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Inspiration

Our team is composed of crypto-enthusiasts, and we initially set out to integrate web3 into Vanderbilt. We began by looking at any institution’s most outdated tech — the diploma. A piece of paper that can only certify enrollment post-grad, is irrelevant to employers, and is easily lost. There had to be a superior alternative — something that is publicly verifiable, accessible to employers, and immutable. We strived to create something that could change the status quo of institutions by making diplomas more accountable, transparent, and valuable.

While the initial idea spawned from diplomas, we realized that tokenizing one’s affiliation with Vanderbilt would create value far greater than a verifiable credential. In addition to the benefits of a digitized diploma, this token could be used for access control, just as Duo currently serves as the 2FA solution for campus sign-on. With this in mind, we set out to demonstrate the advantages of such a system by building the Vanderbilt Acorns app, offering integrations with mainstream web2 platforms as well as novel community-centric web3 protocols.

What it Does

Overview

A Vanderbilt Acorn is an ERC-721M NFT that grants access to a token-gated ecosystem of integrations with web3 protocols such as Syndicate and Snapshot, and web2 platforms such as Google Cloud, GitHub, Discord, and Telegram. While NFTs are typically known for their trading value, the Acorn is non-transferrable, and instead is an immutable record of one’s affiliation with Vanderbilt.

User Experience

When a user first enters the app, they are prompted to connect their crypto wallet of choice - a web3 connection is required for entry. Once connected, they enter their Vanderbilt email, which we verify before allowing the user to mint their Acorn. After a user mints their NFT, they gain access to The Hub, where each of the integrations can be accessed. Our standout integrations include:

Vanderbilt Syndicate Investment Club - a collective investment fund where users can deposit USDC and vote on investment decisions, such as buying ETH.
Vanderbilt Governance Snapshot - a governance platform where Acorn holders can propose and vote on Vanderbilt operational improvements. For instance, “Extend Munchie Mart hours to 2 AM during finals week.”
Acorns Google Workspace - a shared Google Drive with token-gated sharing access. Some possible applications include research papers, alumni records, and school contact lists.
Acorns GitHub Workspace - a shared GitHub workspace with token-gated access control. Could be used for open-source community work, job postings
Vanderbilt Discord - a private communication channel for Acorn holders

For demo purposes, we have built a backdoor to avoid the token gate for The Hub. A production build would require token ownership for entry.

How We Built It

Front-End

Our front end is built with React on the Next.js framework. We used the Chakra-UI style library, and used wagmi for smart contract reads and writes.

Back-End

Our backend is mainly built in Solidity and is deployed to the Ethereum mainnet. We also used Firebase for email verification when users input their Vanderbilt email.

Challenges We Ran Into

Our challenges all stemmed from the time constraints of the hackathon - agreeing on an idea and building a proof-of-concept in one day is difficult. Nonetheless, we are happy with our product.

Accomplishments That We're Proud Of

Generation of composable and upgradable “Vanderbilt Acorn” ERC-721M NFTs
Website authentication integrations with Metamask and Coinbase Wallet
Creation of Syndicate Investment Club and Snapshot Governance DAO
Integration of token-gated Discord and Telegram servers for community management, messaging, and video conferencing as well as Google Suiteand GitHub integrations

What We Learned

First and foremost, our team needed to dive deep into the Solidity smart contract programming language to customize our Acorns contract and query it from the front end. Further, this smart contract to front-end connection required an understanding of the wagmi React hooks library, which enabled standardized contract reads and writes. Through this hackathon, we built web3 development skills we hope to utilize in furthering this project and developing new ideas.

What's next for Vanderbilt Acorns

Our team thoroughly enjoyed working on Acorns, and we plan to further flesh out the idea after the hackathon. Through the process of refining our problem, the idea for Acorns grew from universal identification to an exciting and novel reimagination of how verifiable credentials can be used to assess and acreditate higher-ed. Further down the road, our team believes that Acorns have the potential to represent our educational experiences (coursework, research, leadership, etc.) on-chain as proof of work. This would effectively create a more descriptive and effective resume, and afford students more opportunities to interface with companies.