“Cardano, like any other ecosystem, blockchain, or more broadly product, must be useful and used to survive and thrive.” - 2025 Cardano's Roadmap

If Cardano’s survival and thriving are rooted in the use and usefulness of the ecosystem and blockchain, then facilitating the participation in and knowledge about the opportunities herein is paramount. Any incredible tool or innovation misses the mark if it is accessed below its potential. This proposal will focus on accomplishing engagement in Cardano with an emphasis on increasing liquidity and involvement in decentralized finance.

We will do this by creating multi-faceted education and engagement campaigns with great flexibility for deliverability across key current and potential participants whose involvement will measurably accomplish this goal:

“Support all the activities that can bring Cardano’s core qualities, and the true state of its community and ecosystem, to the general public, to increase its recognition and reputation and so to bring more interest, builders, users and so usage.” - 2025 Proposed Cardano Goal: Make Cardano more recognizable

APPROACH:

The program delivery will involve three continuous and symbiotic efforts to onboard individuals, institution groups, and cohorts:

A Marketing & Outreach Effort A Facilitation & Engagement Effort A Retrospective Effort

Just as a tool is ineffective without a user, an engagement program is ineffective without participants. This necessitates the Marketing & Outreach Effort to increase participation and the Retrospective Effort to iterate and improve. The components of these three efforts are as follows:

Marketing & Outreach Effort:

A planned, coordinated marketing effort is identified in the 2025 Proposed Cardano Goals as a solution to the problem of Cardano’s lack of exposure and positive recognition by the wider public. To contribute to a solution, this Marketing & Outreach Effort will:

• Continuously identify potential partnership groups and make connections with a coordinated effort of calls, event attendance, relationship building, and networking
• Perform targeted outreach to larger institutions, organizations, and collectives with existing member groups
• Cultivate interested individuals into regular cohorts who will begin and learn together, reinforcing relationships and sub-communities within Cardano
• Collaborate with each cohort to identify the key organizational goals and specific learning needs to be addressed
• Proactively leverage existing relationships to facilitate new connections

Examples of potential cohort groups are:

• Universities that want to pilot a summer program about Web3
• Developers who want to better understand financial fundamentals to improve their own circumstances and build better tooling
• Chamber of Commerce chapters exploring new methods of entrepreneurship
• Financial advisors or Certified Public Accountants with client groups who want to learn about blockchain
• First Nation collectives interested in financial sovereignty tools

Facilitation & Engagement Effort:

“Cardano … requires increasing usage to thrive (so users). In particular, supporting more use cases will function as an attractor to bring more users which in turn will attract more users and DApps, which in turn will drive more transaction activity which will generate a higher value for our native token as well as higher value of our treasury (both in terms of ada size and overall related fiat value).” - 2025 Proposed Cardano Goal: Attract dApps and Users - Product Market Fit

The delivery of the programming serves this Cardano Goal by creating a direct experiential relationship between users and decentralized apps (dApps). The components of this process take these forms:

In-Person Events and Meetups (with Livestream Option) for Presentation & Q&A Online Forums and Office Hours for Specific Requests Online Courses with Diverse Assessment Approaches delivered on Cardano’s Learning Management System & Education Protocols: Andamio, Olympus Insights, Wisdom Courses, and Stuff.io. Curriculum that provides walkthroughs and demonstrations of protocols and actionable assessment challenges (e.g., “create a wallet” or “choose a stake pool”). Credentialing and Proof of Experience Opportunities with Socious “Learn to Work” Ambassador Programs that Encourage Learners into Outreach Roles

The curriculum directions are outlined in the next section.

A Retrospective Effort

Retrospectives are structured opportunities for teams to reflect on their work, processes, and collaboration to identify improvements and adapt to changing needs. They are a key practice and are fundamental tools for continuous improvement.

We will run retrospectives with each cohort to identify successes and areas for refinement. We will also incorporate protocol upgrades and emerging updates into the curriculum.

This visual image illustrates our proposed program delivery cycle:

https://www.cryptofluency.io/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Program-Delivery-Cycle.jpg

LEARNING TRACKS & TOPICS

Each program will be designed to take the learner into deeper engagement with the different disciplines in the Cardano Ecosystem that affect liquidity. While there is so much to understand, these tracks and topics are chosen because of their direct correlation with opportunities to participate.

