The BlockchainGov Newsletter #28 | December 2025
Our 2025 roundup, straight from us to you.
Happy new year all, and welcome to this month’s newsletter!
It is the first month of the last year of the BlockchainGov project during which we will be focusing on three major themes:
Regulatory Equivalence
Network Nations & Network Sovereignties
Exit 2 Community
However, before looking forward, here is our 2025 roundup. Starting with a short and sweet recap of what happened in December:
👀🕸️
I. December recap
Governance Futures hosted a live podcast in collaboration with the Democracy Innovators podcast, featuring a cross-podcast dialogue on governance, democracy, and institutional innovation.
🔗 Find it here: Cross-podcast dialogue on governance, democracy, and institutional innovation
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II. Argentina Onchain Video
A video of our Patagonian residency was released!
This video captures key moments from the Argentina Onchain residency, a two-week program exploring how blockchain technologies can be applied to real-world challenges. We spent 2 weeks working to translate governance and infrastructure ideas into practical use cases custom made for Argentina. Petar Tsankov @peth.eth made a beautiful video, watch it here:
III. Network Nation Podcast
The Network Nations Podcast, hosted as part of the Greenpill Miniseries by Primavera De Filippi and Felix Beer, released four new episodes exploring network sovereignty, governance, and emerging institutional forms.
Ep. 9 — Network Sovereignty: Power Beyond the Nation-State
In this episode, Felix Beer is joined by Nick Srnicek and Sofía Cossar to examine the concept of network sovereignty and how power is increasingly exercised through digital platforms and infrastructures. The conversation explores how platforms are beginning to function as political infrastructures, the implications of algorithmic and protocol-based governance, and what this shift means for democratic accountability, regulation, and public power in a networked world.
🎧 Listen here:
Ep. 8 — Functional Sovereignty: Can Network Nations Self-Govern Without Land?
In this episode, Morshed Mannan and Neil Walker join Primavera to explore the concept of functional sovereignty and the idea of decentralized infrastructure as sovereign infrastructure. The conversation moves fluidly between theory and practice, examining whether communities can meaningfully self-govern in the networked age. Topics include Big Tech platforms as de facto functional sovereigns, why Network Nations pursue functional rather than declarative sovereignty (in contrast to Network States), recent uprisings in Nepal, peaceful coexistence with territorial states, and reflections on guild socialism.
🎧 Listen here:
Ep. 7 — Meta-Politics: Designing Digital Environments for Civic Power
What kinds of digital environments are needed for civil society to govern itself effectively and at scale? In this episode, Audrey Tang and Nathan Schneider sit down with Felix Beer and Primavera De Filippi to address this question. They discuss how to avoid dystopian and VC-dominated “network states,” how to embed civic care into protocols, which values can—and cannot—be encoded, Audrey Tang’s “Six-Pack of Care,” making conflict productive through bridging, and the role of religion in civic life.
🎧 Listen here:
Ep. 6 — Regen: Toward a Network Nation Identity, Commons & Collective Agency
In this episode, Kevin Owocki, Monty Merlin, and Austin Wade Smith join Primavera De Filippi to explore how Network Nation thinking intersects with bioregional and digital hybrid communities. The discussion covers DAO-of-DAOs coordination, collective identity, ecological state protocols, and the experience of navigating crypto spaces—anchoring the Network Nation debate more firmly in the physical and ecological realm.
🎧 Listen here:
IV. Three recommended reads from the last month
1. Protecting Platform Workers in the European Union
A newly released special issue offering timely legal and policy analysis of labour protection in the platform economy and ongoing EU regulatory debates.
🔗 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/20319525251376935
2. Kleros–Stanford Symposium Collection
A curated collection published by the Stanford Journal of Blockchain Law & Policy, including papers from the Kleros–Stanford Symposium. The collection brings together interdisciplinary perspectives on dispute resolution, digital governance, and institutional design. Many other good reads to be found there.
🔗 https://stanford-jblp.pubpub.org/
3. And third, Vitalik Buterin released a long post on the topic of network sovereignties called “Let a thousand societies bloom”.
The question is clearly no longer if these political entities will take form but which form they will take. Great start for opening one of the best rabbitholes of our times.
🔗 https://vitalik.eth.limo/general/2025/12/17/societies.html
V. 2025 recap
2025 was a tremendously busy year for BlockchainGov. We published a significant body of work, including numerous articles and books, taught several courses, and pioneered a new methodological framework for blockchain implementation.
