TLDR; Siargao Island needs a way to process its waste in order to preserve its natural integrity and ecosystem. NounsDAO could sponsor two trucks and a team for a year to collect and bring waste to a treatment facility in partnership with local NGOs.
ABOUT
Siargao is a beautiful island east of Cebu City, Philippines. It attracts a lot of surf related tourism in the area of General Luna, with national and international surf competitions as well as digital nomads, expats and tourists. With that development comes waste, and removing trash off the island is costly. It often ends up being burned on the side of the road or in landfills, and later blown into the ocean. Siargao has a strong local community that is conscious of the urgent need to process waste before this starts to damage the natural capital of the island.
IDEA
NounsDAO would help by purchasing two 5 tons trucks and paying a total of 10 staff to operate them for a year. They will collect waste from the two largest towns on the island: Dapa - the economic center - and General Luna - the touristic center, and deliver the organic waste to a processing facility.
60-70% of the total waste collected in the island is organic waste. This initiative will focus on improving the organic waste collection system by working with the local government units.
Last but not least, the trucks will be painted with a nounsDAO aesthetic, making them a fun and ambulant message on the island visible for everyone.
EXECUTION
Echo Espejon is working closely with local governmental units (LGUs) to make sure we align efforts to collect waste. A route with collection points will be defined. We will communicate
There will be a contract agreement between the S.E.A. NGO and farm owners for the proper division and reinvestment of profits. The goal is to help the program be self-sustaining in the long term.
Hi guys, this is a proposal I have been working on with a local NGO in Siargao, Philippines.
This is more a hands on proposal, rather than sending ETH to a NGO, we would be working with them, and have a some nounish trucks circulate on the island. I am also talking with local representatives to have a nouns billboard next to the airport (maybe the island noun with a message like “Welcome to Siargao”).
One of the remaining question for us to figure out is what is the best way to transfer money, I am thinking of using an exchange to off ramp crypto, but any input would be appreciated.
I also need to specify a little media budget to make sure we document the initiative and have some good clips and pictures to share on social media.
Anyway, I just thought I would share with you guys to get some input, and do a little temperature check. I am excited about serving a good cause while propagating the meme. And nounish trucks are cool imo.
141 also mentioned that it would be interesting to have this kick off a environmental DAO of some sort and I think that would be really cool. Will talk with green nouns (Josan Studio) about it, but feel free to join.
you mentioned “data collection,” what data will be collected and will it be available?
are these full or part-time jobs for those listed?
Seems like a great idea, over a long period of time, doing some good for the public, perserving nature, all while also helping employ people. feels nounsih.
1- I wonder if painted or wrapped. Wrapped with stickers is probably the best solution with highest fidelity, and smallest environmental cost. So for now it is my favorite option.
2 - No, it just gives the mood. Something colorful with nouns glasses. We could run a little competition in the community (say 1ETH).
3 - yes, probably www.nouns.wtf
4 - How much waste has been collected, the type of waste, how much compost was created etc (will ask Echo about more details)
5 - It will be full time, 5 days a week. And yes, if full time, wages are pretty low compared to the US, but I think we have to align ourselves with the local job market and the average salary.
Thanks for the comments, good points! appreciate it
Hey @Coralorca ! love this, @cdt.eth addressed most of the questions I had except 1:
Will the trucks be purchased off island or are there already 2 available for sale/use on the island?
if purchased off-site, is the cost of freight via a company like TradeHub or Montenegro Shipping considered?
Yes we are looking into it right now. Options are in Manilla or Cebu City, so yes we will have to take freight costs into consideration. Thanks for the support!
Thanks!
Yes for providing uniforms with nouns glasses, although these might likely be t-shirts or tank tops due to the temperature (no cool jumpsuits sadly).
Regarding the clock, it might be hard to install on the trucks and I’m not sure people are going to understand what is going on. Maybe next phase of nounification!
This is great, we are legitimate and we can have a small billboard and nouns truck driving around for a good cause.
Now one of my remaining question/concern is how to transfer the funds, how will it be taxed, and how to draft an agreement between the NGO and Echo (representing our interests) to make sure things are transparent and there is a system of checks and balances.
One thing we don’t want is have the funds be scattered without any measurable positive outcomes.
Love this prop, 100% Nounish about this.
Congrats on getting approval on having a small billboard within the entrance of Dapa.
Just some quick thoughts:
How are we making this program self-sustaining?
Since we are disposing off organic biodegradable waste, can we recycle them into compost instead? Re-purpose those compost and sell them to local farms as organic fertilizer. Could be a revenue stream on its own that could help in making this program self-sustaining.
Thank you for your questions.
1-2 this is exactly how we want to make the program self sustaining: recycling the biodegradable into compost at Fe’s farm. One concern is that it might not be financially sustainable after one year.
3. The role of the SEA ngo is administrative (hire staff, record amount of waste collected etc) and as a legal recipient for the funds. We would have SEA and Echo (our representative) have access to a joint bank account in order to make sure there is a checks and balances system in place.
Hope that helps. Open to suggestions, ideas and more questions!
Apart from collection/clearing waste from the collection points, could we explore extending out waste collection services to resorts or hotel on the island?
how to transfer the funds (from crypto to USD, in a way that doesnt raise eyebrows)
how will it be taxed (and how to take this in consideration with the ETH amount),
how to draft an agreement between the NGO and Echo (representing our interests) to make sure things are transparent and there is a system of checks and balances with a joint bank account. This represent a very large sum in the PH, I am being cautious and want to make sure this is set up for success, and the project doesn’t fall short because of X reason (didnt plan for taxes, or legal issues, or lack of accountability from the org etc)
