Research engineer Freelance

Location: Remote
Term: 4-5 months, deliverable-based
Pay: $34,800

Imagine an Internet where democracy is at least as available as autocracy. The Metagovernance Project is building a governance layer for the Internet—an ecosystem of interoperable governance and community-building tools that works across a range of digital platforms, from social networks to online games to blockchains.

As research engineer, you will own the design, development, and testing of an open-source, standards-driven governance framework based on the Metagov spec and the Web Monetization standard. You will work with a global research team in online governance, and have regular 1-to-1 calls with a research lead. As part of design and development, you will need to work with and orchestrate a number of existing open-source governance libraries and applications. As part of testing, you will need to work with a number of platform APIs, including those of Discourse, Slack, and Discord. Additionally, you will be expected to communicate your work to the broader research community, to build collaborations both within and outside the Metagovernance Project, and to participate and contribute to the Metagovernance Project’s weekly research seminar.

You may be a fit for this role if you have…

• Experience with Internet standards and standards-driven software design
• The ability to work independently and reach key milestones with minimal supervision.
• A mission-driven focus on having a significant impact on the world through technological advancement, complemented by a stubborn optimism for the future.

Bonus points if you have…

• Demonstrated interest in online community, governance, political theory, economics, or law.
• Master’s or PhD in a scientific or technical field (or equivalent experience).
• Prior experience working with governance libraries and online platforms.
• A history of independent research achievement.

How to apply for this position:

Submit a CV and a short message explaining your interest to hello@metagov.org. You may also provide a link to a web page, git repo, or other portfolio of past work.