DAO Governance
Governance Philosophy
Nonterritorial is not a company. It's infrastructure for art circulation—and infrastructure should be governed by those who use it.
Traditional art institutions are governed by boards of wealthy donors. Platforms are governed by shareholders seeking returns. DAOs often become plutocracies where largest token holders control everything.
We're building something different: multi-stakeholder governance where artists, hosts, and community share power according to their contribution to cultural circulation, not their financial holdings.
Multi-Stakeholder Model
Who Governs?
Four stakeholder groups share governance power:
Artists & Curators The creators. Those who make the work that circulates. Their voice ensures the network serves artistic vision, not just efficiency or profit.
Hosts The circulators. Those who bring art to communities. Their voice ensures the network remains practical, accessible, and genuinely useful.
Verification Nodes The validators. Those who ensure quality and authenticity. Their voice ensures technical integrity and network reliability.
Community / Foundation The supporters and stewards. Early participants who funded development, plus the foundation during its sunset period.
Power Distribution
Voting power shifts over time toward direct stakeholders:
Artists/Curators
40%
40%
42%
45%
Hosts
25%
28%
32%
35%
Verification Nodes
20%
20%
18%
15%
Foundation
10%
7%
4%
0%
Community Fund
5%
5%
4%
5%
Key trajectory: Foundation power goes to zero. Artists and hosts gain power. The network becomes genuinely autonomous.
Why This Distribution?
Artists at 40-45% Art circulation exists to serve artists. Their interests should be primary. But not absolute—other stakeholders have legitimate interests too.
Hosts at 25-35% Without hosts, there's no circulation. Their practical experience grounds governance in reality. Power increases as network matures and their contribution becomes clearer.
Verification Nodes at 15-20% Technical integrity matters. But validators shouldn't dominate—they're service providers, not primary stakeholders. Power decreases as automated verification improves.
Foundation at 10% → 0% The foundation builds infrastructure, then steps back. Permanent foundation control would defeat the purpose of decentralized governance.
Governance Structure
The DAO
The Nonterritorial DAO is the primary governance body:
Governance Token
Governance tokens represent voting power:
Token Properties
Non-transferable (cannot be traded)
Earned through participation (creating, hosting, verifying)
Decay over time (prevents accumulation without ongoing participation)
Weighted by stakeholder type (artist tokens weighted differently than host tokens)
Token Earning
Exhibition accepted to network
1,000 base + ongoing based on licensing
Completing license as host
100 base + proportional to fee
Verification submission
10 per verified license
Community contribution
Variable based on impact
Token Decay
Tokens decay by 20% annually if holder isn't actively participating. This prevents:
Early participants dominating forever
Inactive wallets controlling votes
Token accumulation as speculation
Working Groups
Specialized committees handle specific domains:
Curation Committee
Reviews exhibition submissions
Sets quality standards
Approves commissioning grants
Composition: Majority artists/curators
Technical Committee
Oversees protocol development
Reviews security measures
Manages verification node network
Composition: Technical experts + stakeholder representatives
Treasury Committee
Manages operational funds
Allocates commissioning budget
Reviews financial sustainability
Composition: Multi-stakeholder with financial expertise
Dispute Resolution
Handles conflicts between participants
Reviews verification appeals
Makes binding decisions on disputes
Composition: Rotating stakeholder panel
Decision-Making Process
Proposal Lifecycle
Proposal Categories
Different decisions require different thresholds:
Standard
Fee adjustments, minor parameters
50% + 1 majority
Significant
Treasury allocations >€50K, new features
66% supermajority
Constitutional
Core principles, governance structure
80% supermajority
Quorum Requirements
For a vote to be valid:
Standard
10% of voting power
Significant
20% of voting power
Constitutional
33% of voting power
Timelock
Passed proposals don't execute immediately:
Standard
48 hours
Significant
7 days
Constitutional
30 days
This allows participants to prepare for changes and, in extreme cases, exit if they disagree with major decisions.
Checks and Balances
Stakeholder Balance
No single stakeholder group can pass significant proposals alone. Approximate coalitions needed:
Artists (40%) + Hosts (25%) = 65% → Can pass most proposals
Artists (40%) + Nodes (20%) = 60% → Can pass standard proposals
Any single group = Cannot pass anything significant alone
Foundation Veto
During the sunset period (Years 1-5), the foundation retains limited veto power over proposals that would:
Fundamentally alter the anti-speculation architecture
Violate constitutional protections
Endanger network viability
This veto power expires completely by Year 5.
Constitutional Limits
Certain things cannot be changed regardless of vote:
Transfer functions remain disabled (immutable in contract)
Artist payment percentage cannot go below 30%
Multi-stakeholder structure must be preserved
Anti-speculation mechanisms cannot be removed
See Constitutional Protections for full details.
Participation Guide
For Artists
Key voting areas:
Commissioning fund allocations
Revenue split adjustments
Curation standards
Artist onboarding process
For Hosts
Key voting areas:
Fee structures
Technical requirements
Host verification process
Platform features
For Everyone
Stay informed:
Governance forum: [Link]
Proposal notifications: [Subscribe]
Community calls: [Calendar]
Documentation updates: [Changelog]
Governance Documentation | Nonterritorial Network Building permanent infrastructure for art to circulate freely
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