Cardano Governance
Participate in Cardano’s governance and shape the future of the ecosystem. Your voice matters in guiding decisions that impact the network, its applications, and its growth.
Cardano's governance model
Cardano’s governance model empowers individuals to participate actively, with all votes recorded immutably on the blockchain.
Cardano’s governance model empowers individuals to participate actively, with all votes recorded immutably on the blockchain.
Cardano’s governance is designed to be decentralized and community-driven, ensuring that decisions about the network’s future are made transparently and collectively by its stakeholders.
Cardano governance enables the community to influence blockchain development through contributions to the Cardano Improvement Proposal (CIPs) program, direct parameter changes, treasury withdrawals, and other governance actions.
Decentralized governance strengthens Cardano’s security and resilience by distributing decision-making power, reducing single points of failure, and ensuring network stability.
Governance actions require approval from at least two of the three governance roles: Delegated Representatives (DReps), Stake Pool Operators (SPOs), and the Constitutional Committee (CC), ensuring fairness and transparency.
Anyone can participate in discussions about Cardano’s constitution, it's budget, the role of delegated representatives, the Parameter Committee, and many other topics.
As a registered Delegated Representative (DRep), the Cardano Foundation participates in governance following the Ethos and Principles defined in ‘Our Cardano.
The Cardano Foundation serves on the Interim Constitutional Committee (ICC), ensuring governance actions align with the Cardano Constitution while maintaining neutrality and transparency.
Understanding Governance Actions
Understanding Governance Actions
Governance decisions on Cardano involve seven governance action types, including Protocol Parameter Changes, Treasury Withdrawals, and Hard Fork Initiations. A minimum of two of the three governance roles (DReps, SPOs, and CC) must approve an action. As an ICC member and DRep, the Cardano Foundation is committed to voting on all governance actions and provides a detailed rationale.
Below is an overview of our recent voting activity.
- Our DRep ID: drep1ydpfkyjxzeqvalf6fgvj7lznrk8kcmfnvy9hyl6gr6ez6wgsjaelx
- Our CC ID: cc_cold1zwmqzgp5hg98ujhmhuk859pjlzpy4mjjnxjguw8yr22jdps6c64hp
Loading...
Governance Deliberations: Meeting Notes
Governance Deliberations: Meeting Notes
The Governance Advisory Team, consisting of subject-matter experts, regularly reviews governance actions and advises on decision-making. To maintain transparency, we publish meeting notes summarizing key discussions and decisions.
12/02/2025
The meeting focused on the upcoming governance votes for the New Constitution governance action, including the sequencing of ICC and DRep votes and the required legal approvals. Discussions also covered post-vote actions such as GitHub updates and public communications. The team debated the lack of a formal constitutional amendment process beyond the on-chain governance action and the risks of excessive minor changes.
05/02/2025
The meeting focused on the New Constitution governance action, assessing its constitutionality and potential post-implementation concerns. The team reviewed the action against the interim constitution’s articles and guardrails, finding no constitutional violations, despite recognizing flaws in the newly proposed constitution. A prior commitment to vote “yes” with the Cardano Foundation DRep was reaffirmed, and the team discussed concerns regarding potential future violations related to introduced Cardano Tenets. Next steps for the team include providing their individual recommendations and drafting rationales for both ICC and DRep votes, ensuring alignment with the Interim Constitution and previous commitments.
29/01/2025
The meeting focused on the upcoming New Constitution governance action, marking the first instance where all registered DReps can vote on a governance action with an on-chain effect. The team discussed the constitutionality assessment process, voting timelines, and approval structures. The discussion also included potential structural improvements to internal processes, including optimizing meeting frequency and restructuring the advisory team.
22/01/2025
The meeting focused on the Plomin hard fork governance action, which has met the SPO approval threshold of 51% and awaits the required votes from the Interim Constitutional Committee (ICC). Discussions centered on node version adoption rates, security risks, and the rationale for approving the action. The team debated the transparency of the hotfix process and its impact on governance. Further discussions explored the ICC’s role in governance oversight, the need for improved security communication, and upcoming governance actions, including the budget process and new constitution submission.
Our Cardano
Our Cardano’ outlines the Ethos and Principles that guide the Cardano Foundation’s participation in governance, ensuring transparency, accountability, and responsible stewardship in fostering a thriving, decentralized ecosystem.
How We Make Governance Decisions
How We Make Governance Decisions
The Cardano Foundation has established a Governance Advisory Team, consisting of subject-matter experts, to evaluate governance proposals based on constitutional alignment and governance merit. The process follows these steps:
01
Governance Action Intake
Governance Action details are recorded on the Foundation’s Jira Kanban board, and Advisory Team members are notified.
02
Initial Assessment
The Advisory Team assesses clarity, potential impact, and criticality of the action and requests input from relevant subject-matter experts (SMEs).
03
Full Review
The Advisory Team conducts an in-depth review, including a **constitutional review** (as an ICC member) and a **governance impact assessment** (as a DRep).
04
Advisory Team Recommendation
The Advisory Team votes on the Governance Action.
05
Rationale Drafting
Two voting rationales are drafted—one for the constitutional assessment and another for the DRep decision.
06
Executive Committee Review
The Executive Committee reviews and finalizes the rationale.
07
On-Chain Vote Submission
The vote is submitted on-chain, with metadata including the rationale behind the decision.