Welcome to Intersect development update 47, where we break down all the essential Intersect happenings. This week was tremendous and historic for Cardano, as the CIP-1694 specification was completed, as we crossed the epoch boundary, and the Plomin hard fork was enacted. More on this, as well as updates on progress toward the Cardano budget, constitution, committee activities, community tooling, and much more!

Full on-chain governance is here - Plomin hard fork enacted! 

On January 29, 2025, Cardano achieved the transition to full community governance with the enactment of the Plomin hard fork

The upgrade was enacted on-chain after the hard fork was approved by stake pool operators (SPOs) and the interim constitutional committee. This is a truly momentous achievement, not only for Cardano but for the entire blockchain industry.

This is Cardano’s first community-enacted upgrade, with all future protocol changes now fully in the hands of the community. The decision began with CIP-1694, which was developed over two years and included community workshops. It is the only hard fork to make such an epochal change to blockchain governance.

From this instant, the future of the Cardano blockchain is determined by governance actions. Any ada holder can raise a governance action, and all ada holders can vote to accept or reject it. They can do this as individuals or by delegating their voting power to delegated representatives (DReps) - Read more here.

Staking rewards

Following the success of the Plomin hard fork, you will continue accumulating staking rewards. However, as specified in CIP-1694, you cannot withdraw them unless you delegate your ada’s voting rights to a DRep or a predefined voting option. The community took this decision at the first CIP-1694 workshop in Longmont, CO, in March 2023.

Like staking with stake pool operators, the staked ada never leaves your wallet, and delegating does not impose new spending or selling restrictions. It takes just a few minutes of your time and does not involve any additional cost or risk, but enables you to contribute to shaping the future of Cardano. 

How to choose and delegate to a DRep

1. Browse the list of available DReps
2. View details of individual DReps
3. Select a DRep or choose a predefined option.

In detail,

1. Cardano GovTool has a directory of registered DReps. You can sort them by voting power, registration date, status, or unsorted (random). 
2. Click on the ‘View details’ button of a DRep to read the information they have provided. You can also use tools like Tempo or 1694.io/DReps to discover their voting history and choose someone whose philosophy aligns with your own.
3. Choose an active DRep you trust or one of the two predefined voting options (abstain or no-confidence).

For more information on using GovTool, visit the Cardano GovTool documentation website.

Cardano’s constitution nears ratification

The Cardano community has completed the drafting of a new constitution, with it now on-chain for DRep and the interim Constitutional Committee to consider!

This achievement resulted from a collaborative process led by the Cardano Civics committee, involving community workshops, a constitutional convention, and the ongoing on-chain vote.

Community-driven process

The process began with the Cardano Civics committee releasing a draft constitution. More than 1400 community members then participated in 63 workshops worldwide to discuss 15 open questions about the draft. Each workshop elected a delegate and an alternate to represent them at the Constitutional Convention in Buenos Aires and Nairobi.

At the convention, delegates worked together to finalize the constitution, achieving a 95% approval rate. This collaborative approach ensured that the new constitution reflected the community's diverse perspectives and priorities.

The constitution's purpose

The Cardano constitution serves as the guiding document for Cardano's governance. It defines the fundamental principles, values, and rules that shape the development and evolution of the Cardano ecosystem. It acts as an agreement among stakeholders, outlining the rights and responsibilities of community members, delegated representatives (DReps), stake pool operators (SPOs), and the constitutional committee (CC). By establishing these key elements, the Constitution provides clarity, stability, and a framework for resolving disagreements. It ensures that Cardano remains committed to its vision of a decentralized, secure, and sustainable blockchain platform.

Improvements and next steps

The proposed constitution has taken into account the valuable input gathered across the 63 global workshops and has been updated in the following ways:

A refined preamble - Clearly expressing the community's shared values.

Ten guiding tenets - Including a 45 billion ada supply cap.

A framework for the Cardano ecosystem budget - Establishing a process for annual budgeting.

