The co-op governance problem
One-member-one-vote is central to many co-ops, yet some decisions need to reveal which proposals carry deep conviction before they reach a meeting, committee, or board.
Nicolas is useful for the signal-gathering layer before proposal prioritization, budget attention, policy tradeoffs, and member consultation where intensity matters.
How Nicolas fits
Members allocate finite voice credits across alternatives, and because stronger support or opposition costs more, a member can show conviction while making that intensity accountable.
Delegation lets members route credits to trusted peers when they do not have the context to vote directly, while direct voting overrides active delegation for that decision.
What it does not replace
Nicolas does not replace bylaws, member registers, board procedures, labor law, or the co-op's formal voting rules.
It is best used before or alongside formal governance, when the co-op needs a more informative decision signal than a poll or informal show of hands.