Project Giving's Commitment to Accountability
Project Giving is committed to a high level of accountability in our operations to ensure that the people who read and generously upvote blogs about the initiatives we support can see exactly where their donations are going. Our accountability process will provide a step-by-step snapshot of how funds are moved, safeguarding against any misappropriation or misuse of funds.
We believe that this level of accountability will also prove essential in future partnerships both within and outside of steemit. When blockchain gains mass adoption, Project Giving will be positioned strongly to work alongside mainstream charities and facilitate their adoption of platforms like steemit to help build a better world. With this forward-thinking ethos in mind, it is essential that we maintain levels of due diligence equal to that of mainstream organizations.
Different Funding Models and How to Account for Them
Project Giving's accountability posting will work on two levels. The first initial report will be a dedicated Steemit post on the movement of funds for an initiative's first funding payment. This first dedicated reporting post will track the movement of funds, on every level, up to and including the project recipient's funds clearing in their bank account. We will then report any further funding in weekly updates which will cover all initiatives that are funded on an ongoing basis. Projects will be asked to provide evidence in the form of screenshots (with sensitive personal details blurred) which we will help them to learn how to produce if needed. We will be blogging about the progress of the projects we fund and this will show the resources that we have helped to fund in action, raising awareness of the issues surrounding that cause.
In considering the different challenges in providing accountability for funds allocated, we have identified three clear instances of different paths to both fund projects and account for that funding. To have the widest impact possible, it is important to try to be accessible to projects with different levels of knowledge in the cryptocurrency space. There are three scenarios we have identified in regards to funding and accountability:
- Established projects on Steemit
- Projects outside of Steemit with knowledge of cryptocurrency
- Projects outside of Steemit with no knowledge of cryptocurrency
The most common and easiest level of funding to report on will be initiatives already on steemit as we can easily track every point of transfer on the blockchain to Blocktrades and ask for confirmation of fund transferals from Coinbase to recipients’ bank accounts etc. The process becomes slightly more complex when dealing with projects outside of steemit and especially those with no knowledge of cryptocurrency. At initial launch we will mainly be seeking steemit based projects to work with. However, we decided to formulate a full funding accountability model from the outset, so that we are ready to help charities and communities outside of steemit. The table below shows our methods for tracking funds and how they can be applied to all of the scenarios listed above.
| Stage | Established Projects on Steemit | Projects Outside of Steemit with Knowledge of Cryptocurrency | Projects Outside of Steemit with no Knowledge of Cryptocurrencies |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Show screenshots of funds raised by Project Giving promotional post | Show screenshots of funds raised by Project Giving promotional post | Show screenshots of funds raised by Project Giving promotional post |
| 2 | Show screenshots of transfer of amount of SBD comprising payouts from promotional posts to initiatives wallet | Show screenshots of transfer of amount of SBD comprising payouts from promotional posts to blocktrades to exchange for BTC or LTC | Show screenshots of transfer of amount of SBD comprising payouts from promotional posts to blocktrades to exchange for BTC or LTC |
| 3 | Display requested screenshots of SBD donation transfer to blocktrades from initiatives steemit wallet to exchange for BTC or LTC | Display screenshots of funds transfer to initiatives BTC/LTC wallet | Display screenshots of funds transfer to Project Giving's Coinbase BTC/LTC wallet |
| 4 | Display requested screenshots of funds transfer to initiatives Fiat gateway account e.g. Coinbase | Display requested screenshots of funds transfer from initiatives BTC/LTC wallet on Coinbase to bank | Display screenshots of funds transfer from Project Giving Coinbase account to Project Giving checking bank account |
| 5 | Display requested screenshots of funds transfer from initiatives Coinbase to bank | Display requested screenshots of funds arrived in initiatives bank account | Display screenshots of funds transfer from Project Giving checking bank account to initiatives bank account |
| 6 | Display requested screenshots of funds arrived in initiatives bank account | Display requested screenshots of funds arrived in initiatives bank account |
N.B. In all of the above scenarios, initiatives will be asked to provide evidence that they have honored the goals they set out in their proposal for funding from Project Giving and that funds have been spent as stated. This will serve the purpose of both accountability and providing material for us to craft blogs about their project.
A Snapshot of this Model in Action
I have included a step by step representation of what our process will look like in the case of the first scenario: Established Projects on Steemit. All screenshots are taken from the Project Giving account and my personal accounts, fund transferals are not real and displayed as an example only, all personal details are blurred for security.
N.B. This infographic shows the type of screenshots we will be supplying in our dedicated accountability posts. In the case of recipients who are not familiar with cryptocurrency, we will be tutoring them through the process of cashing out and how to document the process.
Supporting Charity in this Brave New World of Cryptocurrency
It is an amazing mechanism of the steem blockchain that we can all choose to reward people all around the world at no cost to ourselves. Project Giving understands that everyone on steemit has commitments in regards to the friends and communities that they support, which is why we feel obligated to show how our funds are distributed with such a comprehensive accountability model. We hope this will encourage everyone to give generously of their upvotes and to get involved in supporting our charity. Steemit is the first and most popular social platform rewarding members with cryptocurrency for their engagement, we hope you will join us in spreading some of the abundance that the blockchain revolution is creating back out into the world. Thank you for reading.
