Hello ReFi DAO community!
I am Giulio Quarta, leading Regen Funding Support, an autonomous initiative co-stewarded by Commons Agency and ReFi Barcelona, aimed at strengthening funding support for regenerative projects at the local and bioregional level. We are preparing to submit this proposal to the ReFi DAO Network Initiatives Pool, as a ReFi DAO Network Initiative, and would greatly value your feedback before doing so.
What is Regen Funding Support (RFS)?
RFS is an open-source system designed to help regenerative projects in a bioregion access suitable funding opportunities more effectively, also conceived as something that every ReFi local node could run autonomously & in connection with other nodes!
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Problem: While the regenerative economy is growing, local on-the-ground projects often struggle to navigate the fragmented, fast-moving funding landscape.
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Solution: RFS improves research and matchmaking between funders and regenerative initiatives, making it easier for projects to find resources they need.
[You can have a look at a draft of the system&process documentation here!]
Objectives
RFS aims to develop an open-source, customizable, and scalable system that empowers every ReFi Local Node to autonomously identify and share regenerative funding opportunities within their bioregion. By piloting at the local scale and fostering bottom-up collaboration between nodes, RFS seeks to strengthen the capacity of grassroots regenerative projects to secure more and better resources over time, with a bioregional organizing & finance approach.
This initiative also intends to enhance knowledge sharing, foster inter-node cooperation, and contribute to the long-term evolution of ReFi Local Nodes’ roles in their communities, as well as improving and enabling strategic partnerships across the global ReFi DAO network.
Context & The Work So Far
This process started in october 2024 and evolved significantly since its inception; it has been funded initially by Regen Network Tokenomics DAO (1.2k eur, report here) and then by Regen Network Development PBC with 7k eur, presentation of the deliverables here; this relationship and co-design process is still ongoing, and Regen Network will be a sponsor of the project for 2025.
The initial idea was that of developing a platform connecting funders, regenerative projects and fundraisers - Regen Fundraising Open Dashboard- but it turned out to be ineffective and unfeasible at a global level, and difficult to optimize for all these stakeholders at the same time.
In the second transformation it became Regen Funding Support, more focused on supporting the Regenerative Projects stakeholder group with guidance, sensemaking and connections with relevant networks, and understanding the concrete funding needs of regenerators on the ground. The team produced a simple website which is now being updated and a 40 pages handbook you can read here, and once again the r&d process made it clear that this can’t work properly at an international level without a very significant amount of funding -which we couldn’t and cant’ achieve at the moment.
Moreover, and this is probably even more relevant than the funding issue, it seems unlikely that a single team or platform can consistently aggregate high quality knowledge and updated information about such a high variety of funding sources and opportunities, as these vary a lot both regionally and in terms of regeneration vertical (regenerative agriculture, watersheds restoration, renewable energies, etc)
Collaboration with ReFi Barcelona
This current iteration emerged from conversations with ReFi Barcelona recognizing that the local/bioregional scale is the most feasible and effective testing ground for the system. ReFi Barcelona is not receiving any of the funds requested in this proposal; instead, it is supporting the initiative by piloting the system within its own network and activities. This collaboration aligns with ReFi Barcelona’s mission of equipping regenerative projects in Catalunya — and local nodes in general — with better tools to serve their communities. By doing so, both the initiative and ReFi Barcelona benefit from shared learning and alignment with ReFi DAO’s broader mission.
Research Questions
In this phase, our research is guided by the following questions:
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What processes most effectively enable local nodes to autonomously discover and access regenerative funding opportunities?
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Which tools best support local nodes in managing, curating, and sharing relevant funding information?
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What collaborative practices foster effective and sustainable cooperation between nodes?
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How can inter-node collaboration and decentralized knowledge-sharing mechanisms be structured to scale support for regenerative projects across diverse bioregions and thematic areas?
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Please share about any other research question you would like to see here! 
We invite the ReFi DAO community to validate, refine, and expand on these research questions, ensuring they capture the needs and insights of the network.
What We’re Asking
We’re asking for €1,000 for the following core deliverables:
Core deliverables:
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Document the tools and systems used (Notion-based research platform, automations, newsletter)
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Host monthly regenerative funding meetups, up to December 2025 (excluding August)for this piloting phase. First has been in July, we’ll share recording soon. These are open to all local nodes worldwide but they will focus on regenerative projects in Catalunya as the system is being tested here.
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Compile insights and a final report that becomes part of the ReFi Local Node Toolkit.
Possible extras, according to community input/feedback :
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1-1 Calls with local node leads
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Direct support and documentation of 1 fundraising need in the network
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other
please share your ideas and input if you have, the more the merrier
Benefits to ReFi DAO
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Contribution to the creation of an pen source, customizable and scalable system that can be used by every ReFi Local Nodes of the global network
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ReFi DAO recognized as sponsor in materials and communications, good reputational value as it’s financing freely accessible research and development
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Improved relationship with Regen Network as well as further possible partners we’ll approach (BioFi Project, Gitcoin, GreenPill Network, Ma Earth, Bloom Network, New Economy Coalition, Breadchain, Giveth and more)
In case of approval, the funds would be sent to Regen Funding Support initiative wallet address and I will be the person responsible for its use, which will be documented as a section in the final report. The funds will be used in part to pay the online subscriptions required for the operations (Domain expenses, Google for call recordings, Notion, Cursor, a Hertzner Server for the AI automations and other) and the rest to compensate my work in the execution of the deliverables.
We believe this initiative can strengthen local ReFi ecosystems and contribute to the research and development around what a ReFi local node could or should be doing locally. Your feedback, questions, or ideas will be useful in improving the project design before it moves to the official proposal stage.
Looking forward to your thoughts and hope you are not suffering heat too much where you are!