FUNDAMENTALS FOR GETTING STARTED

Understanding the Cardano Blockchain Ecosystem:

• What is Blockchain Technology?
• Generations of Blockchain
• How is Cardano Unique from Other Blockchains?
• How Cardano Conquers the Blockchain Trilemma
• How does Cardano Function?
• UTXO vs. eUTXO
• Ourobouros
• Cardano’s Cryptocurrency ADA
• Becoming a First-Class Citizen
• Cardano Wallet Technology
• Cardano Stake Pools & Operators
• Locked Custodial Staking vs. Liquid Non-Custodial Staking
• Delegating Your ADA to Cardano Stake Pools
• Cardano’s Innovative Smart Contract Technology

ADVANTAGES & PARTICIPATION IN THE CARDANO ECOSYSTEM

Decentralized Finance (DeFi):

• Creative Opportunities to Harness the Potential of Assets
• Gain Exposure to New Applications
• Ways to Support Projects
• Multiple Yield Opportunities
• Market Making
• Strengthening the Ecosystem
• Stable Coin Minting
• Continued Study in our Existing DeFi Courses

Incentivized Participation (Concept):

• Incentivized Testnets (development)
• Learn to Earn (education)
• Read/Consume to Earn (education)
• Play to Earn (gaming)
• Permissionless Roles & Voting (governance)

Building & Innovating on Cardano:

• Filling the Needs of the Industry
• Building dApps on Cardano
• Cardano Protocol Categories (Overview of Types: DeFi Protocols, DEXs, Wallets, Stable Coins, Money Lending & Borrowing, Real-World Assets (RWAs), Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Services, Gaming & Metaverse, Telecommunications, Decentralized Physical Infrastructure, etc.)
• Launching a Project (Initial Stake Pool Offerings, Liquidity Bootstrapping Events & Launchpads)
• Project Catalyst Funding Opportunities
• Cardano Improvement Proposals (CIPs)

Participating in Governance:

• Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)
• Cardano Governance
• Hardfork Combinator Events
• Becoming a DREP, SPO, or Committee Member

The progression will expose learners to new areas according to their self-identified interests. Each category will include practical and applicable methods for participation that are simplified and demonstrated so that a user can get a foothold and gain experience.

In-person and online events will create a collaborative space for group learning, Q&A, and networking with others on a similar path.

The credentialing and assessment process will introduce learners to new concepts like “Learn to Work,” self-sovereign identity, decentralized governance, using a wallet to hold non-financial assets, and Web3 learning.

Creating a pathway of knowledge for people to understand what they are investing or participating in. Each lesson will be bolstered with additional resources like whitepapers and scientific reviews, and each will include an actionable experience to bring the learning to life.

This visual graphic illustrates the process of deepening engagement for learners and participants:

https://www.cryptofluency.io/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Cardano-Engagement.jpg

The “Ambassador” program will foster expansion of impact, sending knowledgable, credentialed community members out into their circles and communities to organically increase the reach of our collective work. This is an option for participants who feel led to carry the torch of sharing Cardano with new audiences.

People are resistant to investing their time, energy, and resources into something they don’t understand. Bitcoin and blockchain are largely misunderstood, and Cardano remains largely unknown even to those familiar with cryptocurrency. While Cardano has exceptional tooling and opportunities for participating in Web3, the majority of global liquidity lies dormant and unactualized due to a lack of knowledge about the benefits and uses of Cardano Web3 instruments. Resolving this will address the roadmap goal of Incoming Liquidity.

Incoming Liquidity Roadmap Section: https://productcommittee.docs.intersectmbo.org/committee-outcomes/2025-cardanos-roadmap/2025-proposed-cardano-roadmap#incoming-liquidity

The perpetual flow of liquidity into Cardano is the result of earned confidence in the blockchain’s offerings and opportunities. Increased liquidity produces an environment of abundance for all participants and greater capacity to build secure, scalable, and decentralized applications (dApps).

The proposal will create these specific benefits:

• Facilitate incoming liquidity for the Cardano Ecosystem by paving a path for informed participation in Cardano’s offerings
• Reinforce the community knowledge base and infrastructure by creating a network of vibrant and engaged community members in a thriving ecosystem
• Introduce institutions, organizations, and cohorts to the Cardano blockchain with actionable options for incentivized participation
• Market Cardano to new audiences
• Increase New Cardano Wallets and transactions on the blockchain
• Increase Engagement in Cardano tooling, especially DeFi-related protocols
• Attract new users and developers of Web3 tooling from other ecosystems by providing a clear explanation of Cardano’s technological advantages

The proposal will focus on serving and supporting these individuals and entities with campaigns focused on and relevant to their position of understanding:

(1) New and No Experience: Not yet invested in or familiar with blockchain technology or cryptocurrencies (2) Invested in Crypto, But Not Cardano: Invested on a Centralized Exchange with exposure to crypto but unfamiliar with Cardano - OR - participating with wallets on other chains but unfamiliar with Cardano’s opportunities (3) Cardano Community: Engaged in the Cardano Ecosystem as a community member, builder, or developer but hesitant to participate in Cardano’s DeFi for lack of knowledge about implications and risk.

