Introducing Cohort 4 of the Ethereum Foundation’s Next Billion Fellows Program
The Ethereum Foundation has recently unveiled the fourth cohort of its esteemed Next Billion Fellowship Program, showcasing seven exceptional individuals with diverse backgrounds. These fellows are poised to spearhead innovative projects geared towards enhancing communities on a global scale, as detailed in the latest update on the Ethereum Foundation Blog.
Meet the Next Billion Fellows Cohort 4
David Uzochukwu is leading an initiative focused on bolstering Ethereum’s decentralization by educating the African community on operating Ethereum nodes. His project aims to overcome obstacles such as unreliable internet access and power outages to foster inclusivity within the ecosystem.
Guo Liu, the co-founder of Matters Town, has launched a censorship-resistant publication platform. Liu’s project integrates advertisement protocols with Harberger tax and quadratic funding to promote high-quality open-access content.
Lefteris Arapakis has established the social enterprise Enaleia, dedicated to combating marine plastic pollution. Arapakis intends to implement an Ethereum-based system to track recycled marine plastic, starting in Greece and expanding throughout the Mediterranean region.
Mercedes “Meche” Rodriguez Simon is conducting research on web3 solutions to support human rights organizations in Venezuela. As a prominent member of Ethereum Venezuela, Simon is committed to addressing the country’s political and humanitarian crises.
Rebecca Mqamelo is collaborating with Grassroots Economics to integrate EVM-based local currencies with traditional economic practices in Africa. Her research focuses on comparing community currency models supported by government bodies versus those relying on future production capacity commitments.
Tomislav “Tomo” Mamić is spearheading the Municipal Quadratic Funding Initiative (MUQA) to assist cities in utilizing Quadratic Voting and Quadratic Funding for public project financing. The pilot project in Split, Croatia, emphasizes culture and green spaces.
An anonymous fellow is developing a platform to digitize production records and farm metadata, establishing on-chain reputation scores. This endeavor seeks to provide affordable working capital to smallholder farmers and cooperatives by standardizing farmer data for seamless interoperability.
What’s on the Horizon?
Over the next six months, each fellow will diligently advance their projects, with updates set to be shared at Devcon 7 in Southeast Asia from November 12-15. Follow the progress of these initiatives on @EFNextBillion. Additionally, financial aid for attending Devcon is accessible through the Devcon SEA Scholars Program, with applications open until July 7, 2024.
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