Episode 284: Devconnect 2025 with Trent Van Epps

Feb 27, 2026

Trent Van Epps, Protocol Guild organizer and Ethereum Foundation protocol coordination staff, talks funding for core protocol developers and the 1% Pledge funding vehicle. He explores why open-source contributors are underpaid and how collective representation can unlock larger support. He also discusses diversity’s role in protocol resilience and how funding dynamics differ between open source and blockchain.

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INSIGHT

Collective Funding Shields Core Protocol Work

Protocol Guild centralizes funding for core protocol developers to reduce chronic undercompensation.
Trent says the Guild solicits donations across the ecosystem and has about 190 members to ensure continuity for protocol maintenance.

INSIGHT

Hot Ball Of Money Misses Maintainers

Core contributors are undercompensated despite a lot of capital because funds often don't flow to maintainers of shared infrastructure.
Trent calls it a "hot ball of money" where investment exists but routing to foundational work is hard.

ADVICE

Make Maintainers Legible To Funders

Surface contributors' profiles and make a direct case for funding using charitable and philanthropic norms.
Trent recommends leveraging decades of open source fundraising best practices and explicit advocacy to attract support.

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Guest

Trent Van Epps

Panelists

Eriol Fox | Victory Brown

Show Notes

In this episode of Sustain, host Eriol Fox and co-host Victory Brown are at the Devconnect Conference in Buenos Aires with Trent Van Epps, an organizer of Protocol Guild and member of the Ethereum Foundation. They discuss the vital role of Protocol Guild in funding core protocol developers, addressing systemic issues of under-compensation in open-source projects. Trent also explores the similarities and differences between funding in the open-source community and the Ethereum ecosystem, emphasizing the importance of collective representation and the unique financial structures of blockchain technology. The conversation highlights the necessity of diversity and inclusion within the Ethereum community and shares insights on the impact of adverse regulatory pressures and funding challenges. Press download now!

[00:00:29] Trent explains Protocol Guild and he connects Guild work to his EF role coordinating network upgrades and ensuring stable funding and continuity.

[00:02:35] Trent tells us why core contributors are under compensated and notes there’s a “hot ball of money” problem.

[00:05:21] Eriol and Trent discuss discomfort around money in open source. the myth of pure altruism, and the reality that “you can’t eat your code.”

[00:06:28] What can open source learn from Ethereum? Trent points to classic charitable giving practices and highlights Ethereum’s difference and stresses that funding can be used as a political lever.

[00:11:07] Trent contrasts different contributor needs and points out diversity/heterogeneity as essential to Ethereum’s robustness and security.

[00:15:40] Trent describes tight social bonds in Ethereum formed by “youth of the ecosystem” and shared regulatory pressures, which push the community to cooperate defensively, and he talks about how Protocol Guild operates like a loose union/syndicate.

[00:20:03] He outlines their funding vehicle called the 1% Pledge.

[00:22:07] Trent acknowledges high-profile scams and speculative excess get media attention, overshadowing serious work, like the technological waves with railroads. He points to Argentina, Kenya, and other places with weak institutions.

[00:24:59] Eriol closes the discussion with a call to widen your bubble.

[00:26:08] Trent’s project spotlight is ZKP2P and a great book by Benjamin Birkinbine. Also, he shares where you can find him on the internet.

Credits

Produced by Richard Littauer
Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound
Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound
Logistical support by Tina Arboleda from Digital Savvies

Special Guest: Trent Van Epps.

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