Improvement proposals are made to enhance an existing process, address a challenge, or create a new product or service. Their only goal is improvement. At Horizen we call them ZenIPs or EONIPs, depending on the blockchain to which they pertain. Since September 2023, they are voted on by the community

From improvement proposals to DAOs

Improvement proposals can be submitted by anyone in the community: team members, users, or community participants.

Improvement proposals have been part of Horizen’s governance since the project’s inception, but with the launch of Horizen DAO in 2023, public voting on ZenIPs afforded greater community participation in the process. 

This ZenIP process embodies to the spirit of decentralized governance – anyone in the community can submit a proposal, and proposals require sufficient support from the community to be adopted.

However, it is incumbent upon community members to ensure that they have understand the improvement proposal process to wield this power responsibly. This article aims to help everyone understand that process.

Take part in Horizen

You have many ways to be included in the Horizen ecosystem. By deploying on EON, deploying on Zendoo, marking PRs on Github, hosting a Super Node, hosting or delegating a Forger Node, etc.

You can also submit proposals, and vote on proposals already submitted. First, let’s see what you need to do to make a proposal.

The whole process is exhaustively published on Horizen’s docs website. 

2 kinds of proposals can be made:

• Technical ZenIP/EONIP
• Non-techinal ZenIP/EONIP

Technical proposals cover changes involving core technology or the governance of the Horizen DAO, and as such have higher thresholds for submitting proposals and achieving a vote quorum. Non-technical proposals cover everything else, such as grants or making agreements with third-party service providers.

The Horizen Foundation and its partners, such as Horizen Labs, can help build and scope the proposals but don’t need to develop the ideas themselves. If you are proposing a technical ZenIP, make sure you can develop the idea or have it developed after scoping the work.
Since ZenIP 42401 passed in March 2024, the threshold and quorum are determined as the following:

Type	Threshold (to post)	Quorum (vote to pass)	Examples
Technical	100,000 ZEN  (previously 200,000)	5% (previously 10%)	Removal of privacy, mainchain and sidechains improvements
Non-technical	25,000 ZEN (previously 100,000)	3% (previously 5%)	Website branding, next meetups location, grant program

What are the different phases from the idea to its implementation?

Phase 1: Proposal Idea and Research

Broadly speaking, the idea stage is intended to introduce an idea for a potential improvement proposal and gauge community sentiment. The idea stage is made of the first three phases of the ZenIP process.

In the first phase, a community member who has an idea for an improvement proposal should research it and verify whether the concept or similar proposals have previously been explored or suggested.

This phase places the onus entirely on the proposer(s). It is strongly advised to support the proposal with relevant sources whenever possible thoroughly.

Phase 2: Idea Modification

Once a proposer has confirmed that the idea has not been proposed and has completed sufficient research, they publish an idea on Discourse. We recommend using the ZenIP/EONIP template for this phase. 

Phase 3: Community Feedback

Once an idea is posted on Discourse, the community provides feedback.  This phase lasts a minimum of 7 days to ensure sufficient input from other community members. It is important to note that a ZenIP idea is just that – an idea – until put forth as a formal ZenIP.

Phase 4: Proposal Draft Creation

Following the template, the idea must be posted on Github or under the “governance” section on Discourse. In this phase the use of the template is mandatory. The proposal is on the DRAFT status.

Phase 5: Draft Review and Moderator Feedback

The person or people making the proposal have 30 days to answer any moderator’s questions, if any. This delay can be shortened by the moderators.

Phase 6: Administrative Review

The Special Council reviews the proposal, with a maximum of 3 revisions. The DAO Special Council can ask for more clarifications or additional information.

Phase 7: Voting

The vote takes place on Snapshot, a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) voting platform. You’ll need to follow up on the threshold requirements to post the proposal. The status is moved to PROPOSED.

Phase 8: Cooldown Period

A final 30 days phase commences. The proposal undergoes another review to confirm compliance with the Foundation’s Governing Documents and relevant laws.

Phase 9: Implementation

The idea becomes real. If the technical ZenIP/EONIP includes codes implemented on Github, the PR is merged. If the proposal is budget-related, the necessary funds are transferred. Status is either IMPLEMENTED or FINAL if the idea is also activated on the network.

Foundation moderators or DAO members must remain informed and involved throughout.

It’s possible to delegate voting power on Snapshot, when you publish the ZenIP IDEA or DRAFT, you can create a second topic to ask for delegated funds to post the proposal.

ZenIP naming convention

The revised ZenIP numbering conventions will use a format starting with “424” followed by two unique, sequential digits. Once the number 42499 is reached, the numbering will continue starting from 42500 onwards. This system ensures a cohesive and orderly sequence for all ZenIPs, maintaining a straightforward approach to their identification and categorization.

For the previous ZenIPs, editors used the following conventions when numbering ZenIPs:

• All ZenIP numbers are prefixed with a 42 and followed by three digits. E.g. his very first ZenIP has the number 42000.
• If a ZenIP directly corresponds to a BIP (Bitcoin Improvement Proposal) or ZIP (Zcash Improvement Proposal), the same number is used, but without the prefix “42”.
• Process and Informational ZenIPs will be assigned a number in the range 42000 to 42199.
• Consensus ZenIPs will be assigned a number in the range 42200 to 42399.
• Standard Track ZenIPs will be assigned a number in the range 42400 to 42599.
• ZenIPs that should or will be deployed together will be numbered consecutively (wherever possible), and in a coherent reading order.

These conventions are subject to change by a majority decision of the Editors.

Express yourself through the vote

Your vote will be weighted regarding the tokens you hold on the Horizen mainchain (the historic one) and/or the Horizen EON chain (the EVM chain).

The vote happens on Snapshot and is done through MetaMask and therefore via the Horizen EON network.

Before going through the tutorial, we assume that the Horizen EON network is well configured on your MetaMask wallet. If not, please follow this guide.

If you already linked your address for a previous vote, then it’s very simple. 

We still advise you to verify if your mainchain address is well-linked on the Horizen Governance app.

If your address is not linked, follow the tutorial here.

When linked, just head to Snapshot on the Horizen governance page, and vote for the proposal when it’s published and available. 

Helpful Links

• Horizen Foundation on Snapshot
• Horizen DAO Forum on Discourse
• Horizen DAO Governance page on Horizen EON Web App
• How to connect MetaMask Wallet to Horizen EON
• How to Link Horizen Sphere Addresses with Horizen EON Address
• Download Sphere Wallet
• Download MetaMask
• Additional voting instructions for Multi-sig wallets, non-Sphere wallets, Staked ZEN on a Horizen Node, ZEN Stored on an exchange

If you need assistance, please reach out to us on the Horizen Discord, and be sure to join the Horizen DAO discussion on Discourse!