An introduction to CENNZnet governance
Translations can be found here:
CENNZnet is proud to be one of the few mature blockchains providing true community ownership and full decentralisation. Using the governance module and our native DAO, the token holder community is the driving force of our network, able to determine the direction, growth and vision of the chain. The community can choose how to make use of the groundbreaking tech and exciting partnerships that have been built and cultivated over the last 5 years. It is the ultimate decentralised network, ready to begin its most critical chapter.
Here is an introduction to exactly what governance is and how it works on CENNZnet:
What is blockchain governance?
Governance as a term describes the processes of decision-making within organisations. National governments to local football clubs all require at least a rough model of governance to determine processes such as: who is responsible for certain tasks, how are major decisions taken and implemented, and where authority is vested (in a select few or distributed among all participants?).
Blockchains are no exception; they also need a system of governance in order to make decisions on everything from run-of-the-mill functioning to dealing with a crisis or deciding the direction of development. As a decentralised system, where there is no single party or person who has total control or sway over the network, it is even more crucial that our governance mechanisms are fair and transparent.
On-chain vs off-chain governance
There are two methods of blockchain governance:
Off-chain governance
Used by most PoW blockchains, off-chain governance requires a majority of stakeholders to agree and make all relevant updates and implementations in unison. These actions are agreed upon using off-chain methods such as conferences, online forums, mailing lists etc. Stakeholders wishing to be involved in governance must use these channels to have their say.
Off-chain governance can be very functional but it poses some major issues. Off-chain formats for decision-making often lead to shadow hierarchies where a few powerful and influential people can gain sway over the forum and are the ones making decisions. The other issue is the lack of structure. There are often no clear or easily enforced formats for how to make a decision or enact one once it has been made. Networks using this governance framework can suffer from community apathy as the collective fails to advance its propositions and dithers with decisions.
On-chain governance
Arguably the most decentralised governance method, and also the newest, uses an on-chain format. On-chain governance is a mechanism that enables a decentralised community to update a blockchain by voting directly on-chain. Members of the chain community can propose changes or updates and have these agreed upon by their peers. As everything from the proposed changes to the voting process is literally coded into the foundation of the chain, the process is entirely transparent and agreed changes can be enacted instantly by the blockchain protocol.
CENNZnet = on-chain governance
CENNZnet has chosen to base its governance on the on-chain method. We believe it best delivers our goal of a truly transparent decentralised blockchain community. It allows for equal representation for all our members and, long term, will make CENNZnet more adaptable and progressive as changes and innovations can quickly be instigated. By implementing our on-chain governance method we will be among the first blockchains to function with totally on-chain governance.
Governance on CENNZnet
There are two important roles in the CENNZnet on-chain governance process:
The elected council: The trusted gatekeepers to the network responsible for proposing changes to the network and approving or vetoing other counsillors’ proposals. Councillors are elected by the wider community.
The council will be able to propose changes to the network. These changes could include anything from altering the colour scheme of cennznet.io to developing new protocols – the sky’s the limit.
The only rule is that each proposition must have an attached document that explains exactly what the proposal is and how it will benefit the network. Once a proposal or transaction decision has been posted by a member, the rest of the council will vote either for or against the motion.
Voting citizens: Everyone in our token holder community who has undergone a few basic checks can take part in governance voting. Citizens have the final say on which proposals are enacted and which are vetoed.
The governance process works like this:
- Proposal by councillor: Proposals are made by a member of the elected council.
- Submit transaction: The council member proposing change will submit a transaction detailing the proposed change.
- Council votes: The elected council will then vote on whether the proposed change can proceed or not. If more than 50% of the council vote in favour of the proposal it succeeds. Note: There is no expiry date on proposals. Those that have neither been approved nor rejected remain in limbo until a deciding vote is made.
- Referendum to the CENNZnet community: A successful proposal at the council stage will then be passed to a referendum vote by the wider CENNZnet community. The community has the power to veto the proposed change if the total CENNZ staked by those who veto is at least 33% of the total CENNZ staked in the network. Note: Referenda remain active for 30 hours before implementation – the community should veto within that timeframe if they wish to reject the changes.
- Proposal passed or vetoed by community: If the change is passed then it will be executed at a pre-agreed time. If the community vetoes the change it will not proceed.
This process allows the CENNZnet community to have their say over decisions made about the blockchain which will ultimately impact their tokens. Using a system of vetos rather than affirmative votes gears the network to be more proactive. Apathy in voters will not prevent motions from going ahead and if voters subsequently disagree with an approved motion, they can propose to have it rolled back. Additionally, specific details such as the veto condition itself can be amended by the community through the governance process.
It’s worth noting here that while the votes and proposals will be made on-chain, we expect that there will be a lot of discussion about proposed changes and rallying for support in offline channels such as Discord.
How does voting power work?
Elected councillors (voting on proposals): one vote for each councillor. Each vote is worth the same.
Voting Citizens (voting on referendums): the voting power of citizens is proportional to the amount of CENNZ they have staked on the network. The more CENNZ an individual has staked the more power they have to veto proposals. This is because a proposal can only be vetoed if the participating voting citizens stake is above 33% of the total staked CENNZ on the network.
At this stage of the process, councillors are also treated as voting citizens.
For example:
If there are 100 CENNZ total staked on the network. A citizen who had staked 10 tokens would make up almost 10% of the veto threshold alone. Then only 23 more staked tokens are needed to reach the 33% threshold. Whereas a citizen who has only staked 1 token would make up only 1% of the threshold through their vote.
Learn more
Get involved with governance on CENNZnet. Learn about how to take part and vote. Read more about:
Join the CENNZnet governance Discord channel here to stay up to date on all governance news.
