Cardano Governance
Shape the future of Cardano. Participate in governance and have your voice heard on the network's direction, applications, and growth.
Cardano's governance model
Cardano’s decentralized and community-driven governance ensures stakeholders make collective, transparent network decisions.
Cardano’s decentralized and community-driven governance ensures stakeholders make collective, transparent network decisions.
Empowering active participation with immutable, on-chain voting.
Cardano governance enables the community to influence blockchain development through treasury withdrawals, parameter changes, and other governance actions.
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.
Decentralized governance strengthens Cardano’s security and resilience by distributing decision-making power, reducing single points of failure, and ensuring network stability.
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.
Anyone can participate in discussions about Cardano’s constitution, it's budget, the role of delegated representatives, the Parameter Committee, and many other topics.
Understanding governance actions
Understanding governance actions
Cardano’s governance decisions involve seven action types, including Protocol Parameter Changes, Treasury Withdrawals, and Hard Fork Initiations. At least 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 providing a detailed rationale. Below is an overview of our recent voting activity.
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DRep ID: drep1ydpfkyjxzeqvalf6fgvj7lznrk8kcmfnvy9hyl6gr6ez6wgsjaelx
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CC ID: cc_cold1zwmqzgp5hg98ujhmhuk859pjlzpy4mjjnxjguw8yr22jdps6c64hp
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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.
30/07/2025
The Governance Advisory Team meeting on July 30th included updates on the Cardano Foundation DRep's votes on all 39 treasury withdrawals of the Intersect budget and the submission of the “Update Constitutional Committee” governance action for DRep voting. The GovTools and Tempo budget proposals are unlikely to pass due to insufficient approval. Discussions also covered an RFP process for budget allocation, while raising concerns about centralization and proposing an alternative DRep-led budget allocation process. The team decided to maintain their current stance on the RWA proposal for Haus, emphasizing the integrity of the voting process.
23/07/2025
During the Governance Advisory Team meeting on July 23rd, discussions focused on the GovTools and Tempo.vote budget info actions. It was deemed unlikely that GovTools would achieve its approval threshold, and Tempo was considered potentially unconstitutional due to insufficient oversight. Updates were provided on treasury withdrawals approval status and discussions held regarding the approach to on-chain versus off-chain voting results for the 39 proposals. Upcoming governance actions regarding the Constitutional Committee change and its interplay with the treasury withdrawal timeline were discussed.
16/07/2025
The Governance Advisory Team meeting on July 16th provided updates on 3 active governance actions, including the ratification of the Amaru Treasury Withdrawal and discussions on the necessity of a new NCL for 2026 before submitting budget Info Actions. The GovTools Budget Info Action is nearing 25% DRep approval, and the Tempo.vote budget Info Action was described as lacking sufficient detail and support. An update was given on the 39 Treasury Withdrawal Governance Actions, which are awaiting a final signature for testing. The Oversight Committee's role in the Treasury Reserve Smart Contract of Intersect was explained. Participants also discussed the future of the Oversight Committee, noting its current pro bono status and the potential need for future compensation.
09/07/2025
The Governance Advisory Team meeting on July 9th included updates on the Amaru Treasury Withdrawal Governance Action, which has reached 59% DRep approval. The GovTools Budget Info Action, submitted 6 days prior, has 15.5% DRep approval. Discussions were held regarding the GovTools’ funding, with support expressed due to its existing infrastructure and lack of viable alternatives, countered by strong opposition citing concerns about API quality, centralization, and the incentivized participation model. The Tempo team's new budget info action proposal and the imminent submission of 39 treasury withdrawal proposals from Intersect were also discussed.
02/07/2025
The Governance Advisory Team meeting on July 2nd included updates on the Amaru Treasury withdrawal governance action, which currently stands at 38% approval. An update on the off-chain Constitutional Committee (CC) election, concluding today, noted the requirement for CC credentials to be provided by July 8th. Concerns were raised regarding the metadata template for the 39 upcoming Treasury withdrawal governance actions. Discussions focused on the efficiency of using a single voting rationale for all 39 treasury withdrawals and the need for a checklist to review material differences between proposals and treasury withdrawals metadata.
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.
Our role in Cardano governance
Our role in Cardano governance