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Cultural Alignment Report

Context​

This report outlines the key insights and actions from the Cultural Alignment meeting that was run on Wednesday 9 July, 10am - 12pm.

Overview​

The meeting covered various aspects of organizational development, including governance structure, cultural values, and practical implementation. Discussions ranged from planning a workshop on cultural values to exploring the intricacies of a polycentric governance model and the importance of clear communication in family trusts. The team also addressed the need to balance theoretical discussions with practical development, deciding to proceed with creating a basic version of their chat app while incorporating foundational principles and values into their organizational structure.

Information provided to participants to review before the meeting:

Meeting Participants:

  • Ben Tairea
  • Vaipuna Ian Tairea
  • Julian Reweti
  • Engie Matene

Summary​

Cultural Values Workshop Planning​

Ben and Engie discuss plans for an upcoming workshop on cultural values for their organization. They review the extensive work Ben has done on developing a governance model and cultural values document. The conversation focuses on how to structure the workshop to get meaningful feedback from participants. They consider various approaches, including presenting their current values and implementation ideas or facilitating a more open discussion about values in organizations. Ultimately, they agree to focus on facilitating a conversation about values and their importance in organizational culture, with the goal of getting informed feedback on their own implementation of cultural values.

Matou DAO Governance Model Introduction​

Ben introduces the concept of setting long-term direction for a Matou Collectives’ Decentralised Autonomous Organisation (Matou DAO) through embedded values and rules. He explains that they are developing a governance model for Matou DAO with three houses: Elders Council, Community House, and Contributor House. The model is described as polycentric, culturally grounded, democratic, quadratic, cardinal, and on-chain. Ben acknowledges the challenge of implementing such a complex system without seeing it in practice. Vaipunu suggests creating visual aids to better demonstrate how the governance model would work in real-world scenarios. The group discusses the need for clear communication and documentation to onboard new people effectively.

Organizational Governance and Cultural Values​

Ben provides an overview of the governance structure and decision-making process for their organization. They have split decision-making into three houses with an Elders Council to maintain culture and values. The process involves creating proposals, voting, and implementing projects. Ben emphasizes the importance of transparency and meaningful participation for all contributors. He presents five core themes for cultural values, including cultural integrity, democracy, digital sovereignty, and intergenerational stewardship. The group discusses how to implement these values, with Vaipunu sharing examples from his family trust and Project Sunrise. They explore the concept of intergenerational thinking and legacy, considering how to apply these values to their work and organization. Julian mentions the importance of embedding values into everything they do, noting that different organizations and levels have varying sets of values.

Maori Cultural Values and Technology​

Julian discusses the importance of unity and cultural values in Maori communities, particularly in the context of treaty settlements and reclaiming cultural identity. He shares personal examples of how his family implements traditional values like Tika, Pono, and Aroha in their daily lives and financial decisions. Julian expresses interest in the proposed system for its potential to benefit Maori communities, especially those facing poverty, and asks about its scalability and implementation. Ben responds positively to Julian's enthusiasm, suggesting a follow-up call to address specific questions and emphasizing the importance of user input in developing and implementing the system.

Core Values for Global Adaptability​

Ben expresses appreciation for the simplicity of three core values and suggests that Matou DAO could also adopt these values for its simplicity and ability to be adaptable to any situation. Engie shares insights from a company director's course, emphasizing the importance of clear values in technology companies, particularly regarding data sovereignty and community-focused development. She believes Matou DAO values are a good first pass, considering the global context and adaptability for different communities. Engie also highlights the need for values to be applicable across different governance structures and suggests that gaps in the values may become apparent as the organization engages more as a DAO.

Ngāti Hine values and Conflict Resolution​

Julian explains the Ngāti Hine value of addressing issues rather than making conflicts personal. He emphasizes the importance of maintaining peace and respect, even during disagreements, and not using knowledge to belittle others. Ben reflects on how this principle could be applied to digital systems and online moderation, suggesting ways to address problematic behavior without targeting individuals. Julian then discusses the Ngāti Hine value of speaking for themselves, providing historical context and examples of how this value arose from conflicts with the British and the Crown's recognition process. He shares a story about protecting their traditional eel harvesting practices from outside exploitation, highlighting the importance of self-representation and resource management for the Ngāti Hine people.

Family Trust Communication Strategies​

The group discusses the importance of clear communication and autonomy in family trust formation. Ben and Vaipunu share their experience creating a trust for their family, emphasizing the need for easily understandable proposals and allowing each family line to make their own decisions. They highlight challenges such as engaging busy family members and addressing concerns of those with larger individual shares. The conversation also touches on the process of nominating trustees and the value of respecting each family line's sovereignty in decision-making. Engie expresses interest in using the template created by Ben and Vaipunu for future trust formations. The group reflects on the importance of values in organizational culture and the need for visual representation in communicating ideas.

Balancing Theory and Practical Development​

The team discusses the importance of moving from theoretical discussions to practical implementation. Vaipunu expresses a desire to focus on technical details and tangible aspects of building the platform. Ben and Engie reveal that they had initially planned a more hands-on approach but were advised to address foundational issues first. The group agrees on the need to balance conceptual work with practical development. They decide to proceed with creating a basic version of their chat app, incorporating features like proposal submission and voting. The team plans to release this initial version alongside a digital identity component, inviting users to help refine the product.

Tokenomics and DAO Governance Review​

Ben provides an update on the team sync meeting, mentioning that Jo will talk to Nori about conducting a Tokenomics Review for milestone 4. Cherese is tasked with thinking about the design for a new website, which needs to be rebuilt before the presentation. Engie shares her experience attending a director's course. They discuss the complexities of limited liability companies and the potential legal implications for DAOs. Ben and Engie agree to work on various aspects of the milestone 3 report, with Engie offering to help draft it and follow up on outstanding tasks. They also plan to review the governance and cultural values section of their project, considering the balance between simplicity and specificity in their value statements.

Next steps​

  • Ben & Team: Prepare the chat app with basic proposal, token, and voting features for release.
  • Ben: Create a visual presentation/infographic to better communicate the governance model and values to new members
  • Ben & Team: Refine the contributor system design and prepare for validation with the team
  • Ben & Team: Add conflict resolution mechanisms to the cultural values framework
  • Ian: Share the Whanau Trust visual guide template with Engie (email provided)
  • Ben & Ian: Collaborate on creating documentation and visuals for onboarding new members to the governance model