Our team was on the move, delivering keynotes and hosting workshops around the world, and we welcomed a new member to our ranks.
The highlight of the year was our September Symposium & you can find a detailed writeup of the event here.
2025 was also the year we spent the most time outside of the ivory tower (however plenty of time was spent inside of the ivory tower, in fact it was the most productive year of BlockchainGov - ivory tower wise. A highlighted research compilation from the last year can be found at the end of the newsletter). BlockchainGov expanded to making use of the research developed more applicable, and a big portion of our time was spent teaching and collaborating with other educational institutions.
However this is just scraping the surface, we’ll go into more detail about what each of us got up to in the last year here:
Sofia Cossar
In 2025, Sofia Cossar continued to advance her work at the intersection of legal theory and decentralized governance. She contributed to the launch of Mechanism Library v1.0, the first open-access resource documenting the history, design trade-offs, and implementation examples of more than 130 onchain mechanisms.
She also co-hosted the SOAM Network Sovereignties Residency Programme, which brought together over 15 participants from around the world to advance conceptual, empirical, and normative research on network sovereignties. While the residency meetups concluded in 2024, Sofia contributed throughout 2025 to the editing and publication of the residents’ essays, available at https://soam-essays.vercel.app/.
Within the BlockchainGov project, Sofia moderated panels on Network Sovereignties, Blockchain Governance Design, and Markets & Democracy at the September Symposium. She also designed and coordinated the Argentina Onchain Residency during Edge City Patagonia in November and facilitated a landmark panel bringing together four Argentine stakeholders to discuss real-world implementation experiences. She led a collaboration between BlockchainGov and ISBE, working together on best practices for blockchain implementation in Spain.
In parallel, Sofia was featured on the Network Nations podcast, conducted a workshop on resilient onchain mechanism design at Metacamp in Costa Rica, and spoke on the promises and perils of blockchain-based voting at the II Direct Digital Democracy Congress.
Looking ahead to 2026, we anticipate the publication of the Argentina Onchain Residency Report, the release of a co-authored paper proposing a novel framework for understanding network sovereignties, and the completion of her Ph.D. thesis on onchain identification mechanisms through the lenses of the state, the market, and the commons.
Primavera De Filippi
In 2025, as Director of the ERC-funded BlockchainGov project, Primavera De Filippi did a lot of everything to advance the legal and theoretical foundations of distributed governance. Throughout the year, she delivered keynotes, participated in debates, and contributed to several educational forums, including teaching the “Governance for New Leadership” course during PBA Lucerne and PBA Bali. At the BlockchainGov International Symposium in Paris, she hosted sessions on trust, confidence, and legitimacy; rule of code vs. rule of law; and moderated the closing panel on Network Nations, engaging themes of sovereignty and power dynamics. She authored major reports and marked the launch of her co-authored book Blockchain Governance (MIT Press) with a book launch in Paris.
Throughout the year Primavera conceptualized the concept of Network Nations, and at the end of the year launched the Network Nations podcast series (co-hosted with Felix Beer on the GreenPill network), exploring translocal communities, digital sovereignty, and commons-based alternatives to traditional nation-state models.
Her ongoing work continues to stretch the boundaries of decentralized institutional design and global governance.
Thank you for gathering us under the BlockchainGov roof, Primavera!
Tara Merk
In 2025, Tara Merk became Dr. Tara Merk, successfully defending her PhD at Panthéon-Assas University in Paris and becoming BlockchainGov’s first official doctor(!). Her research centered on Exit to Community, a theme she continues to lead in 2026.
During the year, Dr. Merk spoke at major forums;at Berlin Science Week as part of a panel on terra0, at the University of Luxembourg, and during re:publica. In addition she moderated panels at the BlockchainGov Symposium on Progressive Decentralization & Exit to Community and Blockchain Governance and Power Dynamics. A key focus during the year was her focus on community-owned data infrastructure, hosting several workshops internationally, including Imagining Community Data Centers at the Weizenbaum Institute and sessions at Funding the Commons, the Cooperative AI Conference in Istanbul, and during Berlin Science Week.
Her additional engagements included features on sustainable blockchain, and selection for the ICDE Research Fellows 2025/2026 cohort. She also contributed to Other Internet’s forthcoming book on institutional analogies, appeared on the Good Robot Podcast, and continued developing a community-oriented Exit to Community cookbook, translating research into practical frameworks for equitable ownership, scheduled for release in 2026.
