> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://committees.docs.intersectmbo.org/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://committees.docs.intersectmbo.org/intersect-steering-committee/committee-meeting-notes/2026-meeting-notes/may-18-2026.md). # May 18 2026 ## Attendees: | Name | Attendance | Role | Voting Seat (Y/N) | | ---------------------------------------------------- | ---------- | ----------------------------- | ----------------- | | [Simo Simovic](mailto:simo.simovic@intersectmbo.org) | Yes | Secretary | N | | Jack Briggs | No | Executive Director | Y | | James Meidinger | Yes | Community Member Seat | Y | | Thiago Nunes | Yes | Community Member Seat | Y | | Kristijan Kowalsky | Yes | Community Member Seat | Y | | Jose Miguel de Gamboa | Yes | Community Member Seat | Y | | Georg Link | No | OSC Chair | Y | | Samuel Leathers | No | Product Chair | Y | | Maureen Wepngogn | No | MCC Chair | Y | | Megan Hess | Yes | CBC Chair | Y | | Kevin Hammond | Yes | TSC Chair | Y | | Tim Harrison | No | GMC Chair | Y | | Nicolas Cerny | Yes | CCC Chair | Y | | Lorenzo Bruno | Yes | Head of Product & Membership | Y | | Larisa Mcfarlane | Yes | Head of Ecosystem & Community | Y | | Nick Cook | No | Head of Operations (Interim) | N | | Bosko Majdanac | Yes | Secretary of TSC | N | | Abhik Nag | Yes | Secretary of MCC | N | | Lloyd Duhon | Yes | Secretary of Budget Committee | N | | Terence McCutcheon | No | Secretary of OSC | N | | Lara Bonasorte | Yes | Secretary of GMC | N | | Thomas Lindseth | Yes | Secretary of CCC | N | ### Additional Attendees: Rand McHenry - Member of the Board Mercy Fordwoo - Member of the Board Ken-Erik Ølmheim - Vice Chair of Civics Sheldon Hunt - Observer ## Agenda: * Committee Updates * Code of Conduct & Complaints Process * Committee Member dismissal & replacement policy * Intersect Governance WG participation * AOB ## Discussion/Actions ### 1. Opening & Agenda The meeting opened with attendance confirmation. It was noted that a quorum was reached for formal decision-making. The agenda included committee updates, discussion on the Code of Conduct and complaints process, review of the Committee Member Dismissal & Replacement Policy, governance working group participation, and follow-up discussions related to committee rewards, treasury transparency, and audit processes. *** ### 2. Committee Updates * Technical Steering Committee (TSC) welcomed newly elected committee members and shared continued progress on the Van Rossum hard fork rollout. Preview has already been upgraded, while pre-production ratification is pending due to tooling readiness issues. The Plutus parameter update is progressing toward mainnet deployment, and the Constitutional Committee minimum size proposal is expected shortly after. The committee also highlighted discussions around post-quantum cryptography and plans for a broader community workshop with IO cryptography researchers. Additional discussion focused on whether technical proposal reviews should be coordinated more formally to better support DRep evaluation and governance participation. * Civics Committee welcomed newly elected members and discussed reactivating the Governance Health Working Group to better understand Constitutional Committee challenges and participation concerns. The committee also reviewed the constitutional amendment process tooling, with refactoring work underway before launch. Additional discussion focused on low Constitutional Committee application numbers and ensuring a smooth transition process before current CC member terms expire. * Growth & Marketing Committee (GMC) shared progress on reviewing marketing- and growth-related proposals submitted both through the Intersect process and directly on-chain. The committee established four internal evaluation criteria focused on strategic alignment, budget realism, team capabilities, and ecosystem growth impact. GMC plans to publish coordinated committee feedback focused on clarification requests and proposal quality rather than endorsement. * Budget Committee discussed the closing phase of proposal feedback and ongoing work to improve transparency and context for DRep voters. The committee is exploring ways to centralize proposal-related information and treasury data to reduce fragmentation and improve governance visibility. Additional discussion covered the possibility of creating a broader treasury governance dashboard consolidating treasury withdrawals, Catalyst funding, and governance-related information into a single ecosystem resource. * Product Committee shared updates on the Product Research Initiative, with nine new research initiatives approved and scheduled for publication. The committee also confirmed ongoing progress on its budget proposal and noted leadership changes following the resignation of the committee vice chair due to personal commitments. *** ### 3. Code of Conduct & Complaints Process The ISC revisited the proposal to establish a dedicated review body for handling Code of Conduct complaints. Clarification was provided that the previously approved motion only initiated work to define the structure and process, rather than formally creating the body itself. Discussion focused on: * The role of the proposed body as a recommendation and review mechanism, with final authority remaining with the