Burning Man As a Model: How DAOs Can Expand Beyond Crypto and Engage The Mainstream
Summary:
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) currently aren't meeting the wider public's needs due to their overly technical nature and focus on crypto. Drawing inspiration from Burning Man, the author suggests that DAOs could operate on less crypto-centric models that appeal to mainstream audiences. The organizational structures of Burning Man, Ukraine DAO, and VitaDAO are put forward as examples where a governing body makes critical decisions but allows subgroups to function independently. The author advocates for DAOs to engage more in the physical world, perhaps by backing mainstream festivals, as a way of expanding their reach beyond the crypto sphere.
Contemporary decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) are proving inadequate to meet the needs of a wider audience. Despite the success of some like PleasrDAO, Uniswap DAO, and Synthetix's DAO collective, these entities remain relatively niche and far from mainstream recognition. This could be attributed to their being "overly crypto-oriented." With most DAOs focused primarily on the functions and expansion of DeFi ecosystems, a new DAO model that extends beyond the crypto industry is needed.
Take, for instance, the Burning Man festival - essentially a DAO, but one that existed before the term "DAO" was coined. This cultural phenomenon, which attracts people from various walks of life, could serve as a crucial model for future DAOs. Burning Man provides an alternative to the norm, a space where financial gain takes a backseat to the principle of giving. This dynamic has allowed the festival to grow bigger every year, all without using money during the event.
The Burning Man organizational structure could be a source of inspiration for DAOs. The festival operates in a way that suggests decentralization might not always be necessary for DAOs. A central nonprofit plans the festival, while individual camps decide the services they offer, as long as these align with the event's goal.
Similar models are already in play within the DAO space. Ukraine DAO and VitaDAO both operate under a structure where a governing body makes critical decisions but allows subgroups to function independently. This gives them the freedom to operate as long as their activities align with their DAO's overall mission and vision.
DAOs could become constantly evolving entities functioning beyond the limited framework of being merely investment funds by taking inspiration from Burning Man's or Ukraine DAO's organizational structures.
In a broader context, Burning Man could even be viewed as a "mini-network state." Balaji Srinivasan, who coined the term, defines a network state as a highly cooperative online community that can crowdsource worldwide territory, eventually gaining recognition from existing states. The essence of Burning Man lies in its potential as a refuge from the pressures of everyday society, providing an experience for everyone involved.
To increase their relevance, DAOs need to take a leaf from Burning Man's book. They need to leverage the power of making crypto a secondary element and emphasize the impact of DAOs. DAOs need to appeal to a wider audience that can help propel their objectives forward, rather than only catering to a small segment that understands tokenomics.
Additionally, there should be increased engagement with the physical world, beyond mere involvement in industry events. DAOs could potentially back festivals that everyone can relate to.
The journey to bridging the gap with applications beyond the crypto domain requires educating the public about the effect we can make outside our enclosed industry. Building substantive relationships with the world beyond crypto and DAOs may involve massive physical events. Modeling after Burning Man, the prospect of turning a simple vision into a global phenomenon that endures and grows through generations is possible.
Kushagra Agarwal, the co-founder of Samudai, a DAO project management platform, is an advocate of this perspective. He suggests creating the first genuinely crypto-powered Burning Man event as a novel method for organically overarching DAOs into mainstream discourse.
The views expressed in this piece solely belong to the author and do not reflect the opinions of Cointelegraph. This should not be considered as legal or investment advice.
Published At
9/28/2023 7:29:48 PM
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