Polygon 2.0: Paving the Path to a Decentralized Ecosystem

Polygon Labs has unveiled its final proposal for Polygon 2.0, marking a significant step towards decentralization and community-driven ownership. The new framework brings the decision-making process, along with ownership, directly under the community's control. Guided by Ethereum's inclusive ethos, the framework aligns with three key governance pillars to manage the Polygon ecosystem. The community's active involvement has shaped the vision of Polygon 2.0, resulting in an inclusive and wholesome governance model. The framework caters to protocol governance, system smart contracts governance and community treasury governance, thus effectively addressing every aspect of the ecosystem. As Polygon embraces its journey towards 2.0, the involvement of the community becomes crucial to the protocol's success, ultimately leading to an era of collective ownership and decision-making in the blockchain landscape.

Read More On Polygon 2.0

Polygon Labs has announced the final proposal for Polygon 2.0. A redesigned governance system which takes the next step towards decentralization and community ownership. In Polygon 2.0, the power of decision-making and ownership is vested in the hands of the community. This new version puts the Polygon network under the complete control of its users, ensuring that they have the final say on all proposals put forth. Embracing an open discussion approach, the community's involvement and governance will remain pivotal even after Polygon 2.0 becomes a reality.

A New Framework for Decentralized Governance

To achieve this vision, a forward-looking framework for decentralized ownership and decision-making over all Polygon protocols and the ecosystem is being proposed. This framework revolves around three governance pillars, each addressing crucial aspects of the Polygon ecosystem that require governance. Inspired by successful blockchain governance models, particularly Ethereum's inclusive ethos, the proposed framework aims to extend this ethos to create a flourishing Polygon community.

Community Participation

To pave the way for Polygon 2.0 governance, a series of forum posts, community calls, and public discussions have been held. In this process, valuable feedback from various stakeholders, including validators, users, dApp developers, and infrastructure providers, has been received. The community's engagement in the decision-making process has been overwhelmingly positive, with many expressing their support and willingness to collaborate on bringing Polygon 2.0 governance to life.

This collaborative approach aligns with the industry's philosophy of building in public, fostering a sense of inclusivity and openness. All feedback and ideas provided during this community-driven phase have been incorporated into the governance vision, ensuring that the final framework reflects the collective wisdom of the Polygon community.

The Three Governance Pillars

The Three Governance Pillars have been conceived to serve as a comprehensive topology of all governable objects within the Polygon ecosystem. This classification allows for the identification of suitable decision-makers and decision-making mechanisms for each aspect.

Protocol Governance

The Polygon Improvement Proposal (PIP) framework serves as an open coordination platform for the development of Polygon protocols. Drawing inspiration from other proven governance models, the PIP framework is already operational on the Polygon PoS chain, facilitating both internal and external actors to propose upgrades.

In Polygon 2.0, the PIP framework will expand to encompass the entire Polygon permissionless stack, providing the community with a formal channel to propose and research upgrades that may ultimately become part of the protocols. Additionally, efforts will be made to enhance community participation through a user-friendly PIP platform and a governance forum with improved user experience.

System Smart Contracts Governance

This pillar deals with upgrades of protocol components implemented as smart contracts. While the PIP framework will play a role in facilitating these upgrades, the nature of Ethereum smart contracts necessitates additional governance. To this end, the proposal introduces the Ecosystem Council, a community-governed body responsible for overseeing upgrades of system smart contracts.

A tailored governance framework accompanies the Ecosystem Council, ensuring secure and scalable decision-making. This model will be guarded by community veto and elections, built on advanced token holder governance. The Ecosystem Council Transparency dashboard will provide increased visibility into its activities, enabling community monitoring of upgrade transactions and proposals.

Community Treasury Governance

Recognizing the nascent stage of the Polygon ecosystem and the broader Web3 industry, the establishment of the Community Treasury has been proposed in the tokenomics whitepaper. This self-sustaining ecosystem fund aims to support public goods and promising ecosystem projects and initiatives.

The governance of the Community Treasury will go through two phases. In the initial phase, an independent Community Treasury Board will be established to strategically allocate funds for Polygon's growth. It will foster transparency and facilitate dialogue between the board and the community, promoting a symbiotic relationship.

In the second phase, the governance of the Community Treasury Board and the Treasury will evolve into a community-driven model, incorporating innovative governance mechanisms such as quadratic token voting, self-sovereign identities, and reputation-based decision-making.

Looking Ahead: A Community-Centric Future

As Polygon paves the path to Polygon 2.0, the importance of community involvement cannot be overstated. A decentralized community for a decentralized protocol is crucial for Polygon's continued success. By actively participating in community calls, forums, and the interactive governance vision board, every member can contribute to building the Value Layer of the Internet through Polygon 2.0.

In conclusion, Polygon 2.0's innovative framework for decentralized governance holds the promise of creating a thriving and inclusive ecosystem. As the community takes the reins, the future of Polygon shines brighter than ever before, ushering in an era of collective ownership and decision-making that will shape the blockchain landscape for years to come.