Alpha Featured

ReFi DAO Wrapped 2024 & Whats Next?

ReFi DAO’s story from the past year—our successes, learnings, and ambitious visions for 2025.

Monty Merlin Bryant

20 Dec 2024 • 16 min read

Hello ReFi family, Monty Merlin here. As 2024 comes to a close, I’ve been reflecting on the journey we’ve embarked on this year at ReFi DAO and as part of the broader regenerative finance movement. The challenges we’ve faced, the milestones we’ve achieved, and the seeds we’re planting for the future. For me, 2024 has been a year of new beginnings, new relationships, and new foundations, setting the stage for what could be the most impactful chapter yet.

In this article, I want to share ReFi DAO’s story from the past year—our successes, our learnings, and our vision for whats next. Whether you’re new to ReFi or have been part of this movement from the beginning, I hope this retrospective offers inspiration and clarity as we collectively work toward a regenerative future.

Let’s dive in.

1 — Setting the Scene

Founded in January 2021 during the early days of the Regenerative Finance (ReFi) movement, ReFi DAO emerged amid a wave of excitement, energy, and funding, and fuelled by a booming crypto market. At the time, ReFi was just beginning to gain traction as a movement, and ReFi DAO played a foundational role in supporting its development through initiatives like the ReFi Podcast, ReFi Blog, and Founders Circles.

Since those early days, ReFi DAO has grown into a cornerstone of regenerative finance public goods:

Nearly 100,000 downloads of the ReFi Podcast.
100+ events supported in 58 cities worldwide, uniting regenerative communities.
200+ articles and knowledge resources published on the ReFi DAO Blog.

ReFi DAO 1.0 reached a turning point in 2023 with the launch of the ReFi Local Node Network, a decentralized ecosystem of autonomous communities innovating on localized regenerative solutions. While this was a key milestone, 2023 also marked a challenging year. The bear market hit hard, depleting funding across the ecosystem. Despite efforts to secure new financial support, critical proposals fell through and ReFi DAO’s core team disbanded. Our future was uncertain.

New Seeds at ReFi Week

Amid this uncertainty, ReFi Week at the Traditional Dream Factory (TDF) became a defining moment for ReFi DAO’s next chapter. During the gathering, John Dass and Daryl Edwards announced their departures from leadership, and John hosted a Source Transfer Ceremony to symbolize the passing of core stewardship.

The week went on to be a key moment of collective renewal. Over 40 participants came together in a spirit of co-creation, collaboration, and envisioning a new path forward for ReFi DAO. Through these conversations and shared efforts, the ReFi DAO-ification Working Group was formed, tasked with reimagining and laying the groundwork for the next evolution of the organization.

This pivotal gathering planted the seeds for what will become ‘ReFi DAO 2.0’…

2 — A New Chapter in 2024

2024 has been a year of forging new relationships, partnerships, and initiatives to support the regenerative finance movement. While the journey has required significant focus and effort, these new initiatives are creating a stronger foundation for ReFi DAO’s future.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the key highlights from this transformative year.

ReFi DAO x Carbon Copy

In collaboration with ReFi DAO, Carbon Copy published the State of ReFi 2024 Report, providing a comprehensive overview of the top projects, trends, and narratives shaping the ReFi space. Building on this partnership, we’ve launched ReFi Recap promoted through ReFi DAO channels. This is a weekly series sharing curated insights, news, and updates from across the ecosystem. Remember the ReFi Roundup anyone?

Local Node Incubator: Beta Cohort

The ReFi Local Node Incubator was a program designed to empower communities worldwide to spearhead regenerative finance efforts tailored to their local needs. Led by Scott Morris and Anna Kaic, during 13 sessions and over 100 participants, the program brought together aspiring and established local nodes to explore the theory and practice of regenerative finance.

The conclusion of this program also marked a new chapter for Anna Kaic, who transitioned to an exciting role with General Magic as Grants Manager. Anna’s leadership and dedication have been instrumental to ReFi DAO over the years, and her impact will continue to shape its journey in the years to come.

