🧭 Launching a MiniApps Accelerator Pilot in Chapada Diamantina (Celo Localism in Action)

[CeLatam]

Authors: Marcelo (CeLatam)
Category: Ecosystem Development
Status: Draft for Feedback
Date: June 2025

Summary

We are about to launch a 3-month pilot program, as an outcome of the coordination between CeLatam, through its Venture Studio, and local organizations, to activate students, microentrepreneurs, and community organizations in Chapada Diamantina (Bahia, Brazil) using MiniPay, MiniApps, and onchain task-based funding. The pilot aims to establish the first onchain economy in the region through Learn2Earn programs, community-led MiniApp development, and real-world microtasks posted by partners.

• Region: Chapada Diamantina (24 municipalities, 400K+ residents)
• Focus: Education, entrepreneurship, sustainability
• Tools: MiniPay, MiniApps, Lemonade, Valora, Farcaster
• Goal: Build and test a replicable model of regenerative, local-first Web3 activation
• New in this pilot:
  • Onboarding of Micro Entrepreneurs
  • Partner-led tasks posted by a real local organization

Motivation

Celo’s long-term vision calls for grounded, regenerative economic transformation. Chapada is an ideal launchpad for this due to:

• High youth unemployment + migration
• Low digital/financial inclusion
• Rich civic and educational infrastructure
• Urgent environmental pressure from “green energy” projects
  (Folha article on solar project resistance)

Time-sensitive opportunity: As economic development reaches Chapada through new mega projects, neighborhoods, and roads, the longer Celo waits, the more this opportunity becomes apparent to other protocols already establishing an official presence in Bahia.

Pilot Design

Duration: 3 months
Funding: $3,500 (of which $1,000 already funded via Gitcoin)
Structure: 100% task-based. Every dollar is earned via onchain-verified action from students, teachers, and local small business.

Key Activities

• Create 100 MiniPay wallets
• Deploy 6 student-built MiniApps
• Onboard 10+ organizations to post paid tasks
• Run weekly support via Lemonade + X
• Complete 2,000+ onchain transactions
• Onboard microentrepreneurs via Mulheres Mil
• Partner-led microtasks for students and builders
• Showcase learnings with community-facing meetups

Phase Breakdown

Phase	Activities
Week 1	Educational onboarding (MiniPay, Valora, Farcaster, Signal)
Week 2	Blockchain Club launch + community meetups
Week 4	MiniApp ideation + entrepreneur onboarding via Mulheres Mil
Week 6	External task bounty integration + Web3 bounties
Week 7	Learnings and iteration

Local Fit

Existing Infrastructure:

• IFBA university campus in Seabra
• UEFS and IF Baiano campus in Cruz das Almas
• Leverage state-backed innovation hubs (Espaço Colaborar)
• Tap into small businesses and learning spaces where locals gather to share skills
• Public policy support for women-led entrepreneurship via Mulheres Mil

Microentrepreneurship Landscape:

• ~30–35K active businesses in the region
• 80% classified as MEI or microenterprises
• Key sectors: Tourism, Retail, Personal Services

Metrics for Success

By Month 3:

• 100 active MiniPay users
• 6 deployed MiniApps
• 50+ Learn2Earn completions
• 10+ task-posting orgs
• $2K earned onchain
• 3+ public sector MOUs
• 50K+ media impressions
• Community co-authored DAO logic prepared for expansion

Long-term vision includes:

• MiniApps in all 24 municipalities
• $100K Paraguaçu Web3 Fund
• Local DAO-powered microloan system
• Community-owned infrastructure for education and ReFi pilots

Key Partners

• CeLatam: Lead coordinator and metrics analyst
• Blockchain na Escola: Education and onboarding
• Let’sCoCreate: Venture oriented education
• NEABI @ IFBA Seabra: Public academic partner
• Liga Colaborativa dos Povos: Grassroots Indigenous and Afro-Brazilian coalition
• Gira Hub Web3: Regional activation specialists
• Ekonavi: Ecological governance and DAO strategy
• DeTrash: Real-world task-based Web3 incentives for sustainability

Strategic Alignment

• Celo 2030 Vision: Regenerative economy via local coordination and onchain delivery
• Ethereum Localism: Community sovereignty, peer-to-peer networks, and participatory governance
• Colombia DeFi Pilot Precedent: Adapts proven impact infrastructure to a new educational context

We’re sharing this pilot proposal for community feedback. If we hit our 3-month metrics, we’ll prepare a CGP to scale.

• What risks or blockers do you foresee?
• What orgs or tools should we bring in?

[ronii]

Hello, my name is Ronnald, but you can call me Roni, I’m 24 years old and I’m currently part of the People’s Liga Colaborativa, and now in this new project.

[benibauer]

Hi everyone,

I’m Benjamin Bauer, a builder focused on product, growth, community in Latin America, and someone who proudly grew up in the Chapada Diamantina region.

First of all, I want to say how inspiring and timely this MiniApps Accelerator pilot is. Having spent my childhood and youth exploring these towns and communities, I know firsthand both the unique cultural wealth and the persistent challenges of digital access, local economic opportunities, and sustainable innovation in the Chapada.

This initiative aligns perfectly with what Celo represents: bringing regenerative finance and real tools to local economies that truly need them. The Chapada has immense potential to become a hub for local-first Web3 use cases (RWA, infraestructure, payments), and this pilot is a clear step in that direction.

I’m genuinely excited and fully supportive of this proposal, and I’d love to be actively involved in any way possible, connecting with local stakeholders, helping design the onboarding journey, supporting outreach, promoting bootcamps, hackathons and business development based on my regional knowledge and community network.

Congrats to the CeLatam for putting this forward, count me in to help make it a success!

— Benjamin Bauer

[Dayane]

I’m Dayane Gonçalves, part of the team co-creating this pilot with a shared vision of building meaningful, local-first Web3 experiences. I lead Let’s CoCreate, listed in this proposal as a venture oriented education partner.

Our mission is to turn learning into real-world projects by guiding learners — even complete beginners — through hands-on experiences with blockchain, AI, and co-creation. We’ve already piloted this model with over 30 participants and are now excited to support the Chapada community in building and testing their first MiniApps.

As an instructional designer, I’ll be working closely on the educational side of the pilot, designing learning paths, facilitating ideation workshops, and helping students and microentrepreneurs turn ideas into working prototypes.

We believe this pilot represents a rare opportunity to align regenerative values, community action, and onchain tools in a real territory. It’s not just about teaching Web3, it’s about creating the conditions for people to build their own local economies, using technology that works for them.

Let’s CoCreate is here to make that happen, with grounded strategy and a collaborative mindset.

[brenonavi]

Hey guys!
Breno from Ekonavi here. That´s awesome!! We are very excited to take part in the blockchain club and to expand Celo in Brazil.
Congrats everyone for this amazing work!

[Donjorge]

I am truly honored and excited to be part of this groundbreaking pilot project in Chapada Diamantina. Collaborating with CeLatam and local organizations to empower students, microentrepreneurs, and community groups through Web3 tools like MiniPay and MiniApps is both a privilege and a powerful opportunity.

This initiative resonates deeply with my values—driving education, sustainability, and inclusive entrepreneurship—and I’m inspired by its bold vision to spark regenerative transformation through on-chain task-based financing and community-led innovation. I believe this pilot will lay a strong foundation for a scalable, positive impact in the region and beyond.

I’m proud to contribute to building a more connected, empowered, and sustainable future for Chapada’s communities.