Morshed Mannan
In 2025, Morshed Mannan’s research focused on governance, cooperative models, and solidarity within decentralized systems. While serving as a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Global Law and Digital Technology at the University of Edinburgh Law School, he spoke at (many!) conferences, including the Cooperative AI Summit in Istanbul and the Rutgers-Oxford Employee Ownership conference, where he discussed organizational archetypes in the platform economy and championed participatory organization over purely technical frameworks. This year, Morshed co-authored works on regulatory equivalence, legitimacy, and other aspects of blockchain governance, non-stop strengthening the conceptual ground of equitable decentralized systems. His extensive publication record includes the co-authored book on Blockchain Governance from MIT Press, alongside recent published articles in leading journals such as Regulation & Governance, and Information, Communication and Society, as well as book chapters for prestigious publishers like Oxford University Press and Routledge. In September, he was appointed as one of the co-directors of the Scottish Research Centre for IP and Technology Law (SCRIPT).”
Esen Esener
In 2025, PhD researcher and lawyer Esen Esener continued her work on adaptive governance frameworks for blockchain networks, with a focus on regulatory change and institutional resilience. Her paper Adaptive Governance for Blockchain Networks continued to circulate throughout the year. In September, Esen co-moderated a panel on alegality and governance complexity at the BlockchainGov Paris Symposium. Later in the year, she launched the Walk the Talk video series, an accessible format for discussing blockchain governance and crypto law. Through a combination of academic research and public-facing engagement, Esen remains an active contributor to the BlockchainGov community.
Jamilya Kamalova
In 2025, Jamilya Kamalova co-hosted the podcast Governance Futures, a weekly podcast exploring decentralized governance across technology, law, and community systems. Together with Eugene Leventhal, she engaged leading thinkers and practitioners to examine evolving coordination mechanisms, accountability, and emerging governance architectures.
Throughout the year, Jamilya contributed to BlockchainGov research outputs, including work on polycentric governance, blockchain constitutionalism, and ethnographic studies of decentralized systems. Jamilya worked at Scroll as a governance facilitator and joined Sky (Maker DAO) in November 2025 where she continues to work.
She also co-moderated a BlockchainGov Symposium panel on alegality and the limits of legality in decentralized technological landscapes, advancing conversations on governance beyond traditional legal frameworks, alongside additional engagements that bridged academic research with ecosystem practice.
Lovisa Björna
Lovisa Björna joined BlockchainGov in June 2025, focusing on translating the project’s research into more tangible applications and playing a central role in advancing its educational and applied research agenda. She designed and coordinated the Argentina On-Chain Residency, a large-scale applied research program during Edge City Patagonia that collaborated with policymakers, researchers, and practitioners to test blockchain governance theory in real-world settings. Lovisa also led the coordination and communications for the Paris International Symposium, overseeing partnerships, speaker coordination, and outreach. She hosted and helped shape the Network Nations workshops at Emerge Lakefront.
In parallel, she taught and coordinated the Governance modules at the Polkadot Blockchain Academy in both Switzerland and Indonesia, working to bridge academic research with policy and practical implementation.
She also initiated a strategic institutional partnership with ISBE & Alastria, working together on best practices for blockchain implementation in Spain. Throughout the year, she participated in panels and delivered keynote addresses on network sovereignties, blockchain adoption, and the public value of blockchain technologies across international contexts, including at Devconnect and Forum in Santiago del Estero. Her work involved significant educational outreach aimed at strengthening blockchain literacy and public understanding across diverse regional settings. In 2026, Lovisa will continue advancing two of BlockchainGov’s core focus areas: Network Nations and Regulatory Equivalence.
Kelsie Nabben
In 2025, Kelsie Nabben’s thesis, Decentralised Technologies: ‘Self-Infrastructuring’ Resilience, became openly available, marking a key milestone for ethnographic research on decentralized governance, resilience, and the social impacts of emerging technologies. Over the year, she published several influential research outputs, including Digital Exclosures: Carving Spaces of Autonomy within Technological Enclosures (Journal of Cultural Economy), which introduced the concept of “digital exclosure” as a mode of institutional agency; Accountability Protocols, analysing on-chain governance dynamics through the Lido protocol; and the essay Value From Data?, examining accountability and relational value in platform economies. Alongside her publications, Kelsie continued as a Research Fellow at RMIT University’s Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making & Society (ADM+S), maintained collaboration with BlockchainGov, and contributed to applied research with BlockScience, while also supporting community-oriented initiatives such as the Security Alliance’s SEAL Wargames Drill Scenario Template. In 2026, we look forward to her book, Decentralised Digital Security: Code, Community, Crisis (Manchester University Press), which is offering critical insights into how security is organised within decentralized digital economies.