ReFi Podcast Season 4

Taking over from John Dass, Season 4 of the ReFi Podcast introduced new hosts, Maya and Tereza, who have brought exciting new energy and vision to the series. This season has featured an incredible lineup of guests, diving into some of the foundational topics, ideas and leaders shaping the ReFi movement.

Key stats from Season 4 so far include:

11 episodes, accompanied by 13 blog posts and 41 YouTube shorts.
23,826 plays on Apple Podcasts and Spotify in just the last 90 days.
57 collectors on Pods.media, reflecting growing engagement in the ecosystem.

Behind the scenes, the production and delivery of these episodes require an incredible amount of effort, coordination, and care. Maya and Tereza have poured their passion and talent into making this podcast a reality. If you’ve enjoyed their work, sharing your love and support goes a long way. Whether it’s reaching out with words of encouragement, spreading the word about the podcast, or offering financial support—such as collecting episodes on Pods.media—every contribution helps sustain this invaluable resource for the ReFi community.

Collect Episodes

The Birth of Celo Public Goods

Co-initiated by Monty Merlin and Luuk Weber, Celo Public Goods (CeloPG) launched with overwhelming support from the Celo Community. Some key highlights of this year have included:

Support for Climate Solutions GG20 Round, allocating $300,000 in matching funds to web3 climate initiatives.
The launch of CeloRPGF0, the ecosystem’s first Retroactive Public Goods Funding round distributing 250k CELO.
Supporting the GIV-Earth Round, the first environment-focused quadratic funding round on Giveth.
Real World Builders and Regen Coordination launch during GG21…
Celo Citizen RPGF - applications open now!

Celo Public Goods has quickly become a key driver of regenerative innovation within the Celo ecosystem and aligning deeply with ReFi DAO’s mission.

Regen Coordination Genesis

This year marked the official launch of the Regen Coordination initiative, aiming to empower a network of local and regional regenerative communities, catalyzing collaboration and impact at scale.

GG21 Regen Coordination Genesis Round distributed $50,000 in funding to a diverse set of regenerative communities, including ReFi Local Nodes, GreenPill Local Chapters, and Celo Regional DAOs.
BioFi Pathfinders Round: The first quadratic funding round for bioregional organizing teams, supporting advanced strategies for decentralized, place-based financial governance.
Regen Citizens Genesis Round: Recognized and rewarding some of the heroes of the regenerative movement, highlighting individual contributors who have made meaningful impacts over the years.
AgroforestDAO Round (ongoing): Supporting agroforestry and ecological restoration projects across diverse bioregions.

Total funds raised by projects in Regen Coordination programs this year has been over $236,000 🌱

This work has not only bolstered the regenerative finance movement but also strengthened ReFi DAO’s role as a steward of decentralized and collaborative funding systems. By empowering grassroots communities and fostering collaboration across ecosystems, Regen Coordination is building foundations to scale regeneration globally.

Bioregional Finance: A New Frontier

In 2024, ReFi DAO expanded its focus into Bioregional Finance (BioFi)—a transformative approach that grounds regenerative strategies within specific geographies. The collaboration between The BioFi Project, Open Civics, Design School for Regenerating Earth, and Regen Coordination to launch the BioFi Pathfinders Round was a significant milestone.

ReFi DAO has played a key role in advancing collaboration with BioFi, fostering the emergence of bioregional-scale nodes such as ReFi Mediterranean and supporting participation from ReFi Costa Rica and ReFi Uganda in the round. Monty’s talks on Bioregionalism and Web3—shared with the BioFi Community of Practice and featured at events like Funding the Commons and Regen Hub during DevCon — highlighted how BioFi and Web3 are converging to shape the future of regenerative finance.

EBF Impact Scribe

Monty with ReFi EBF teamed up with Jon Ruth of Climate Coordination Network and Spark Eco to design and develop EBF Impact Scribe — an innovative tool built to enhance the process of measuring and communicating project impact based on the Ecological Benefits Framework (EBF).

