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Changes for page Governance

Last modified by Robert Schaub on 2026/02/08 08:29
From version 1.1
edited by Robert Schaub
on 2026/01/20 20:44
Change comment: Imported from XAR
To version 1.2
edited by Robert Schaub
on 2026/02/08 08:28
Change comment: Renamed back-links.

Summary

Details

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Content
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1 1  = Governance =
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2 2  FactHarbor governance is **simple, transparent, flat, and focused on enabling automation**.
3 -{{include reference="FactHarbor.Organisation.Diagrams.Governance Structure.WebHome"/}}
4 +{{include reference="Archive.FactHarbor 2026\.02\.08.Organisation.Diagrams.Governance Structure.WebHome"/}}
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4 4  == 1. Governance Philosophy ==
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5 5  **Core Principles**:
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6 6  * **Automation over bureaucracy**: Minimize manual processes
7 7  * **Transparency by default**: Open decision-making
8 8  * **Community input**: Listen but decide decisively
9 9  * **Measured outcomes**: Data drives decisions
10 10  * **Adaptive structure**: Evolve as needed
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11 11  == 2. Organizational Structure ==
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12 12  **Flat Cooperative Model**:
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13 13  * Small organization with collaborative teamwork
14 14  * No hierarchical management layers
15 15  * Decisions by consensus when possible, voting when needed
16 16  * Everyone contributes across multiple areas
17 17  **General Assembly** → **Governing Team** → **Team Members**
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18 18  === 2.1 General Assembly (All Members) ===
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19 19  Decides: Governing Team election, statutes, major strategic changes, budget
20 20  Meets: Annually
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21 21  === 2.2 Governing Team ===
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22 22  Decides: Strategy, policy, budget allocation, hiring
23 23  Meets: Quarterly
24 24  Size: small group (Facilitator, Coordinator, Treasurer + others)
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25 25  === 2.3 Team Members ===
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26 26  * **Technical Coordinator**: AKEL & infrastructure
27 27  * **Community Coordinator**: Moderators & contributors
28 28  * **Moderators** (part-time): Handle abuse/disputes
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29 29  == 3. Decision Authority ==
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30 30  **Day-to-day**: Technical Coordinator + Community Coordinator
31 31  **Tactical**: Governing Team (simple majority)
32 32  **Strategic**: General Assembly (2/3 majority)
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33 33  == 4. Policy Development ==
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34 34  **RFC Process** (Request for Comments):
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35 35  1. Anyone drafts proposal
36 36  2. Community discussion
37 37  3. Governing Team reviews and votes
38 38  4. Decision published
39 39  **Emergency changes**: Technical Coordinator can act immediately, Governing Team ratifies later
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40 40  == 5. Financial Governance ==
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41 41  * Annual budget approved by General Assembly
42 42  * Two-signature requirement for >CHF 5,000
43 43  * Governing Team approval for >CHF 20,000
44 44  * Quarterly financial reports
45 45  * Annual independent audit
66 +
46 46  == 6. Automation Governance ==
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47 47  **Core Principle**: AKEL makes content decisions. Humans make system decisions.
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48 48  === 6.1 Decision Boundary ===
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49 49  **What AKEL Decides (Automated)**:
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50 50  * All claim verdicts and confidence scores
51 51  * All evidence assessments and relevance scores
52 52  * All source track record scores
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76 76  * Critical security issues
77 77  * Legal compliance requirements
78 78  * Immediate safety concerns
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79 79  === 6.2 Principle: Fix the System, Not the Data ===
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80 80  **When AKEL makes a "wrong" decision**:
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81 81  * ❌ Do NOT manually override that specific verdict
82 82  * ✅ DO investigate: Is this a systematic issue?
83 83  * ✅ DO improve: Change algorithm/policy to handle such cases better
... ... @@ -87,8 +87,11 @@
87 87  **Example**:
