The Cardano Foundation participated in Project Catalyst Fund 12, where 258 projects received funding, highlighting the community-driven development of the Cardano ecosystem. Cardano-node 9.0.0 was released, adding on-chain governance, Plutus v1 reference scripts, and enhanced smart contract security. EMURGO announced the relaunch of the USDA stablecoin under Encryptus. Cardano Ambassador Lloyd Duhon discussed future governance innovations, including DReps and the Voltaire era. Additional updates include the release of Cardano Wallet v2024-07-19, support for Cardano Native Tokens by Tangem, and the launch of Cardano Codex 2024.

A blockchain hard fork upgrades the software run by distributed nodes, introducing new features and improving security. Cardano uses a hard fork combinator (HFC) for smooth transitions. The Chang Hard Fork requires 70% of stake pool operators and 80% of exchange liquidity to upgrade, marking the start of community-run governance outlined in CIP-1694. Part one includes the Interim Cardano Constitution and the Interim Constitutional Committee, while part two introduces Delegate Representatives, SPO voting, and treasury management, fully implementing decentralized governance by Q4 2024. This transition will make Cardano the first truly community-run blockchain network.

Discover the future of Cardano governance with Lloyd Duhon, covering the Chang upgrade, Delegated Representatives (DReps), and the DRep Pioneer Workshop Leaders Program. Learn how these innovations will empower ada holders in decision-making, from protocol parameters to treasury management. A comprehensive guide to Cardano’s Voltaire era and decentralized blockchain governance.

Community voting for Catalyst Fund 12 is active, with 4,800 wallets casting over 180,000 votes, representing 1.6 billion ada. Voting ends on July 11, 2024, at 11:00 AM UTC. The Cardano Foundation published a beginner’s guide to blockchain on July 3, covering its basics, history, types, applications, and regulatory landscape. The “A Spotlight on Stake Pools” series features C3ETH, a pool focused on community and decentralization in the eastern hemisphere. The latest Developer Blog features an interview with Daniel Friedman, CEO of zenGate Global, discussing their platform Palmyra, which tokenizes commodities for transparency in trading. Other news includes confirmed global Constitution Workshop locations, the tentative agenda for the Cardano Summit 2024 in Dubai, Cardano’s adoption of the IBC Protocol for interoperability, and the latest Catalyst newsletter and Essential Cardano development update.

Lloyd Duhon discusses the recent attack on Cardano. Despite the attack, the network only slowed down slightly, with most services unaffected. The attacker used spam transactions, but Cardano’s structure made it complex and costly. A flaw in the attacker’s contract allowed Phil from Anastasia Labs to counter with a “deregistration attack,” stopping the hacker and retrieving ada. Staked ada was never at risk. Cardano’s design ensures resilience, requiring significant resources to sustain such attacks. The community’s quick response and Cardano’s robust design minimized the impact.

The Interim Constitution was released on June 21, 2024, serving as a temporary document until the Final Constitution is ratified by ada holders by early 2025. Drafting of the final constitution will involve global workshops and a Constitutional Convention. The Interim Constitutional Committee election ended on June 24, 2024, with results expected on June 26 after an audit. The Aiken team reports surpassing 1 million Mainnet transactions with Aiken smart contracts, contributing to 25% of all smart contract traffic. MinSwap completed its final audit on their new Aiken-based implementation, anticipating increased activity. A new full-time engineer, Riley, joins the team, with new libraries and features like property-based testing and backpassing being showcased in projects like Merkle-Patricia Forestry and Fortuna.

Lloyd Duhon breaks down the Cardano Blockchain Interim Constitution, covering its preamble, core principles, community members’ rights and responsibilities, and the transition plan to the Final Constitution. Discover how this document paves the way for a fully decentralized, community-governed blockchain. Essential insights for Cardano enthusiasts, blockchain developers, and those curious about crypto governance.

Today, June 10, 2024, is the final day to register for the Interim Constitutional Committee, which will uphold the interim Constitution during the Chang upgrade. The committee includes representatives from IOG, the Cardano Foundation, EMURGO, Intersect, and three community seats. Charles Hoskinson confirmed Cardano Node v9’s release this month, preceding the Chang Hard Fork. The “Spotlight on Stake Pools” series features Dmytro Stashenko of STAT stake pool. Other Cardano news includes updates from Vietnam Blockchain Week, MAV growth, and the Crypto Valley Conference.

Cardano’s minimum viable on-chain governance framework outlines the transition towards on-chain governance, starting with an interim period for bootstrapping via formal rules. Key dates for community involvement include May 28 for registration opening, June 10 for closing, and June 13-23 for voting. An interim Constitutional Committee of seven members, including three elected community members, will oversee the initial phase. Community members passionate about governance are encouraged to apply.

On May 23, 2024, Cardano’s SanchoNet achieved a historic milestone by initiating its first hard fork using CIP-1694 governance. Intersect seeks community input for drafting the Cardano Constitution with workshops worldwide. The Cardano Foundation introduced the MACS algorithm for efficient coin selection on UTxO blockchains at the IEEE conference. Other news includes updates from Dr. Lars Brünjes, CNTools, RealFi, leaderlogs, Catalyst Working Group, and SanchoNet.