Matou Cultural Values
Version 1.0
🐋 Cultural Values
This document summarizes the core values expressed and embodied within Mātou Collective DAO. These values underpin all decision-making, processes, and activities, ensuring that governance remains aligned with the collective's purpose and cultural foundation.
| Value | Description | Implementation |
|---|---|---|
| Cultural Integrity | Governance decisions must reflect and uphold Indigenous cultural values, protocols, and knowledge systems. | Elder Council holds veto power; Elder review required ; culturally grounded incentives prioritized. |
| Inclusivity & Participation | Governance must provide meaningful participation opportunities for all communities and contributors. | Dual-house voting; quadratic voting to reduce large-holder dominance; incentive programs for diverse participation. |
| Polycentricity | Governance authority is distributed among multiple autonomous centers to avoid centralization. | Dual-house structure separating cultural and operational authority; TribalDAOs maintain local governance; cooperative decision-making required. |
| Democracy & Fair Representation | Governance processes prioritize democratic decision-making, balancing majority input and fairness. | Member-based voting in all houses; open proposal reviews; governance tokens earned through contributions and roles. |
| Transparency & Accountability | Governance processes, decisions and activities must be transparent and accountable to the community. | On-chain logging of proposals, votes, contributions and treasury actions; public project reports; Governance and Project stewards maintain registries. |
| Conviction & Long-Term Stewardship | Long-term commitment to the collective is recognized and rewarded. | ContributorTokens earned through sustained contributions; conviction-weighted mechanisms. |
| Digital Sovereignty | The community maintains autonomy over its digital tools, infrastructure, and assets. | Smart contract-based governance; community ownership prioritized in digital infrastructure decisions; on-chain operational processes. |
| Whakapapa | Recognise and prioritise the relationships and connections between people, communities and places that are their foundation of the collective. | Proposals to support communities, relationship building and cultural activities are acknowledged as core to operations and success. |
| Respect for cosmic forces | Recognising the spiritual dimension and the unseen aspects of our actions | Spaces are created for reflection and spiritual dialogue; Elder Council incorporates spiritual and cultural considerations in proposal reviews. |
| Hau | Sustaining the reciprocal flow of generosity, exchange, and relational wellbeing. | Incentive structures, resource sharing, and decision-making processes are designed to reflect mutual reciprocity and relational balance. |
| Mātauranga | Valuing Indigenous knowledge systems and collective wisdom. | Indigenous knowledge is prioritised and valued in organisation and product design |
| Holistic | Decision-making and operations acknowledge the interconnectedness of people, environment, and systems. | Proposals reviews include a holistic perspective; Contributor and community holistic wellbeing will be used as a measurement of our success |
| Sustainable | Governance and operations must support long-term community wellbeing and environmental care. | Sustainability criteria integrated into project planning, proposal reviews, and contribution design. |
| Nuanced Resource Allocation | Resource decisions must be context-specific, adaptive, and equitable. | Treasury and incentive mechanisms allow flexible, needs-responsive disbursements evaluated case by case. Systems in place to handle change in circumstances |
| Collective | Governance and operations are built around shared responsibilities and collective benefit. | Community-driven decisions and collective ownership structures are at the center of all systems design and activities. |
| Mana Motuhake | Supporting self-determination, autonomy, and Indigenous governance authority. | TribalDAOs retain control over their internal governance and resources; DAO tools support mana motuhake aspirations. |
| Decentralised | Power is distributed to prevent centralization and foster local empowerment. | Governance infrastructure supports decentralized decision-making across TribalDAOs and stakeholder groups. |
| Redistributive | Governance ensures fair sharing of resources, power, and opportunities. | Resource flows are designed to redistribute toward under-resourced communities and projects through incentives and grants. |
| Embedded | Governance practices are rooted in and responsive to the community’s lived realities. | Regular community feedback loops and iterative adaptation processes ensure governance remains deeply embedded in community context. |
| Needs Focused | Governance must prioritize meeting immediate and evolving community needs. | Proposal processes and funding criteria are explicitly oriented toward addressing defined community needs and aspirations. |
| Values Based | Decision-making centers on shared ethical, cultural, and spiritual values. | All governance activities and proposals are evaluated for alignment with the DAO’s foundational values and principles. |
These values guide all governance and operational activities within Mātou Collective DAO, ensuring that decision-making remains culturally grounded, democratic, and community-driven.