Proposal Idea - Fund Web3 Education Pilot for Low Income Youth via MakeWater.org Nonprofit

Proposals
1

Title: Make Water x LilNouns Web3 Onboarding Pilot Program

Summary: Elequa, a nonprofit organization, will launch a pilot project that integrates the organization’s existing Make Water STEM education program with web3 onboarding for traditionally-underserved students and youth. The pilot program will increase youth interest in and understanding of web3, create opportunities for live sharing of citizen-science data on blockchain, and diversify web3’s members.

Author: TriggityTron / Ryan Beltrán

Status: Proposal

Type: Funding Request

Implementer: Elequa, Inc./ MakeWater.org

Created Date: 06/06/2022

Request Amount: 30 ETH

Background: Elequa Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a mission “to empower students who want to make a difference in the world by giving them the tools and education to tackle real-world water issues collaboratively.” Using a unique blend of STEM education principles, experiential learning modules, and teamwork, Make Water prepares K-12 students to contribute knowledge and solutions that make real-world differences, and enter STEM fields as citizen scientists, innovative thinkers, and inspired change agents.

Make Water accomplishes these goals through its core program, Make Water. Make Water combines hands-on experience, video storytelling, and collaborative learning to students of varying ability levels and experience. Students form “teams” charged with assembling - and later improving or redesigning - a “coagulator kit.” The coagulator kit is a unique-to-Make Water apparatus that utilizes electrical currents to purify contaminants from water samples. Make Water also exists in an abridged format - used at workshops, festivals, Hackathons, and other events - that primarily utilizes the Eco Kit. The Eco Kit fits in a #10 envelops and builds an at-home water purifier experiment constructed of commonly-found household items.

Motivation: From the coagulator kit to the Eco Kit, Make Water has brought new and interesting technologies and techniques (e.g. arduino processors, electrocoagulation) to the forefront of students’ education, and has built a following of thousands of student participants who’ve gained increased knowledge of and interest in STEM and saving our planet. Make Water sees an exceptional opportunity to introduce and integrate web3 and blockchain to its existing programs, continuing its tradition of innovation.

Make Water is also founded on a principle of increasing accessibility, particularly for underserved student populations including minorities and students of color, low-to moderate-income students (LMI), and women. These populations are most frequently denied access to innovative programs and underrepresented in STEM fields of study and careers. Introducing and onboarding students to web3 through Elequa’s Make Water program will diversify web3 and build on its premise of being a more equitable domain; students onboarded to web3 through the pilot program’s integration modules will be better able to “get in on the ground floor” of a potentially generation-altering technology, thereby increasing their share in wealth (potentially breaking the cycle of poverty for so many) and democratic processes.

Proposal and Execution: Make Water’s web3 Pilot Program will combine its traditional Make Water program - offered to students year round - with web3 integrations. A new learning module will be added to the program covering the basics of web3 and blockchain. Individual students will receive a unique MakeWater / LilNouns Collaborative POAP for participation in the Make Water program. Make Water will seek to include Nouns to the marketing materials, instructions, and packaging of its kits for Pilot Program participants, including LilNouns paper glasses that include a unique link to the POAP.

Outcomes Anticipated

  1. Engage 3,000 -4,000 students in Make Water programming that includes web3 integration (aka Pilot Program)
  2. Serve at least 60% students identifying in an underserved population including students of color, LMI, or female
  3. Increase interest in STEM-based career/degree programs and web3 as indicated on pre- and post-program student surveys by 30% pre to post.

Place of Service: Atlanta, GA and/or San Antonio, TX depending on funding

Budget: 30 ETH (Approx. $55,000) as indicated below:

MW LilNoun Proposal Budget
MW LilNoun Proposal Budget1146×544 109 KB

Links

Official Elequa Make Water Page

Endaoment Donation Link Previous donors include Artblocks & SantaSwap

MakeWater Video Trailer

2

Here is a mock up of what our kit instructions and STEM kit could look like. We worked with arduino water purification kits that were codable but when COVID hit we moved to a simple kit that could fit flat in an envelope and students could build a simple circuit and purification kit from home.

Screen Shot 2022-06-06 at 12.06.52 PM
Screen Shot 2022-06-06 at 12.06.52 PM1578×1132 76.3 KB

3

I thought this was an actual proposal. ha.

love the idea.

hw long would the pilot program run and what are expectations on what costs and scope of a successful pilot program would run.

4

I dont think you should overshadow the foundation with the lil nouns. a simple log and then maybe IF there are places where people are needed using lil nuns instead of people.

its almost confusing seeing the large lil’s on the pamphlets.

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We could potentially start in the fall semester with our existing city (SATX & ATL) partnerships. We have access to the students this funding would help us get access to the hardware. It would last until we give out the last of the remaining collaborative kits (my guess is by next summer). The costs are in the budget and would cover about a 80% goods/programming to 20% admin cost split. Check out the budget breakdown in the proposal post. Any extra costs we would take out of our existing funds.
Success would look like connecting up to 4,000 students with these co-branded kits (branding being part of the emersion/onboarding to web3 but ultimately optional and up to the Lil Nouns) and having them learn the basics of blockchain and what a POAP is and how to acquire one as a way to learn by doing. We would take a simple survey at the end from students and instructors to see what they learned. If we get a good response we may bring web3 elements into our advanced kits (arduino kits) into the future with the brainstorming help of our participants on how best this may cross over in a more concrete way.

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im sorry. I meant cost to push a wider program if this is deemed successful.

7

Sure! So it probably wouldn’t be as much as the initial pilot. We currently are adding a video self driven element to our kits (in collaboration with blooming with birdie) so educators and students can follow a video curriculum without an in person or virtual zoom guide. We’re building out in a way that we can add modules or extensions of these video lessons and Web3 could be it’s own extension beyond the basic one. This would be the cost of scripting out the video, production, and post production. Then it will forever be part of the video curriculum library. I believe the cost of that would be in the $4 - 5,000 USD range.

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Updated the official proposal as well as the discourse post to this thread.