant. MACI could be used for larger and more diverse funding initiatives, expanding its impact, potentially influencing even governmental approaches to public goods funding. The role of MACI in fostering a transparent, fair, and democratic process for funding public goods is set to be a game-changer. Learn more about MACI by reading through our documentation. Join us in our mission, connect with our team on Discord today!