A Decisive Moment for Jupiter’s DAO
Jupiter’s DAO is at a crossroads. With increasing participation and a substantial on-chain community, we have a unique window to build long-lasting, community-led governance structures. If we delay formalizing processes now, we risk decisions being made by a few or momentum stalling. By contrast, taking this moment to design and agree on clear rules will demonstrate our commitment to decentralization. This is truly a decisive moment in Jupiter’s history: the chance to show that governance can transition from team-led initiatives to fully community-driven leadership.
Defining the Governance Framework
A formal governance framework must address the core elements of any democratic system. In particular, we urgently need:
- Transparent election processes: Clear criteria for who can stand for positions (e.g. stake requirements or community endorsement), how nominations occur, voting periods, and how votes are counted. Every member must trust that elections are fair and inclusive.
- Distinct roles and responsibilities: We must define what powers each governance body holds. For example, the DAO Council might have authority over treasury spending, while day-to-day product decisions remain with the team during transition. Other roles (like working group coordinators or an executive board) should have explicitly documented duties and limitations.
- Checks and balances: No governance group should be unchecked. There should be mechanisms for accountability such as recall votes, oversight committees, or required audits of decisions. Quorum rules, supermajority requirements for critical changes, and conflict-of-interest policies are examples of safeguards that protect the DAO’s integrity.
By outlining these elements in a written governance charter or constitution, we set expectations in advance. This formal framework will guide Jupiter’s DAO through each stage of its evolution. Without it, well-intentioned proposals like a DAO Council could flounder due to ambiguity or power imbalances.
Forming the Core Working Group (CWG)
To drive this effort, the first concrete step should be the formation of a new Core Working Group (CWG). This CWG would be a dedicated committee of community members entrusted with the sole mission of building our governance framework from the ground up. Here is the proposed structure and purpose:
- Membership criteria: Each CWG member must hold at least 100,000 JUP (or 50k USD - of JUP staked - with current price, checked at the time of acceptance to the CWG) staked. This high-stake requirement ensures members have a strong, vested interest in Jupiter’s success and helps prevent spam or capture of the process.
- Diverse expertise: While the stake cutoff is quantitative, we should also aim for a group diverse in skills and backgrounds (tech, finance, law, communications) to cover all aspects of designing a functional DAO. However, the key unifying factor is genuine commitment, as demonstrated by significant stake.
- Charter and independence: The CWG’s charter will define its mandate: draft governance documents, propose organizational structures (like the DAO Council, committees, election rules), and outline a transition plan for independence. Crucially, once formed, the CWG must operate independently of day-to-day team direction. The Jupiter team should step back, offering support or advice only when requested, to ensure the CWG truly represents community interests and can freely experiment with governance models.
- Time-bound mission: To maintain momentum, the CWG should have a clear timeline (for example, 1-2 months) to produce a first-draft governance framework. This ensures steady progress and accountability.
By setting up the CWG in this way, we create a practical engine for governance design. Its members—each with deep commitment through their staked JUP—can collaborate intensively, undistracted by other duties. Their output will be the blueprint for our DAO’s future.
Crafting the Formal Governance Documents
The CWG’s primary deliverables will include written documents and proposals, such as a draft constitution or bylaws, and a detailed governance roadmap. Key components of these documents should cover:
- Election procedures: Rules for nominating candidates to the DAO Council (or any governing body), vote-weight calculations (staking vs. one-member-one-vote), election timelines, and dispute resolution. For example, the documents might specify that any community member who has held stake for 90 days can run, and that a simple majority or ranked-choice vote elects each council member.
- Powers and scope: A precise description of what the elected council or committees can decide versus what remains under team control. This might include budgeting authority, strategic direction, or operational oversight. It should also outline how proposals from the community are brought to the council or to an on-chain vote.
- Checks and balances: Mechanisms like recall elections (allowing the community to remove council members by vote), advisory committees, or dual-key systems where multiple sign-offs are needed for treasury transactions. Even simple rules—such as requiring more than a nominal quorum for major decisions—can strengthen governance.
- Amendment and review processes: As Jupiter evolves, the governance framework should be amendable by a clear process (for instance, a supermajority vote at scheduled intervals) to prevent rigid stagnation.
These documents should be written in clear, accessible language and made available for community review and feedback. The CWG’s role is not to unilaterally decide the final system, but to draft proposals that the broader DAO can debate and refine.
Practical Milestones and Next Steps
To keep this initiative concrete and action-oriented, we outline the following steps:
- Announce and elect CWG members: Publicize the call for CWG volunteers, highlighting the 100,000+ JUP stake requirement and qualifications. Collect nominations or applications within a short window (e.g. 1–2 weeks), then have the community or a temporary committee confirm members.
- Establish the CWG charter: The new CWG should formalize its objectives and timeline. This can be done through a simple on-chain proposal or forum post signed by all CWG members.
- Draft the governance framework: Over the next month or so, the CWG collaborates to write the governance documents, breaking the work into sections (electoral rules, powers, checks, etc.) and holding regular public updates or working sessions.
- Community review and iteration: Once a draft is ready, open it for community discussion. Collect feedback and revise the framework accordingly. This step ensures buy-in and exposes any gaps.
- Finalize and ratify: After incorporating feedback, the CWG should present the final proposal to the DAO for ratification (via a vote or consensus mechanism). If approved, these governance rules become binding.
- Prepare for elections: With the framework in place, the first DAO Council (or equivalent body) can be elected under the new rules. The CWG may assist in organizing the election but should then dissolve or transition into an advisory role, allowing the DAO Council itself to take over governance.
Each of these milestones represents a practical, measurable step toward full self-governance. Assigning timelines and responsibilities at each stage will help maintain urgency and momentum.
Optimism and Call to Action
The road ahead is challenging but clear. By forming a dedicated CWG and outlining a concrete roadmap for governance, the Jupiter community can move from scattered proposals to a cohesive, self-sustaining organization. The Jupiter team’s original recognition of the need for structured governance was a vital first move. Now, empowered by this momentum, we must organize ourselves to follow through.
This is an urgent but hopeful moment. Together, we have the chance to demonstrate how a DAO can effectively take charge of its own destiny. If we act decisively—forming the CWG, drafting strong governance documents, and holding transparent elections—we will set Jupiter on a firm course toward lasting, community-led success. The time to build is now.
Final Note: A Request for Immediate Action
It must be clearly stated: at this moment, there is no functional mechanism by which an ordinary DAO member or even a group of members can independently submit a proposal for a formal vote. All proposals must still be routed through the team or Core Working Groups (CWGs) for approval and scheduling. In light of that, I am formally asking the team to take immediate action: to create and sponsor a vote for establishing and funding this new Core Working Group tasked with drafting the DAO governance framework. The members of this CWG should be compensated fairly, in a similar manner to existing CWGs, given the critical nature of the work and the time commitment it requires.
The very fact that we must appeal to the team simply to initiate a governance reform effort highlights just how far we still are from true decentralization. It has been more than a year since the DAO’s founding, and still we lack the basic infrastructure needed to make and execute our own decisions. In this instance, the responsibility rests squarely with the team. It is their duty to fix this fundamental gap — not merely as an act of goodwill, but to uphold the very principles of community empowerment that Jupiter was built on. This will be, as Meow himself might say, yet another important experiment. An experiment in whether a community, given the chance, can build the structures needed to govern itself wisely.