August 18, ISC Meeting
Agenda:
Committees Update
ISC Actions/Update from last week
ISC Survey (Intersect Role & Identity)
Committee Stipend
AOB & Meeting Close
Attendees:
Name
Attendance
Role
Voting Seat (Y/N)
Jack Briggs
No
Interim Executive Director
Y
Nick Cook
Yes
Director - Operations (Interim)
Y
YUTA
Yes
Community Member Seat
Y
Phil Lewis
Yes
Community Member Seat
Y
Sheldon Hunt
Yes
Community Member Seat
Y
Fred Tanaka
Yes
Community Member Seat
Y
Pedro Lucas
Yes
OSC Chair
Y
Samuel Leathers
Yes
Product Chair
Y
Darlington Welsh
Yes
MCC Chair
Y
Kristijan Kowalsky
Yes
CBC Chair
Y
Kevin Hammond
Yes
TSC Chair
Y
Wes Parkison
Yes
GMC Chair
Y
Nicolas Cerny
Yes
CCC Chair
Y
Christian Taylor
Yes
Head of OSO
N
Lorenzo Bruno
Yes
Head of Product
N
Matt Davis
No
Head of Tech Operation
N
Tim Richmond
No
Head of Comms
N
Duncan Soutar
No
Secretary of TSC
N
Lloyd Duhon
Yes
Secretary of Budget Committee
N
Larisa Mcfarlane
Yes
Secretary of CCC
N
Terence McCutcheon
No
Secretary of OSC
N
Additional Attendees:
Elaine Cardenas - Vice Chair of OSC
Adam Rusch - Board Member
Kyle Solomon - Vice Chair of Product Committee
Tim Harrison - Vice Chair of GMC
Thiago Nunes - Observer
Discussion/Action:
1. Committee Updates
The Budget Committee announced that 37 of 39 proposals were successfully ratified, securing funding for Cardano in 2025. They are running a retrospective survey but participation remains low, with only seven responses submitted so far, and members were strongly encouraged to promote it more widely. Work has also begun on signing smart contracts for milestone zero payments, with an emphasis on ensuring that smaller vendors, who are more reliant on immediate funds, are prioritized.
Technical Steering Committee (TSC) reported that they have reviewed Phil’s proposed survey and provided feedback on the Cardano 2030 Vision. They stressed that the vision should be seen as Cardano-wide rather than product-specific, and they identified gaps between the stated goals and the mechanisms for achieving them. The committee sees value in focusing on developing concrete implementation pathways.
Growth & Marketing Committee (GMC) shared that their survey has gathered around 67 responses so far, with a target of 150–200. They highlighted positive outcomes from Rare Evo and DevOnGov Day, and noted several successful funding outcomes, including the Product Committee’s workshop series, global events such as the Argentina summit, and the Builder DAO initiative. Looking ahead, the committee will prioritize finalizing a three-month plan with clear priorities and a timeline that can be publicly shared.
The Product Committee reported that their workshop in Las Vegas was a success and that their broader workshop series received strong community support and funding. They are continuing to collect and integrate feedback to refine Cardano’s vision and strategy, and announced a remote workshop scheduled for later in the week as part of the ongoing series.
Civics Committee confirmed that it has recommended Intersect pursue grants to wallet providers for the implementation of CIP-149, which would enable ADA holders to direct a percentage of their staking rewards to DReps.
The Executive Team reported that paper-based contracts have been issued, and smart contract deployment will begin shortly. Members were urged to sign contracts within 36 hours of issuance. In parallel, the executive is preparing a strategy for the remainder of 2025, including resource planning, which will be presented to the board at its next meeting.
2. ISC Actions & Updates
The Governance Working Group is finalizing the decision-making framework, including a process diagram and supporting documentation, which will be presented to the ISC within the next two weeks. Other items still in progress include the committee stipend policy, the ISC survey, and clarifying funding for committees that were not successful in the budget process.
3. ISC Survey Proposal
Phil Lewis presented a proposal for an ISC survey aimed at capturing member feedback in a concise format. Members discussed timing, with agreement that launching in September before the AMM would be optimal. Suggestions included keeping the survey open through October so that results can feed into the AMM discussions and be published in time for the AMM.
A motion was raised by Kevin Hammond for approval in principle for the survey, seconded by Phil Lewis. The motion passed with 12 voting members in favor and one voting member absent. Simo and Phil will now refine the survey wording with input from the executive team and present a final version before publishing.
4. Committee Stipend Policy
The committee revisited the stipend policy originally decided in November 2024, which set payments at 500 ADA/month for members and 1,000 ADA/month for chairs, subject to annual review and not backdated. Confusion remains over the start date, with some members under the impression stipends would begin in January 2025, while the approved treasury withdrawal aligns funding from June 2025 through June 2026.
Discussion points included:
Chairs should not receive dual stipends for ISC duties, as this is part of their role.
Members serving on multiple committees should be eligible for stipends from each.
A performance-based stipend component was not recommended, as existing mechanisms already address participation issues.
Retroactive payments before June would require board or executive approval, as ISC cannot commit funds directly.
There was general agreement that stipends should begin from June 2025, tied to the DRep-approved treasury withdrawal. Simo will prepare a consolidated one-page document capturing stipend decisions and details for ISC review.
5. Next Steps & Actions
Simo and Phil to finalize the draft of survey with executive input, targeting September launch.
Simo to prepare a summary document on stipend policy for ISC review.
Simo to find the meeting (Feb/March) where committee stipend were discussed. (Requested by Lucas)
Last updated