Identity and Background:
- What is the delegate’s identity and background?
We are Blockchain USC, otherwise known as @0xBlockchainSC on Twitter/X. We are a student-led organization at the University of Southern California. In addition to educating students on blockchain technology, we strive to promote equitable, inclusive, sustainable, and effective community ownership and governance of key web3 infrastructure through thoughtful and researched decision-making and community engagement.
With many new members onboarding and expressing great interest in the Solana ecosystem, we believe that JITO is a great way to bridge these members from some of the simpler popular trends/memes into the greater tech/governance/DeFi worlds of crypto. Additionally, many current members of governance have been impressed with the contributions and technology JITO has brought to the Solana network.
- Has the delegate historically contributed to the Jito Network?
As an organization, we have not specifically, however many of our members that will be leading Jito governance initiatives have individually been active investors and community members in the Solana space for years.
- Has the delegate historically been involved in protocol governance?
Blockchain USC has been heavily involved in governance on the Optimism network, managing over 1 Million in voting power since 2023. In addition to voting, our members are active in stimulating discussion on Discord and the forums, researching proposals and incentive analysis, as well as being involved in the engineering space.
- Is the delegate committed to helping the Jito Network and Solana succeed? Explain.
Absolutely! As previously mentioned, many of our club members are incredibly passionate about Solana as a key building block of crypto mass adoption, and Jito is crucial to that vision. Additionally, the structure of our governance teams ensure that there are many voices and perspectives on each vote.
Candidate views
- How should JitoSOL validator delegation balance performance (yield) versus decentralization goals?
The structure of our organization allows for our members to engage in educated discussion on all proposals. Through deliberation of the long and short term effects of both yield and decentralization, we are of the opinion that improving yield and decentralization do not have to be mutually exclusive. For example, it is natural to take a more quantitative approach in analyzing performance goals with changes in JitoSOL validator, but the nuances of such changes is where the deliberation will take place. Identifying the validator and incentive structures that are “required” for efficient and reliable Jito activities, and identifying those that would contribute marginally to the ecosystem should be the number one priority. This strategy prioritizes the performance of the system, but only if it aligns with the vision of long term decentralization.
- What should be the priorities for JTO liquidity mining and DAO token grants?
Similar to the previous response, a similar framework should be applied to liquidity mining to prevent the draining of resources and ensure the continuance of the system. As seen in historical examples, a very aggressive approach to liquidity mining incentives should be discouraged. The potential for DAO grants to improve the ecosystem should similarly be focused primarily on the area of expandability. Grants that do not clearly pose a concrete addition to the ecosystem can be identified through this lens.
- What are your goals for the DAO as a delegate?
The mere presence of difficult and extremely impactful decisions follows that a healthy and educated discourse that encourages diversity of thought is the backbone for the success of nearly every protocol and ecosystem like Jito-Solana. Having these dissenting voices prevents the demise of the system, and as a delegate we aim to provide one of these voices that is predicated on discussions and research to push Jito-Solana in the right directions.
Delegation Address: BAT4v22PuRucE89LaKnkW886XFzSkXcCLBpKpUoU5xLc