Lotto PGF uses a lottery-style system to allocate funds to public goods projects or contributors. Instead of competing for limited slots or votes, anyone who meets basic criteria is entered into a pool — and winners are chosen at random.
How It Works
Lotto PGF replaces competitive evaluation with provable randomness.
- Define eligibility — establish basic criteria for entry (active contributor, verified human, community member)
- Build the participant pool — anyone meeting criteria is automatically entered
- Apply randomness — transparent, provable randomness mechanisms select winners
- Distribute funds — selected winners receive grants from the pool
- Optional weighting — contributions, endorsements, or identity verification can influence selection probability
Advantages
- Creates low-barrier access to funds without extensive application requirements
- Reduces bias and favoritism in allocation decisions
- Spreads funding chances across many participants rather than concentrating in a few
- Makes public goods funding more playful, accessible, and low-stakes
Limitations
- Not suited for high-stakes or large-scale capital allocation requiring precision
- Cannot evaluate project quality or likelihood of impact
- Unsuitable for contexts demanding accountability or milestone tracking
- May feel arbitrary in resource-constrained environments
Best Used When
- Microgrant programs want to distribute small amounts widely
- Early-stage community funding rounds want to reduce application anxiety
- Ecosystems prioritize broad participation over strategic evaluation
- Complementary mechanism alongside QF or Direct Grants to reach different populations
Examples and Use Cases
Monthly DAO Lottery
A DAO distributes $500 grants to five random contributors each month, rewarding ongoing participation without competitive pressure.
Community Garden Funding
Community garden and mutual aid projects receive randomized micro-grants, making funding accessible to groups that struggle with traditional applications.
Protocol Thank-You Lottery
Protocols run periodic "thank you lotteries" rewarding ecosystem participants who contributed during a given period.