This visual graphic on the Cryptofluency website is meant to illustrate the tremendous opportunity and the spread of potential across these different groups:

https://www.cryptofluency.io/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Dormant-Liquidity-Potential.jpg

The Cardano community’s robust collection of high-quality protocols can achieve its full potential of utilization expeditiously if we help each of these groups overcome the resistance points that prevent them from participating. Resolving these concerns through experiential education can open doors for meaningful engagement and liquidity.

Building a Foundation for Sustainable Growth

The true power of this proposal lies in its dual impact: creating an educated, empowered Cardano community while simultaneously developing a comprehensive toolkit that enables ongoing ecosystem growth. An educated community represents an invaluable, self-perpetuating asset whose impact cannot be overstated—it leads to more innovative applications, increased adoption, greater liquidity, and stronger advocacy.

The following deliverables are designed not as end products but as springboards for continued ecosystem expansion. Each resource, framework, and methodology we develop will be structured for adaptation, replication, and extension by other community members and initiatives. This approach ensures that the value created extends far beyond the initial funding period, creating compounding returns on the community's investment.

Our deliverables will provide both immediate impact through direct engagement and long-term value through reusable assets:

Institutional Partnership Program

• Deliverable: Formalized partnership framework with at least 10 institutions/organizations
• Definition of Done: Signed agreements, co-branded materials, scheduled cohort programs, and a replicable partnership toolkit that can be used by other Cardano initiatives

Cohort-Based Learning Programs

• Deliverable: Minimum of 15 cohorts completed across all target audience segments
• Definition of Done: 500+ participants, completion analytics, post-program surveys showing 80%+ satisfaction, documented increase in wallet creation and DeFi participation metrics, and a library of recorded cohort sessions available to the community

Marketing & Outreach Materials

• Deliverable: Comprehensive marketing kit for Cardano engagement education
• Definition of Done: Audience-specific outreach materials, partnership prospectus, digital marketing assets, and a presentation package that any community member can customize to introduce Cardano to new audiences

Engagement Analytics Dashboard

• Deliverable: Public-facing dashboard tracking participation and impact metrics
• Definition of Done: Live dashboard showing current data on program participation

Retrospective Documentation

• Deliverable: Structured methodology for program improvement
• Definition of Done: Published report of insights, adaptations, and recommendations, including an open-source retrospective framework that other Cardano projects can implement to improve their own initiatives

Community Resource Hub

• Deliverable: Centralized knowledge repository for all program resources
• Definition of Done: Searchable online portal containing all course materials, partnership templates, marketing assets, facilitation guides, and engagement metrics in formats ready for community adaptation and reuse

With these deliverables, we're not just creating a program—we're building infrastructure that empowers the community to multiply our impact many times over.

Cryptofluency LLC, a registered entity, will serve as the primary contracting entity for this proposal. We propose a milestone-based contracting structure with the following elements:

(1) Phased Funding Release: Funds to be released according to the completion of key milestones as outlined in our implementation timeline, ensuring accountability and allowing for community review. (2) Transparent Reporting: Regular reporting on fund utilization and milestone progress through our public-facing analytics dashboard (web page). (3) Previous Success: Our team has successfully managed two prior Catalyst contracts with a third in progress, demonstrating our capability to appropriately steward community funds toward promised deliverables. (4) Multi-signature Control: Financial controls with multiple team members required to authorize disbursements, ensuring proper governance of allocated funds. (5) Preference for ADA Transactions: Where possible, we will prioritize vendors and contractors who accept ADA payment, retaining funds within the Cardano ecosystem.

Total Budget Request: ₳250,000 ($180,000 at the current exchange rate of $0.72/ADA)

Program Development & Management: ₳120,000 ($86,400) Curriculum adaptation and cohort formatting: ₳30,000 ($21,600) Cohort facilitation and management: ₳70,000 ($50,400) Institutional partnership development: ₳20,000 ($14,400)

Marketing & Outreach: ₳70,000 ($50,400) Targeted marketing campaigns: ₳40,000 ($28,800) Partnership outreach materials: ₳15,000 ($10,800) Event coordination and hosting: ₳15,000 ($10,800)

Measurement & Reporting: ₳30,000 ($21,600) Analytics implementation: ₳10,000 ($7,200) Retrospective facilitation: ₳10,000 ($7,200) Impact reporting and documentation: ₳10,000 ($7,200)