88 88  * Bad: "AKEL rated this source too low, I'll manually boost it"
89 89  * Good: "AKEL consistently under-rates peer-reviewed sources. Let's adjust the scoring algorithm to weight peer-review more heavily."
118 +
90 90  === 6.3 Governance of AKEL ===
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91 91  **Quarterly Performance Review**:
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92 92  * Who: Governing Team + Technical Coordinator
93 93  * What: Review AKEL performance metrics, bias audits, user feedback patterns
94 94  * Output: Performance report, improvement priorities, policy updates if needed
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106 106  * Legal/compliance concerns
107 107  * New domains requiring special handling
108 108  **Algorithm Change Process**:
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109 109  1. Identify issue from metrics
110 110  2. Propose solution (RFC - Request for Comments)
111 111  3. Test in staging environment
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113 113  5. Technical Coordinator approves (or escalates to Governing Team for policy changes)
114 114  6. Deploy with monitoring
115 115  7. Evaluate results
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116 116  === 6.4 Human Intervention Criteria ===
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117 117  **Legitimate reasons to intervene**:
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118 118  * ✅ AKEL explicitly flags item for human review
119 119  * ✅ System metrics show performance degradation
120 120  * ✅ Legal/safety issue requires immediate action
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124 124  * ❌ "This source should rank higher" → Improve scoring rules
125 125  * ❌ "Manual quality gate before publication" → Defeats purpose of automation
126 126  * ❌ "I know better than the algorithm" → Then improve the algorithm
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127 127  === 6.5 Consent-Based Decision Making ===
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128 128  **For system changes**, use consent not consensus (from Sociocracy 3.0):
129 129  **Consent** = No principled objections
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130 130  * Faster than consensus
131 131  * Respects concerns without requiring full agreement
132 132  * "I can live with this and support it"
133 133  **Process**:
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134 134  1. Proposal presented (RFC)
135 135  2. Clarifying questions
136 136  3. Reactions and concerns
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139 139  6. If no objections → Decision made
140 140  7. If objections → Integrate and repeat
141 141  **Use for**:
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142 142  * Algorithm changes
143 143  * Policy updates
144 144  * Infrastructure investments
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146 146  **Not for**:
147 147  * Strategic decisions (use voting)
148 148  * Emergency decisions (use autonomous authority)
189 +
149 149  == 7. Transparency & Accountability ==
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150 150  **Always public**: Policies, structure, board membership, financials, quality metrics, major decisions
151 151  **Published quarterly**: Activity reports, metrics, moderation stats
152 152  **Internal documentation**: All meetings, decisions, actions retained indefinitely
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153 153  == 7. Conflict Resolution ==
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154 154  **User disputes**: Moderator → Appeal to different moderator → Governing Team (final)
155 155  **Timeline**: Reasonable timeframe
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156 156  == 8. Moderation Oversight ==
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157 157  **Moderator requirements**: high reputation, 6+ months active, clean record
158 158  **Review**: Quarterly by Community Coordinator, annually by Governing Team
159 159  **Appeal**: Any user can appeal promptly
206 +
160 160  == 9. Code of Conduct ==
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161 161  **Governing Team**: Act in org interest, disclose conflicts, maintain confidentiality
162 162  **Team Members**: Follow procedures, professional conduct, document decisions
163 163  **Moderators**: Impartial decisions, respect privacy, respond timely
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164 164  == 10. Amendment Process ==
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165 165  **Minor changes**: Governing Team decision
166 166  **Major changes**: General Assembly (2/3 vote)
167 167  **Emergency**: Governing Team can act, must ratify at next Assembly
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168 168  == 11. Related Pages ==
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169 169  * [[Organisational Model>>FactHarbor.Organisation.Organisational-Model]]
170 170  * [[Legal Framework>>FactHarbor.Organisation.Legal-Framework]]
171 171  * [[Transparency Policy>>FactHarbor.Organisation.How-We-Work-Together.Transparency-Policy]]