PROOF OF HUMAN WORK — GOVERNANCE

PoHW governance is divided between two entities:

1. PoHW FOUNDATION

• Role: Ethical stewardship and standards
• Responsibility: Protocol specification, ethics, long-term vision
• Authority: Cannot unilaterally alter protocol truth

2. PoHW LABS

• Role: Technical execution and development
• Responsibility: Implementation, infrastructure, tools
• Authority: Cannot unilaterally alter protocol specification

Core Principle: No single entity owns verification. Governance actions are recorded as verifiable claims.

Mission:

Preserve ethical permanence of the Proof of Human Work protocol. Maintain standards and ensure long-term viability.

Responsibilities:

• Protocol specification maintenance
• Ethics and philosophy oversight
• Attestor accreditation
• Dispute resolution
• Transparency and accountability

Structure:

• Board of Directors
• Technical Advisory Committee
• Ethics Review Board
• Community Representatives

Foundation Actions: All decisions are recorded as verifiable claims on PoHW ledger.

Mission:

Execute technical development and maintain infrastructure.

Responsibilities:

• Protocol implementation
• SDK development
• Registry node software
• Developer tools
• Documentation

Structure:

• Technical team
• Research and development
• Operations and infrastructure
• Developer relations

Labs Actions: All code changes are version-controlled and publicly auditable.

Protocol Changes:

1. Proposal submitted (Foundation or Labs)
2. Technical review (Labs)
3. Ethics review (Foundation)
4. Community consultation
5. Consensus decision
6. Implementation (Labs)
7. Recorded as verifiable claim

Dispute Resolution:

1. Issue raised to Foundation
2. Review by Ethics Board
3. Technical assessment (Labs if needed)
4. Resolution documented
5. Recorded as verifiable claim

All governance actions are public:

• Proposal submissions
• Review processes
• Decisions and outcomes
• Implementation progress
• Dispute resolutions

Transparency Log Location: https://proofofhumanwork.org/governance/logs.json

Core Principle: No entity owns verification. Protocol truth is cryptographically encoded.

Foundation Role:

• Steward, not owner
• Guide, not dictate
• Preserve, not control

Labs Role:

• Implement, not define
• Execute, not govern
• Build, not own

Governance actions are recorded as PoHW attestations:

Governance Claim Format:

{
  "type": "governance_action",
  "action": "proposal|decision|implementation",
  "entity": "foundation|labs",
  "timestamp": "2025-11-25T00:00:00Z",
  "data": {...},
  "signature": "..."
}

All claims are:

• Cryptographically signed
• Publicly verifiable
• Immutably recorded
• Linked in Merkle trees

Community members can:

• Submit proposals
• Review implementations
• Participate in audits
• Report issues
• Contribute code
• Maintain documentation

Governance Repository: https://github.com/pohw/governance

Governance must adhere to:

1. Privacy preservation

• No identity disclosure requirements
• Anonymity as civic right

2. Public good principle

• Verification cannot be monetized
• No gatekeeping barriers

3. Durability commitment

• 100-year horizon
• No proprietary dependencies

4. Transparency requirement

• All decisions public
• All actions verifiable

Governance cannot:

• Require identity disclosure
• Create proprietary barriers
• Centralize control
• Modify cryptographic guarantees
• Violate privacy principles

Process:

1. Issue reported to Foundation
2. Initial review (7 days)
3. Technical assessment if needed (Labs)
4. Ethics review (Foundation)
5. Resolution proposal (14 days)
6. Community feedback period (30 days)
7. Final decision
8. Implementation
9. Recorded as verifiable claim

Appeals: Disputes can be appealed through transparent review process.

PoHW Foundation:

• Email: foundation@proofofhumanwork.org
• GitHub: https://github.com/pohw/governance

PoHW Labs:

• Email: labs@proofofhumanwork.org
• GitHub: Registry Node Repository | PoHW Organization (coming soon)