The Chang #1 Hard Fork on September 1, 204, marks a key milestone for Cardano, initiating a new governance era. The first phase introduces an Interim Constitutional Committee (ICC) to oversee governance with limited powers, while Stake Pool Operators retain approval rights for protocol changes. The second phase, Chang Upgrade #2, expected in 90 days, will fully activate on-chain governance per CIP-1694. As Cardano enters the Conway era, the new Delegated Representatives (DReps) role is vital for governance, allowing ada holders to influence decisions. Early DRep registration requires a 500 ada refundable deposit.

Cardano is strengthening its presence in Argentina through key initiatives, including developer workshops, the ADN event, and discussions with government officials. The ALBA program at UTN is advancing blockchain education, and a recent workshop led by IOG culminated in a graduation event attended by Charles Hoskinson. The ADN event showcased blockchain innovations, while government talks explored blockchain's potential in Argentina. Additionally, Cardano's first community-driven Constitutional Workshop was held in Argentina. These activities highlight Cardano's commitment to local engagement and blockchain innovation. The Cardano Foundation also launched the SSI Wallet Alpha Program, inviting users to test and contribute to its development.

Intersect’s organizational structure is crucial to the Cardano ecosystem, featuring seven key committees: Budget, Cardano Civics, Marketing, Membership & Community, Open Source, Parameters, and Technology Steering. These committees manage various aspects of Cardano’s development and governance. They collaborate with Working Groups and Special Interest Groups (SIGs) to ensure efficient and decentralized network management. This episode provides a detailed overview of each committee’s responsibilities and their contributions to Cardano’s growth.

In 2024, Cardano is transitioning to a fully community-run governance structure, with Intersect playing a crucial supporting role. Six key developments to expect include:

1. Cardano Constitution workshops: Intersect will organize workshops to gather community feedback for drafting the Cardano Constitution.
2. Cardano Constitutional Convention: Set for December 2024, this event in Buenos Aires will present and potentially ratify the final Constitution.
3. DRep launch: The first batch of Delegate Representatives (DReps) will begin operating, enabling direct community participation in governance.
4. Intersect grants: Intersect will provide grants for technical projects and event organization.
5. Community hubs: Intersect will support local gatherings and hackathons to unite the Cardano ecosystem.
6. Governance educational videos: Intersect will release video series to educate the community on Cardano governance.

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.