Codes of conduct - Promoting ethical voting practices for DReps, SPOs, and the CC.

Compensation guidelines - Allowing reimbursement for DReps and CC members.

Enhanced clarity and safeguards for the CC - Ensuring transparency and accountability.

Amendment process - Enabling the constitution to adapt to future needs.

While the proposed constitution represents significant progress, delegates identified areas for further development. These include refining the DRep system, clarifying the roles of various entities, and further developing the treasury and budget process.

Participate in the vote

The Cardano community is now encouraged to vote on the proposed constitution. The governance action to update the constitution was submitted on January 30 and will be open for voting by DReps and CC for up to six epochs. It will be ratified once the necessary threshold of 75% yes votes by DReps and a 67% constitutional vote by the ICC have been met.

After roughly 24 hours. At the time of writing, the current status is:

• Yes: 25.62% (87 votes, 840.99 million ada)
• No: 74.38% (5 votes, 2.45 billion ada - This includes 2.05 million ada voted No, 143.66 million ada No Confidence, and 2.3 billion ada not yet voted)
• Abstain: (1 vote, 2.59 billion ada - This includes 2.59 billion ada auto-abstain and  143.66 thousand ada voted abstain)

The current threshold for approval is 2.46 billion ada (75% of active delegation).

Top 5 Voting DReps (by stake):

• Yuta: 398.33 million ada - Yes
• CardanoYoda: 74.27 million ada - Yes
• Martin Lang: 49.54 million ada - Yes
• Dumpling: 34.45 million ada - Yes
• Muen: 30.93 million ada - Yes

To learn more about the constitution and how to participate in the voting process, please refer to the following resources:

Visit the Constitutional Convention website

Read the proposed constitution

Constitution vote - all you need to know

Budget committee: updates and initiatives

With the Constitution now live for voting, the budget committee is gearing up to raise the Net-Change-Limit governance action. This constitutionally-mandated Info Action will add an additional layer of safeguarding as defined in the delegate-endorsed Constitution and the technical specification of Cardano’s on-chain governance (CIP-1694). Info Actions pertaining to a budget are evaluated and ratified by DReps and the Constitutional Committee, ensuring that future budgets remain within the stated limits.

Committees across Intersect will publish their budget requests for review and consideration to support the Net-Change-Limit Info Action. This milestone will begin the formal evaluation period. It will involve significant engagement with the DReps and Committees to discuss their requests and refining before any budget Info actions are raised.

Committees and working groups

The Cardano Civics committee at Intersect is forming a new working group focused on the upcoming Constitutional Committee elections. The group is developing a proposed election cycle process, which will be presented to the community once drafted. Committee efforts have intensified, with the Plomin upgrade harnessing community energy and momentum. Their activities include preparing budget proposals, DRep engagement, community engagement, proposal reviews, and roadmap development. Thanks to hundreds of members who have been participating at new levels.

Stay up to date with all of our committees on GitBook. Select a committee from the main page or the drop-down menu at the top left. 

Membership and community

Our January 23 town hall was a great success, bringing together the community to discuss key updates, upcoming initiatives, and governance milestones for 2025.

A huge thank you to Swarm for their hard work organizing and facilitating this session! Their dedication continues to help strengthen our community and governance processes.

Those who couldn’t attend can catch up on everything discussed here.

February is shaping to be an exciting month as we kick off X Spaces with enterprise members like Storm Partners and many more! These sessions will dive deep into the adoption and innovation of enterprise within the Cardano ecosystem. Whether you’re a builder, investor, or community enthusiast, you won’t want to miss these insightful discussions. Stay tuned and look out for the announcements—significant conversations are coming!

As our membership continues to grow, here are our latest numbers:

Community hubs

Last week, our Sri Lanka community hub, led by CoinCeylon, held its January town hall. It was attended by 105 individuals, with the event featuring esteemed guest speakers like Ben O’Hanlon (IOG), Max Rossem (ADA Moments /Amsterdam Node), Jack Briggs from Intersect, SriCharan Ganta from Nucast, Nori Nishigaya from Andamio platform, Christian Taylor from the Intersect OSO, Mubarak from Nigerian community and Intersect MW Lead, Abhik Nag from Intersect and others. The event reflected on 2024 milestones and explored upcoming innovations, sharing insights and setting the tone for an impactful 2025 for the Cardano ecosystem. You can watch the recording here.