The alpha version of the tool, now live on Arbitrum and Celo, enables users to complete the EBF question set and store this data onchain. Using Privvy for account abstraction, users can access the tool with just an email—no blockchain experience required. Data is stored as a JSON file on IPFS, with an attestation generated via EAS. All transactions are gas-free for the user, ensuring a seamless and accessible experience. You can test the alpha here: Impact Scribe. Much more to come!

Octant Epoch 6: An EOY Community Win!

During the end of 2024, ReFi DAO was shortlisted for Octant Epoch 6, joining a competitive cohort of 47 projects vying for funding to advance their missions. Through the collective efforts of our global community, ReFi DAO ranked 12th in the Snapshot voting phase, securing a place in the Allocation Window starting January 2025. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who supported us in this process!

If you haven’t yet already, now could be the perfect time to buy and lock some GLM in the Octant app. Doing so will enable you to participate in the governance of future Octant Epochs and initiatives. With some potential exciting opportunities for Regens on the horizon in 2025, this is your chance to help shape what’s next for the regenerative finance movement. 👀

State of the Network Research 2024

In 2024, ReFi DAO conducted an extensive State of the Network Research project to assess the progress, challenges, and needs of Local Nodes across the globe. The research culminated in two key reports:

Successes, Core Activities, and Insights Report: Highlighting the achievements, best practices, and primary activities of Local Nodes, showcasing their impact on the ReFi movement.
Challenges, Support, and Recommendations Report: Exploring common challenges faced by nodes, evaluating the support provided by ReFi DAO, and presenting actionable recommendations to strengthen the network.

Explore Reports

The insights from this research are already shaping ReFi DAO’s strategic direction for 2025, ensuring our initiatives align with the needs of the Local Nodes and the broader ecosystem. By responding to these findings, ReFi DAO is poised to provide even more effective support for communities driving regeneration at the ground level.

ReFi DAO Holiday Lotto: Join the Fun!

Before we get into 2025, here’s a festive way to celebrate the season and support the regenerative finance movement: the ReFi DAO Holiday Lotto!

🎅 Kickstarted with $200 from Glo Dollar and ReFi DAO Global, the prize pool grows with every ticket sold. If no lucky numbers are drawn on Christmas Eve, the winnings are split evenly among all ticket holders.

🎟 Tickets are $10 USDGLO via the Base Network—you can bridge or swap tokens easily at Jumper Exchange. Every ticket sale helps fuel ReFi DAO Global initiatives or supports the ReFi Podcast, meaning your contribution goes straight back into building a regenerative future.

Enter the Lotto!

This is just the beginning—stay tuned for more LottoPGF experiments in 2025!

3 — 2025: What’s Next?

2025 is poised to be a breakthrough year, with a number of ambitious initiatives on the horizon that will build on the foundations laid in 2024. Let’s take a look at some of the key milestones and plans for the year ahead.

Key Milestone 1: Impact Data Commons

In 2025, ReFi DAO & Regen Coordination will launch the Impact Data Commons, a scalable system for tracking, verifying, and reporting impact across the ecosystem. By leveraging emerging standards like the Common Impact Data Standard (CIDS) and integrating Web3 tools, this initiative aims to enhance transparency, accountability and effectiveness of impact measurement and reporting. Collaborations with organizations like MetaGov and DAOStar aim to position this as a DAOIP standard, embedding it into the Web3 ecosystem.

Kicking off this initiative will be the Regen Coordination Retro & Pilot Cohort, a collaborative learning journey designed to co-create and refine these frameworks alongside a curated selection of participating projects. Workshops, experiments, and shared learning sessions will explore and co-create how best to integrate these tools and frameworks into unique contexts. The pilot cohort will culminate in a planned GG23 Regen Coordination Retro Round, allocating $60,000 in retroactive rewards based on the verified impact data collected. Together, this collaborative effort will lay the foundation for scalable, data-driven coordination across the regenerative movement.