"Learn to Work" Ambassador Program: ₳30,000 ($21,600) Ambassador training: ₳10,000 ($7,200) Ambassador incentives: ₳15,000 ($10,800) Program management: ₳5,000 ($3,600)

Labor Breakdown (12 months): Full-time staff (3 people × 12 months): ₳162,000 ($116,640) Part-time staff (Community Manager, 12 months): ₳27,000 ($19,440) Part-time specialists (2 people × 12 months): ₳36,000 ($25,920) Contract services: ₳25,000 ($18,000)

Quarterly Budget Allocation: Q1: ₳65,000 ($46,800) - Initial setup, partnership development, curriculum adaptation Q2: ₳65,000 ($46,800) - First cohort's launch, marketing campaign implementation Q3: ₳60,000 ($43,200) - Ambassador program launch, mid-project evaluation Q4: ₳60,000 ($43,200) - Final cohorts, comprehensive reporting, sustainability planning

This initial tranche of work will establish a scalable framework for continuous educational onboarding to increase liquidity in the Cardano ecosystem. By the completion of this phase, we will have:

(1) Proven Methodology: A validated approach to institutional partnerships and cohort onboarding that demonstrates a measurable impact on Cardano engagement

(2) Initial Scale: 15+ completed cohorts across diverse audience segments with documented liquidity impact

(3) Self-Sustaining Components: A "Learn to Work" ambassador program that creates a multiplier effect as graduates become educators

(4) Replicable Models: Thoroughly documented approaches that other educators and projects can adopt and adapt

(5) Data-Driven Insights: Comprehensive analytics revealing the most effective pathways to increased liquidity and engagement

The target state serves as a foundation for potential future phases that could include:

• Geographic expansion for global reach
• Industry-specific cohort programs (e.g., financial advisors, small businesses)
• Advanced curriculum for specialized DeFi instruments
• Integration with additional Cardano protocols and learning platforms

Building on Proven Success: From Educational Content to Engagement Programming

The core team (bios below) is equipped with deep experiential knowledge of the Cardano ecosystem earned through participation that began in 2018. Each member brings diverse and relevant skills to this effort that will form a comprehensive capability to achieve the proposal’s goals. Here are some Cardano-specific highlights:

• Operation of Daedalus Nodes since the Byron Era
• Project Catalyst voting history starting in Fund 3
• Contributing to Cardano full-time since 2020, onboarding and stewarding a community through in-person events, online courses, videos, one-on-one consulting, and speaking engagements.
• Attended the first Cardano Summit in 2021
• Participants in Cardano’s DeFi protocols from day one, starting in March 2022, with consistent involvement ever since
• Two funded Catalyst proposals in Fund 8 about global engagement and treasury funding
• Started a Cardano-niched YouTube Channel in 2022
• Incorporated a Cardano-focused business, Cryptofluency, in 2022
• Elected as the Philadelphia Delegate to the Cardano Constitution Convention in Argentina
• Funded in Fund 13 for a proposal about Cardano DeFi and decentralized education

Through our previous work, we've built relationships with DeFi founders, conducted interviews with protocol developers, and established Cryptofluency as a trusted source of Cardano education.

Our YouTube channel (over 300 videos) demonstrates our commitment to consistent quality content, while our completed Catalyst projects (including Catalyst Global Participation Solution #800102 and CA/VCA Treasury for Rapid Funding #800061) showcase our ability to deliver on funded proposals.

Our team has demonstrated expertise in Cardano education through our recently funded proposal, "Cryptofluency: Increasing Liquidity with Cardano DeFi Courses" (Fund 13). This project has allowed us to:

(1) Create a comprehensive DeFi educational curriculum covering four core areas:

• History & Emergence of Decentralized Finance Tools
• Fundamentals for Participating in Cardano
• Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs)
• Decentralized Lending & Borrowing (2) Partner with three Cardano learning management platforms - Olympus Insights, Wisdom Courses, and Andamio - establishing a model for decentralized education delivery that can be replicated by future content creators. (3) Demonstrate three approaches to decentralized learning that have provided valuable insights into effective educational models on the Cardano blockchain. (4) Develop credential systems that reward completion and incentivize continued participation in the ecosystem (in progress). (5) Build an engaged community of learners who have progressed from basic knowledge to active participation in Cardano's DeFi instruments (in progress).

