2017 Notes on creating a Disorient token by The Eye

2017 notes on creating a Disorient token by The Eye

Disorient is an international art collective. We’ve been a camp at Burning Man since 2001.

Why a Disorient token

We would like to create a distributed system of ownership for our organization. We are currently an LLC based in Nevada and would like to explore the possibilities of a blockchain-based structure.

Disorient has been operating for many years on a biomimicry model (http://wiki.disorient.info/index.php?title=Disorient_Model). Self-activated Cells composed of one or more members come into being for the purpose of creating a Module. One Module per Cell. When the Module is complete, the Cell is dissolved and Cell members move-on to create other Cells which in turn generate other Modules. This free-flowing structure has proven to work for our art collective and we would like to infuse our organization with the distributed and autonomous aspects of our model to make Disorient resonate more fully.

Unlike many blockchain projects we’re not building something from scratch. We already have a time-tested project. We just want to keep doing what we’ve been doing since 2001.

What we are trying to achieve with the token

- Membership. Even though we use the term "member" to describe people who have camped with Disorient, we do not have a membership system in place.
- Stickiness. Reward members for their involvement in Disorient by giving each of them some actual ownership of the project.
- Flatten the pyramid. Our goal is a flat, constantly evolving, constantly reconfigured distributed structure with heavy rotation of Cell Leads. How can the token help us achieve this?
- Fairness. Share the ownership of the project as widely as possible. Many members have given countless hours/months/years to the project. We want to acknowledge them all. We have experimented with reward systems in the past (eg. Disorient Awards) but they seemed too gimmicky. We want a radical solution.
- Ownership and governance. Some tokens might be for ownership only. Others might have ownership and voting privileges. There might also be other kinds of tokens. TBD
- Explore first-hand the possibilities of a blockchain solution which seems to be a great match for a global volunteer-based project like Disorient. We have thousands of members in dozens of countries. Local Disorient Cells organize 3 camping events per year in New York, Dubai and Hong Kong. Additional 4-day camping events are in the works in Joshua Tree, India and Israel. Position ourselves to readily embrace future blockchain innovations.
- Artistic collaboration. As codified in the Disorient Model, Cells create Modules. How can the token help us assemble like-minded DOers into Cells and thereby streamline the Disorient Model?
- Post-money strategy. Disorient is ran as a not for profit. Our goal is not to amass funds but to focus on experience. Freed from the capitalist goal, we focus on making art. How do we model our token to reflect this? How does having a token further this goal?
- Gamification of Disorient. Games do a great job of making us feel like we’re part of something bigger, giving us a cooperative sense that small behavioral changes could benefit the greater good.
- Inventory. Disorient owns hardware including tools, vehicles, shipping containers, etc. We would like to use the technology to keep track of this inventory possibly in combination with RFID.
- Social network for Disorient. Long before Facebook we used PHPBB to communicate amongst ourselves. It worked great but eventually got replaced by contemporary social networks. Our recent use of Discord is a refreshing step back towards the Puddle (our PHPBB platform). Disorient’s communication requirement are not extravagant and should be achieved in-house as another DIY project.
- Intellectual property. As an art collaborative we develop hardware and software solutions to enable art experiences. How do we codify intellectual properties that result from this work to share them and possibly raise funds for the project?
- Trading. We are open to the idea of trading tokens in the future but want to design and test the system before allowing token trade.
- Lead by example. As one of the oldest camp at Burning Man (2018 is our 18th year on the playa) we strive to inspire others involved in community building in the arts and elsewhere. Compassion and acculturation are some of our goals as an art collective. Identifying, designing and adopting the most relevant format for our structure could inspire and possibly help other projects reach their own goals.