Key Milestone 2 — Local ReFi Toolkit

In 2025, ReFi DAO will evolve the ReFi Local Node Toolkit V1 into the Regen Coordination Local ReFi Toolkit, expanding its scope to serve both the Local Node Network and the broader Regen Coordination ecosystem. This updated resource will incorporate contributions from allied networks like GreenPill Chapters, Celo Regional Hubs, and the BioFi Project, offering a shared repository of playbooks, guides, and tools. To further enhance the toolkit, a bounties program will encourage community contributions, ensuring localized resources and refinements. This initiative will empower communities and accelerate the adoption of regenerative solutions worldwide.

Key Milestone 3: Prosperity Passport

In 2025, ReFi DAO will continue its partnership with Celo Public Goods (CeloPG) to advance the Prosperity Passport, an innovative platform for on-chain identity and reputation within the ReFi movement. Launching in January 2025, the Prosperity Passport will feature a variety of Celo and ReFi related badges, including the ReFi DAO Badge, an on-chain credential recognizing key contributors to ReFi DAO’s mission, including podcast guests, blog writers, event attendees, core stewards, and Local Node leaders.

Ultimately, the further development of this tool could see it become central to ReFi DAO’s 2025 strategy. Imagine being able to aggregate the on-chain ReFi contributions and impacts of all members in an entire bioregion. Imagine how resources could flow seamlessly to local nodes and bioregions with the highest verifiable on-chain impact and contributions.

Key Milestone 4: ReFi DAO 2.0

The full launch of ReFi DAO 2.0 in 2025 will mark a transformative evolution for ReFi DAO, designed to enhance its coordination, governance, and capacity to drive the regenerative finance movement forward. This milestone is about building the next generation of infrastructure, tools, and frameworks to empower a growing global network of regens and regenerative communities.

At its core, ReFi DAO 2.0 aims to deliver:

Identity and Reputation Systems: Tools like the Prosperity Passport and ReFi DAO Points will form the backbone of contribution recognition and collaboration across the ecosystem, rewarding participation while creating new pathways for governance and resource allocation.
Impact Tracking Frameworks: Initiatives like the Impact Data Commons will provide robust systems for measuring and verifying impact, enabling transparent, data-driven decision-making at scale.
Governance and Legal Structures: Foundational documents, such as the ReFi DAO Constitution and Local Node Charter, will formalize relationships, values, and shared principles across the network, enhancing accountability and coherence.
Advanced Tooling: Platforms like Guild.xyz for community onboarding, Hats Protocol for role management, and Gardens.fund for experimentation with community conviction voting will streamline collaboration and decision-making across the DAO.

The rollout of ReFi DAO 2.0 will be guided by a collaborative and iterative process, with community participation playing a central role. Workshops, feedback sessions, and pilot programs will ensure the tools and systems developed are reflective of the diverse needs of the community.

Building the ReFi Network Nation

Altogether, these milestones will further strengthen ReFi DAO as a Network Nation—a global ecosystem of decentralized communities and initiatives united by shared values and a common mission. This network will enable resources to flow to the places and people creating the most measurable impact, ensuring that regeneration happens from the ground up.

4 — Growing Together

The challenges we face as a planet—climate change, biodiversity loss, and social inequality—are massive. Up to $275 trillion USD is needed to address these crises by 2050. Yet within these challenges lies an unprecedented opportunity. The transition to a regenerative economy represents a chance to reshape how we steward resources, build resilient systems, and empower communities to thrive.

ReFi DAO’s work over the past year has laid some foundations for meeting these challenges. These building blocks are already enabling regeneration to happen at local and global levels, and 2025 offers the potential to scale this work even further. The work requires all of us. Whether you’re a builder, funder, or community member, there are many ways to get involved and help shape the future of this movement.

2025 could be a breakthrough year—not just for ReFi DAO, but for the regenerative finance movement as a whole. To everyone who has supported the movement, thank you. LFGrow 🌱