This proposal represents a natural evolution of this work, moving from content and framework creation to active engagement programming. Through executing our funded Catalyst proposal, we are identifying several key insights that have shaped our approach:

(1) Educational content alone is not sufficient - Direct engagement through cohort-based learning and targeted outreach creates higher conversion rates to active participation. (2) Institutional partnerships are a force multiplier - Working with established organizations allows us to reach audiences already primed for adoption. (3) Different audience segments require tailored approaches - Our segmentation of audiences (New with No Experience, Invested in Crypto But Not Cardano, Cardano Community) emerged from our work with diverse learners. (4) Measuring engagement provides actionable insights - The analytics from our learning platforms have given us quantifiable data on the most effective educational approaches.

The proposal we are submitting here leverages our established educational content as a foundation while expanding our impact through direct engagement activities, institutional partnerships, and cohort-based learning opportunities that will significantly increase liquidity in the Cardano ecosystem.

CORE TEAM MEMBERS:

Derek Hopkins is the founder of Cryptofluency with proven expertise in the Cardano space since 2018. He has been consistently educating people about the Cardano ecosystem for eight years through mentorship, interactive courses, in-person events, and online channels. Derek has been participating in Cardano Native Projects since their inception in March 2022 and specializes in decentralized finance. Prior to working in Cardano full time, Derek spent a decade growing multiple businesses in the health and fitness space that offered intensive year-long credentialing programs for professionals, universities, and institutions. He is passionate about helping people improve their condition by empowering them through learning.

Cryptofluency: https://www.cryptofluency.io/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@cryptofluencyio X: https://x.com/cryptofluencyio

Nadia Hopkins calls Cardano home. Her career background includes extensive work in community engagement and curriculum development, including the construction of learning frameworks. She was the Catalyst Circle V3 Representative in 2022 and has completed two funded Catalyst proposals from Fund 8. She served as the elected Constitutional Delegate from Philadelphia at the Cardano Constitution Convention in Argentina and continues to contribute to the Governance Workstream Committee. She is active in the formation of the Ada.Eco project to create a network of women-led Cardano initiatives. She also produces the Cryptofluency YouTube Channel, the Cryptofluency website, and educational content.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nadiashopkins/ X: https://x.com/@ladyofada Completed Catalyst Proposals: Catalyst Global Participation Solution (#800102) CA/VCA Treasury for Rapid Funding (#800061)

Todd Fetter is a top-rated professional recruiter with a proven track record of connecting top-tier talent with industry-leading organizations. With over two decades of experience placing professionals in the fields of Accounting, Engineering, and Manufacturing, he is a seasoned recruiter. Todd’s approach is personalized and strategic, taking the time to understand goals, past achievements, preferred environment and styles, and long-term aspirations. He is an expert at crafting profiles and matching people and organizations with opportunities that align with their expertise and ambitions. With extensive experience across industries and corporate structures, Todd provides targeted, high-impact solutions that will develop new relationships for Cardano. Todd has been participating in the Cardano ecosystem since 2020. Todd’s experience will be key to this proposal’s marketing and outreach efforts.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/recruitingmanagertoddfetter/

Jamie Fitzgerald is an experienced Fintech professional who has worked in various fields, such as underwriting quantitative finance and insurance. His roles include software development at Fortune 500 companies and automation in those industries. Jamie has been focused on Python-based development, specifically machine learning, automated trading, and trading dashboard design. Jamie was introduced to cryptocurrency in 2019 and has been researching defi opportunities ever since. Most recently, Jamie joined Cryptofluency to create a market maker series on the Genius Yield platform. Jamie will be key to this proposal’s technical and analytical goals.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-fitzgerald001

Following delivery of the programming to cohorts funded through this proposal, we can either submit for additional funding for new cohorts, or we can convert to a paid services model.

Our educational approach has received endorsement from key stakeholders in the Cardano ecosystem:

Platform Partnerships: We have collaborative partnerships with Olympus Insights, Wisdom Courses, Andamio, and the Stuff.io/Book.io team, who have endorsed our educational methodology based on our current collaboration.

Protocol Support: Our content has been shared by leaders from Minswap DEX, Liqwid Finance, Yamfore, Genius Yield, Cornucopias, Lace Wallet, Nuvola, GoKey, DripDropz, Orcfax, SmartPlaces, Hosky, AdaHandle, and many other members of the community, recognizing the value of educated users to their protocols.

Community Feedback: Our Cardano allegiant YouTube content has received over 120,000 views with a 95% positive rating, demonstrating community validation of our educational approach.

Previous Funding Success: Our Catalyst Fund 13 proposal, "Cryptofluency: Increasing Liquidity with Cardano DeFi Courses," represents implicit endorsement from the Cardano community through the Catalyst process.

Delegate Recognition: As the Philadelphia Delegate to the Cardano Constitution Convention, Nadia Hopkins' election demonstrates credibility and community trust in our team's commitment to Cardano's values and vision.

None