Diva’s Unconventional Approach to Decentralized Governance

Diva Staking
5 min readOct 4, 2023

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A guest post from Diva BVI members posted by The Staking Foundation

Introduction

In the rapidly evolving landscape of Ethereum Staking, innovation is the driving force behind progress.

Allow us to introduce you to Diva Staking’s unconventional approach to radically decentralize its DAO governance from the start.

Diva aims to decentralize Ethereum Liquid Staking with Distributed Validators (“DiVa”). This developing technology enables lower barriers to entry which redefine the rules, powering the most trustless and resilient infrastructure for Ethereum validation.

Learn more details about Diva at diva.community or in the Diva Staking docs

In this article, we’ll explore Diva Staking’s unconventional approach to decentralized governance, revealing the philosophy that drives it, its token distribution strategy, and the pivotal role played by the Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) within the project.

Diva’s Dual Token Model and Delegation

Diva Staking has garnered attention with its implementation of a dual token model, powered by the concept of delegation. This model grants DIVA token holders the ability to “delegate” or assign their voting power.

Delegation, in this context, involves an on-chain transaction process that empowers token holders to decide between self-delegation or entrusting their voting power to a third party.

As we’ll see, this process forms the foundation of Diva’s distinctive approach to decentralized governance.

A Truly Community-Driven Approach

At the core of Diva’s mission is the pursuit of full decentralization, and the cultivation of a community-driven ethos.

Unlike projects that tend to concentrate power among early supporters or insiders, Diva Staking has chosen a path that recognizes only DIVA tokens that have been delegated by the community.

Implementing a two-token model involves the utilization of both DIVA tokens and Delegated DIVA tokens, with only Delegated DIVA tokens being accounted for governance purposes.

This strategy empowers the broader community while minimizing the influence of early supporters on governance, allowing the DAO to jump past Stage 1 (“team-run autocracies”) and Stage 2 (“VC-run oligarchies”) of decentralization, straight into a Stage 3 “liquid representative democracy with direct votes and delegates.”

Credit to Marc Zeller’s “4 Stages of Decentralization’s” thread

The Purpose of the DAO

The Diva Staking DAO does not aim to replicate traditional corporate structures on the blockchain. Instead, it serves as a catalyst for community gathering and coordination, with a focus on the common good — the Diva Staking Protocol itself.

The DAO’s mandate is to curate and maintain this public good, ensuring it evolves when necessary. However, it will never be in charge of operating the protocol.

Current DAO dynamics can be seen in this great dashboard prepared by Kevinzzz, a community member

Token Valuation and Distribution

The DIVA token does not possess intrinsic value and has been distributed as a gratuity to thousands of value-aligned Ethereans.

Diva Staking’s inception was not driven by external funding, but by a group of early Ethereum researchers and enthusiasts. Later on, they strategically initiated a funding round, attracting Ethereum-aligned entities and individuals interested in the Diva Staking Protocol as a public tool, rather than on its tokens as a speculative asset.

This approach sets Diva Staking apart from projects primarily fueled by token appreciation.

Collaboration Over Competition

Diva Staking emphasizes the empowerment of its community of stakers and operators over any kind of speculative activities.

The vision revolves around building infrastructure that benefits the broader Ethereum ecosystem and the project’s impact within it.

Diva Staking actively seeks collaborations with other communities, including Rocketpool and others, believing in the power of cooperation to strengthen Ethereum’s infrastructure for the collective good.

Inclusivity and Participation: All Are Welcome

Diva Staking is committed to inclusivity, welcoming members regardless of the size of their holdings or technical expertise. The delegation-powered curation encourages participation from every member of the community. Every voice matters, and Diva aims to create an environment where everyone feels valued and heard.

Source: Community member @kevinzzz on Dune Analytics

Non-Transferability as a Value Alignment Mechanism

DIVA’s curation model is designed to be robust, transparent, and resilient. The delegation model facilitates efficient and thoughtful decision-making, with curation tokens being non-transferable by default.

This approach ensures that active and engaged participants work in the best interest of the software as a public good, preventing speculative interests from outweighing genuine participation.

Diva Staking Protocol as a Public Good

The Dive Staking Protocol is intended to become a public good as free open-source software.

It represents a significant contribution to the broader blockchain community, designed to enable other projects to implement similar delegation-powered curation mechanisms.

The goal is to promote decentralization and inclusivity across the blockchain space, encouraging the adoption of curation models that empower community members.

Join the Journey: Together, We Thrive

We invite you to join the journey towards “decentralized by default” community curation models.

If you hold any DIVA tokens, consider:

Every contribution, regardless of its size, plays a vital role in building a more robust and inclusive ecosystem.

As we embark on this exciting path, we encourage open dialogue, collaboration, and community engagement. Together, let’s make DIVA a symbol of trust and solidarity, showcasing the true potential of decentralized curation.

For more details and information on Diva Staking, visit diva.community.

Follow @divastaking on Twitter, and t.me/followdiva for announcements on Telegram.

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Diva Staking

Diva is an Ethereum Liquid Staking protocol powered by Distributed Validation Technology. News & articles written independently by the Staking Foundation