Board * Need to define: * Membership and structure * Scope and limitations of authority * Handling of conflicts of interest * Confidentiality and due process safeguards It was confirmed that: * Existing complaint handling guidance already exists across bylaws, membership agreements, and the Code of Conduct * Current complaints are handled directly through a designated email process and escalated to the Board as needed * Additional work is required to formalize and document the process more clearly A smaller working group will begin refining recommendations before bringing a more complete framework back to the ISC and Board for further review. *** ### 4. Committee Member Dismissal & Replacement Policy An updated draft of the Committee Member Dismissal & Replacement Policy was presented by the Governance Working Group. The review was initiated following the move to two-year committee terms and implementation of committee rewards. Key proposed changes included: * Defining objective participation thresholds that may justify dismissal motions, including: * Attendance requirements * Consecutive missed meetings * Participation in committee voting * Clarifying that dismissal should remain a rare and exceptional process * Introducing clearer replacement procedures when committees fall below sustainable operating levels Discussion focused on: * Whether replacement priority should first go to candidates who narrowly missed election during the previous election cycle * Whether ISC approval is required for committee replacements or whether notification alone is sufficient * Whether low committee participation may indicate broader structural or mandate-related issues rather than individual disengagement Members were encouraged to review the document asynchronously and provide comments before further discussion in a future session. *** ### 5. Governance Working Group Participation A request was made for each committee to nominate or encourage additional representatives to participate regularly in the Governance Working Group. The goal is to improve cross-committee input and ensure broader participation in governance policy development and review. *** ### 6. Committee Rewards Discussion Discussion continued regarding the annual review of the Committee Rewards Policy, particularly: * Alignment between ADA-denominated rewards and USD value assumptions used when the policy was initially discussed * Timing of policy review relative to the current budget cycle * Relationship between committee rewards and Intersect funding mechanisms (including administration fees and operational budgets) It was acknowledged that: * The current workshop series effectively represents the first formal annual review of the policy * Additional financial context and historical assumptions will be presented in the upcoming workshop session * Any policy adjustments would require further ISC discussion and approval An operational update was also provided regarding a recent rewards payment delay caused by alignment issues between election timing and committee term dates. Adjustments are being implemented within the Member Area interface to improve clarity around claim requests and payment timing. ### 6.1 Open Issues and Concerns Raised The following concerns were formally raised by Thiago Nunes during the discussion and remain open for resolution: ISC authority under existing policy: The current Committee Rewards Policy provides the ISC with authority to review and adjust reward parameters without requiring a full workshop cycle. This authority has not been exercised since the policy was originally approved. Budget cycle timing: The current rewards funding expires in June 2026. Concerns were raised that this timeline should not be allowed to create procedural pressure on subsequent policy decisions. Bundled vote precedent (2024): The original vote that established ADA-denominated payments was expected to be accompanied by a separate decision setting the USD reference value. The second decision was not taken, leaving the ADA amount untethered from its original dollar assumption. ADA-USD divergence in current proposal: The reward amount included in the current Intersect budget proposal is denominated in ADA at a level not equivalent, in current USD terms, to the value originally stipulated in 2024. *** ### 7. Treasury Transparency & Governance Data Discussion continued around improving governance transparency and access to treasury information. Key themes included: * Need for a centralized governance and treasury dashboard * Consolidation of currently fragmented governance data sources * Improving visibility into: * Treasury withdrawals * Catalyst funding * Governance actions * Proposal history and status It was noted that: * Existing open-source repositories and tools are already consolidating portions of this information * Intersect may need to take a stronger stewardship role in ensuring long-term reliability and accessibility of governance infrastructure *** ### 9. Actions & Next Steps * ISC - Continue refining Code of Conduct review process * ISC -Review and provide feedback on Committee dismissal & replacement policy * Committees - Encourage participation in the Governance Working Group --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. 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