Pre-Proposal Discussion: Florida Blockchain Business Association (FBBA) Sponsorship to Improve Polkadot’s Presence In the U.S.
Proponent: FBBA account: 131S1zdnMfhF1hB4sWornxLvX5SY3c8GhtFPPePUTvhphQRM
Date: September 30, 2024
Requested USDT: 50,000 USDT
Summary: This proposal requests 50,000 USDT to sponsor Polkadot’s involvement with the Florida Blockchain Business Association (FBBA) at the Enterprise level. The sponsorship aims to enhance Polkadot’s presence in the U.S., leveraging connections with blockchain policy advocates, businesses, and government officials to foster growth, improve regulatory engagement, and explore new integrations.
This proposal will leverage the leadership of Angela Dalton, Head Ambassador, expand upon the learnings from Ecosystem Agent Yung Beef (Zach Edwards) and his OpenGov Referendum #675 Improving Polkadot’s Presence In the U.S. With The Texas Blockchain Council, and support Ecosystem Agent James Slusser to improve Polkadot’s presence in the U.S.
Florida currently has the third-largest population in the United States, with an estimated 22.95 million people in 2024. Its economy is the fourth largest in the country, boasting a real GDP of $1.6 trillion as of the third quarter of 2023. In terms of global economic standings, Florida ranks as the 13th largest economy in the world. In the third quarter of 2023, Florida's economy experienced a growth rate of 6.1%, significantly outpacing the overall U.S. economy. The state's economic contributions account for approximately 5.7% of the entire U.S. economy, highlighting its significant influence both nationally and globally.
Following OpenGov protocol I will leave the Pre-Proposal Discussion open for two weeks, followed by the referendum submission. I welcome and appreciate all community feedback, questions and comments, and will request to appear on AAG to discuss further.
Link to the draft Proposal
Comments (8)
Hey, everyone.
Ryan / Phunky here. I personally would LOVE to see this happen for a few reasons:
Going to Tallahassee for "Blockchain Day" with the FBBA this past January was one of the highlights so far of 2024 for me. Not only did I meet more people who work in the blockchain industry here in Florida, but I also got to educate legislators directly about blockchain technology.
Getting to work alongside Sam Armes showed me how dedicated he is to advancing blockchain tech and associated businesses here in the Sunshine State. Considering Sam only founded the FBBA 6 short years ago, it is impressive to see how many bills he has already gotten passed every year during the legislative session.
I can think of no better organization here in the state of Florida that is better equipped to open doors of opportunity. FBBA is organized and has deep ties to Tallahassee, whether with the legislators themselves or staffers and bureacrats who play incredibly important roles. Case in point: we had a 90 minute roundtable with the Florida Office of Financial Regulation in the afternoon of our "Blockchain Day" due to one of the FBBA members submitted the draft language for a DAO bill here in Florida. Though the bill was never taken up in committee, the OFR was curious and wanted to learn more about DAOs. So much so that they then tasked the Florida Bar Association with doing a full legal review about DAOs and how they may come into existence under current law in the future.
As a Floridian and US citizen who wants to see the Polkadot presence expand here in the state and nation more broadly, I believe this is a great investment for our community to make so that we can meet important people who will shape policy moving forward.
James has been in contact with me for a few months now discussing the idea behind this proposal, as it's similar to what I am doing with Ref #675. In short, I think this sponsorship is a good idea, mainly as an avenue to discover BD leads and provide education, as well as grabbing mindshare in general.
The cost is certainly low compared to some other sponsorships we have funded, and I think James will be able to extract a lot of value for us from this.