Our North American hub, led by AWEN, held its fantastic GM 2025 event with 44 in-person and 22 virtual attendees. Over 3000 individuals have already watched the live stream of the event! The DRep debate was highly successful; you can learn more about it in the DRep section below. Maggie Schmidt, who worked alongside our Hub Manager, Cullah, stated the following about the event:

“In collaboration with Lloyd Duhon and the GM Cardano team, we showcased the remarkable progress of governance on Cardano and the passionate community driving it forward. Samuel Leathers opened with a powerful look at how we got here and where we're headed, followed by a keynote fireside chat with Tamara J.N. Haasen and Lloyd Duhon, who shared invaluable insights on Cardano’s governance evolution. Jack Briggs then outlined Intersect’s decisions and budget priorities, shedding light on the financial strategies shaping decentralized governance. The community spotlights were a testament to the ecosystem’s strength, featuring Logan Panchot on ClarityDAO, Kendrick L. on Cardano’s constitutional definitions, and Wes Parkinson and Rand McHenry on Intersect’s Marketing & Growth Committee. Each highlighted the groundbreaking work to enhance governance participation and community influence. GM2025 was a powerful reminder of the talent, dedication, and innovation shaping this ecosystem. Thank you to everyone who made this event a success and to all members of the Cardano community!”

Photos provided by GM Cardano

This week, we have the following events taking place:

LATAM hub

• The Uruguay hub launch will be held on January 31. The day will include many exciting events, such as discussions on Intersect and Cardano, contests, workshops, and prizes. The launch follows into an evening of networking whilst overlooking the beach! Make sure to follow the hub’s X account for updates.

Japan hub

• X Space is to be held on January 31 at noon UTC. The link to join is here.

Africa hub, led by WADA

• WADA town hall was held on January 30 with 14 participants. The session consisted of check-ins, a retrospective of the forum and discussions on expectations for the year.

Finally, this week's community hub stats are as follows:

DReps debate

This past Saturday, the highly anticipated DRep debate brought together six prominent DReps for an engaging and thought-provoking discussion on governance within the Cardano ecosystem. Moderated by Dr. Adam Rusch and Jenny Brito, the event allowed DReps to share their perspectives, tackle key questions, and connect with the community. The debate featured Crypto Crow, Gerson Gomes, Lloyd Duhon, Clarity Cofounder Ken Ladd, and Jose Martinez.

For those who missed the event, here is a session recording. 

Stay tuned as we plan to hold more debates at other Intersect hubs to continue fostering meaningful discussions and community engagement!

Open source

The open-source office (OSO) will continue with project spotlights into 2025. Be sure not to miss our first run with Sundial Protocol. Recording. Sundial Protocol is a new entity in Cardano full of familiar faces pioneering the bridge between Cardano and Bitcoin, starting with their win in Catalyst Fund 13. Catch up with any of our previous spotlights, and subscribe to our YouTube channel to always catch the latest episodes. 

Open-source office hours will also return in 2025. Our first session can be found here. Barring unforeseen conflicts, OSO is committed to hosting these sessions twice a month: each second Tuesday at 1 p.m. UTC and every last Thursday at 7 p.m. UTC. We remain open to feedback and enjoy connecting with the Cardano community. If there are more preferred times, drop us a note on X(formerly Twitter) @IntersectOSO or by email oso@intersectmbo.org. 

