Homestead.
ECH is the steward of major initiatives documented at Homestead.
Supporting the processes, coordination, and participation that help Ethereum evolve responsibly as open, public infrastructure.
Section 1
What is Ethereum Governance?
A simple explanation of how Ethereum makes decisions the upgrade selection process, the EIP framework, and where to track it live.
Ethereum governance is the process by which changes to the protocol are proposed, discussed, evaluated, and implemented. Unlike traditional software with a centralized team, Ethereum relies on a rough consensus model meaning changes must achieve broad agreement among client teams, researchers, application developers, and the broader community before they are accepted. No single entity has veto power or final authority over the protocol.
Track Ethereum Governance Live
Two essential resources for tracking the current state of Ethereum upgrades and EIP inclusion in real time:
Section 2
The EIP Process
What EIPs are, how they're structured, and the lifecycle every proposal passes through from concept to mainnet deployment.
EIPs that change the Ethereum protocol itself including Core, Networking, Interface, and ERC (token/application) changes.
Describes a process or proposes a change to the EIP process itself. Not changes to the protocol.
Provides general guidelines or information to the Ethereum community. No binding changes to the protocol.
EIP Lifecycle: Stage by Stage
Idea
A concept is informally discussed on Ethereum Magicians or Discord to gauge community interest and feasibility before any formal document is written.
Draft
A formal EIP document is written following the EIP-1 template. It is submitted as a pull request to the ethereum/EIPs GitHub repository and assigned an EIP number.
Review
EIP editors and the core developer community review the proposal for technical soundness, specification clarity, and backward compatibility. Revisions are made in response to feedback.
Last Call
A final 14-day public comment window for all stakeholders. The EIP is considered complete unless critical issues are raised that require it to return to Review status.
Final
The EIP is accepted as an official Ethereum standard. From here it may be considered for inclusion in an upcoming network upgrade, or may stand alone as an informational or interface standard.
Stagnant
Any EIP in Draft or Review state that is inactive for a period of 6 months or greater is moved to Stagnant. It can be resurrected by authors later.
Withdrawn
The EIP author has explicitly withdrawn the proposed EIP. This state has finality and can no longer be resurrected using this EIP number.
Living
A special status for EIPs that are designed to be continually updated and not reach a state of finality (e.g., EIP-1).
Section 3
Network Upgrades
How Ethereum coordinates hard forks, the formal inclusion stages from EIP-7723, and an overview of recent and upcoming upgrades.
An Ethereum network upgrade (also called a hard fork) is a scheduled change to the protocol that requires all clients to update to a new version simultaneously. Upgrades are coordinated through the ACD calls and require unanimous agreement from all major client teams. A "fork hash" is used to coordinate the exact block or slot at which the upgrade activates.
Section 4
Role of ECH Institute
ECH Institute is the neutral coordination and education infrastructure for Ethereum governance. Here is how the Institute contributes across four pillars.
ECH Institute coordinates a wide range of governance infrastructure including EIPIP (EIP Improvement Process) meetings, All Core Devs documentation, and upgrade communication. As a neutral party, the Institute is able to facilitate conversations between groups that might otherwise lack a shared coordination venue. This coordination role is critical to ensuring no proposal or concern falls through the cracks.
Section 5
Why This Matters
Ethereum's decentralization is not self-sustaining. It requires active governance infrastructure, clear processes, and broad participation.
Take the Next Step
Get Involved in Governance
Community Discussions
Participate in EIP and governance conversations on Ethereum Magicians forums.
Attend Office Hours
Connect with core devs and EIP editors in open EIPIP coordination calls.
Learn More
Start with the Education page for structured learning tracks by experience level.
Participation & Ecosystem Contribution
ECH Institute is your starting point for understanding and contributing to Ethereum governance. Join the community, attend office hours, or simply start reading.