The Aragon Foundation: New Council Carrying Forward the Mission

Introducing the Aragon Foundation, a new non-profit entity created with the sole purpose of carrying forward and advancing the mission of the Aragon Project.

Aragon was founded on the belief that the future of humanity will be decided at the frontier of technological innovation and human collaboration. Technology should serve as a catalyst for liberation, not as a tool for dominance. The purpose of the new Aragon Foundation is to drive the development and growth of technology to support effective governance systems that foster liberation. By empowering developers to build blockchain infrastructure and applications, everyone can participate in governance easily, transparently, and securely—without the need for intermediaries.

"Aragon, and its dream to revolutionize human co-ordination was the original reason I fell in love with, and started contribution to, Ethereum, so it's truly an honour to have come full circle like this. I hope that, as part of the council, I can work with like minded people to help champion bringing Aragon to those within Ethereum, and to those less acquainted with the Ethereum ecosystem; to create and accelerate the distribution of a tool that makes it as easy as possible for everyone to accomplish their wildest dreams regarding social structures and organizations, and to cement Ethereum's role at the frontier of decentralized governance."

- Sacha, Research at Lido

The Foundation will be led by a Strategic Council, which will define the project’s overarching strategy, allocate funding to key initiatives, and guide builders in the Aragon ecosystem. They will help the project navigate unchartered territory in the years ahead and hold true to the values underpinning onchain governance, such as trust-minimization, end-to-end verifiability, capture-resistance, and credible neutrality. The Strategic Council has been seeded with reputable builders from across the Ethereum ecosystem with diverse experience, including software & product development, governance, DeFi, law, and research. All Council members have demonstrated deep alignment and support for Aragon's technology, values, and community at different stages of the project. 

“Technology and all its raw power is, in and of itself, indifferent to whether people use it for good or for evil. I believe that its greatest potential to improve mankind can be realized if channeled in ways that maintain individual sovereignty and improve collaboration between people. In this regard, the Aragon Foundation has a fundamentally optimistic mission that I strongly believe in. I look forward to contributing to advance this mission in my capacity as member of the Council."

- Adrian (Adcv), Co-Founder of Steakhouse Financial

The Strategic Council will be supported by an Administrative Council, tasked with facilitating the  daily operations of the Foundation. The Administrative Council is composed of professionals mainly based in Switzerland who will fulfill the reporting requirements and be responsible towards the Swiss Foundation Supervisory Authority.

Each Council is self-sovereign, will select and add new members, and will operate independently within their area of responsibility, with checks and balances to ensure accountability.

The Aragon Foundation will serve as a steward for the funds it is inheriting: the portion of the legacy Aragon treasury that is not redeemed by token holders in the ANT Redemption Initiative. Foundations are ownerless immutable legal entities that irrevocably pursue a non-profit purpose under the supervision of the Swiss Foundation Supervisory Authority. All funds will go towards the Foundation’s purpose of advancing the Aragon Project’s mission, as directed by the Strategic Council. 

Aragon X, the team developing Aragon’s next-generation products, is independent and plays no role in the Aragon Foundation. The Strategic Council will be advising the Aragon X team and supporting strategic direction, protocol development, and ecosystem growth. 

As previously communicated, ANT Holders have until November 2, 2024 at 11:59 UTC to participate in the ANT Redemption Initiative and redeem their ANT for ETH. This initiative and all legacy matters are overseen by the Aragon Shield Foundation, any questions can be directed to ant@aragon.org. 

The initiative of the new Aragon Foundation has been in development for months and is an important step in Aragon's evolution. The advancement and adoption of onchain governance is more critical than ever, as the future presents a combination of new growth opportunities, geopolitical shifts, and increasing technical complexity. It's no longer good enough to simply build best-in-class technology for today, but technology that will be resilient in the face of uncertainty and lead us to a brighter tomorrow.

For updates on the new Aragon Foundation, please visit www.aragonfoundation.org and follow @aragon_fnd on X. Inquiries can be directed to info@aragonfoundation.org and media to info@hardfork.media.