Delivery assurance

Delivery assurance is working on a new and improved method for sharing comms relating to any contractual progress for work completed in 2025. While this new process is still being developed, please find below an update on recently completed work:

Byron has been working on GovTool maintainer activities:

1. The recent updates to the project, spanning versions 1.0.24-1 through 1.0.28, reflect significant advancements in governance functionality, user experience, and system reliability. Key enhancements include expanded support for governance actions such as CIP-129 identifiers, treasury withdrawals, and improved metrics for DReps. These updates also introduced better formatting for ada quantities and voting power calculations, enhanced support for metadata validation, and more intuitive user interface features like supporting inks in governance details. Multiple bugs were addressed, including inconsistent displays, certificate ordering, and search functionality, ensuring a more seamless experience for users.

2. Technical updates played a crucial role in these releases, with several

dependency upgrades (e.g., Cardano node, pdf-ui, and Cardano DB Sync) and backend optimizations for voting power calculations. The development team also bolstered testing, adding capabilities like DRep name search and governance action visibility assertions to maintain high-quality performance across versions. These iterative improvements highlight a commitment to innovation and stability, creating a robust framework for governance-related operations and setting a solid foundation for future enhancements.’ 

DQuadrant has been working on GovTool test maintenance activities.

‘This month, we focused on resolving critical bugs, enhancing voting functionality, and improving the integration of governance tools. A total of 24 issues were reported, primarily concerning proposal creation, DRep registration, and voting inconsistencies. Additionally, we updated the test suites and submitted 16 pull requests (PRs), which emphasized improving test coverage, optimizing integration workflows, and refining user experience.’

Governance tooling

GovTool received a few stability improvements to make it more resilient. We all celebrate this week's key milestone: bringing full governance to Cardano.

You can now experience full governance both on preview and mainnet. Soon enough, we will also be able to have it running on the Cardano preprod network. Updates can be followed on the core-gov-tool-announcement Discord channel.

You can also check for compatible wallets.

Governance in numbers

As we press ahead following Chang, follow the progress of governance actions on-chain here every week. Since Friday, January 17, 2025: 

• We've advanced from epoch 535 to epoch 537
• Unique delegators increased by 4390 (105,356 -> 109,746)
• The total number of vote delegations increased by 4701 (112,299 -> 117,000)
• Total DRep votes stayed the same (684)
• The total number of DRep registrations increased by 24 (933 -> 957)
• DReps who have attached metadata increased by 93 (486 -> 579)

To learn how to start using Cardano GovTool, explore GovTool documentation. Here, you'll find everything from step-by-step guides to detailed explanations of its features.

On the Intersect Discord server, you can connect to the core maintainers of governance tools via the new request and new help & support channels under Core Governance Tools in Discord. 

Governance tools working group

GovTool is fully open source and maintained by Intersect members. The working group continues to invite community members to participate in discussions and feature development for the Cardano GovTool. All feedback is welcome (see guide on feedback), and ongoing conversations are held in the wg-governance-tools Discord channel, where new feature ideas are regularly triaged and implemented.

Important member resources

• Do you want to catch up with the latest happenings with the Cardano budget, constitution, and hard forks? This page is for you!
• Intersect knowledge base - Our knowledge base, which is frequently updated, provides granular detail on our internal governance structure, committees and working groups, funding opportunities, and other topics.
• Intersect website - the latest news, roadmap, and more.
• GovTool - take part in testing governance actions on the SanchoNet testnet.
• Intersect events calendar - keep up-to-date with all events Intersect hosts, such as working group and committee meetings, X spaces, and more.
• Support - Please always use your membership email address and contact Intersect for support with any application errors, login issues, or questions without answers.
• Social: Join our lively community and interact with committees, working groups, and other members on Discord. We are also continually active on Twitter (X) and LinkedIn, so follow us there to stay updated on our latest news and insights.
• Are you interested in joining the team? We’re looking for a social media and content manager, and a Finance Lead Read more and apply today!

Well, that’s it for this week's update. Thanks for reading!

Finally, we’d like to hear more from you about subjects important to you, such as Cardano’s governance. Your ideas and suggestions are crucial to us. If you have any questions, ideas, or suggestions, please get in touch via email, X, or LinkedIn.