Vasthi Maharaj
In 2025, Vashti Maharaj, Adviser for Digital Trade Policy at the Commonwealth Secretariat and one of BlockchainGov’s PhD students, played a central role in advancing legal frameworks for digital trade and the adoption of emerging technologies across Commonwealth member states. A key milestone was her instrumental contribution to the launch of the Commonwealth Model Law on Digital Trade, providing countries with a harmonised pathway for legal reform to recognise electronic documents and processes and reduce trade costs. She supported its early implementation by leading consultations in St. Kitts and Nevis, the first Caribbean country to pilot the model law, and facilitated regional coordination as Deputy Chair of the Pacific E-commerce Development Partners Sub-committee. Throughout the year, Vashti also moderated and contributed to high-level policy discussions, including panels at the Commonwealth Business Summit 2025 in Windhoek, CTU ICT Week in Jamaica, and GTR Africa London, addressing connectivity, trade finance digitalisation, and the role of technologies such as blockchain, AI, and IoT. In parallel, she engaged in public outreach and inclusion efforts, notably speaking at Girls in ICT Day, highlighting the role of technology in bridging divides and promoting women’s participation in STEM.
Nathan Vandy
Nathan continued his work at the intersection of blockchain, law, and decentralized governance as both a researcher and practitioner. He remains a PhD candidate in Legal Tech and Legal Theory within the BlockchainGov project, where his research examines blockchain’s impact on public and private governance, the legal recognition of DAOs, and regulatory technologies. Alongside his academic work, Nathan is CEO and co-founder of Bond, a credit infrastructure protocol for the agentic economy, and presented his vision for on-chain credit and autonomous asset managers at Agents Day in September 2025. He was also an active speaker on AI, DeFi, and on-chain governance, participating in panels at DefaiCon Dubai and Intelligence Capital Markets, and served in governance roles including Board Member of TrueFi DAO until July 2025, while continuing legal advisory work on decentralized applications and digital identity.
Constance Choi
In 2025, Constance Choi continued her work as a legal expert and strategic advisor in the blockchain and digital asset space, combining global policy engagement with applied advisory practice. As co-founder and Director of the COALA Foundation, she led international multi-stakeholder initiatives focused on developing regulatory frameworks that support innovation while ensuring accountability in decentralized systems. She also served throughout the year as a Board Director of the Decentralised Entities Foundation in Zug, contributing to governance work on the legal recognition and operation of DAOs. In parallel, through her advisory firm Seven Advisory, Choi advised startups, financial institutions, and governments on navigating complex regulatory environments for digital assets and distributed ledger technologies. Alongside her advisory and policy work, she continued as an Associate Researcher at CNRS / CERSA in Paris, and remained active in technical standards working groups on “krypto equity,” aligning technological design with legal and empowerment objectives.
Silke Noa Elrifai
In 2025, Silke continued her work as a senior researcher and PhD candidate at University Paris II Panthéon-Assas within BlockchainGov, focusing on accountability in private governance and the legal classification of DAOs. She contributed to European Data Protection Board public consultations on blockchain and data protection and published an article on investment law reform in Eritrea in the TDM Journal. Alongside her academic work, she advised companies on MiCA compliance, with a focus on decentralized protocols, and is preparing a series of Berlin-based workshops in early 2026.
And couldn’t finish the roundup without a research compilation from BlockchainGov, some highlights from the year of 2025.
Enjoy!
Peer-Reviewed Articles
Digital Exclosures: Carving Spaces of Autonomy within Technological Enclosures
Kelsie Nabben · Primavera De Filippi · Jessy Kate Shingler
October 2025
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/20539517251376935
The Interplay Between Loyalty and Legitimacy in Blockchain-Based Metaverses: The Case of Decentraland
Morshed Mannan · Primavera De Filippi · Tara Merk
July 2025
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1369118X.2025.2523978
How to Govern the Confidence Machine?
Primavera De Filippi · Morshed Mannan · Wessel Reijers
April 2025
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/rego.70017
Blockchain Technology and the Rule of Code: Regulation via Governance
Primavera De Filippi · Morshed Mannan · Wessel Reijers
January 2025
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4891185
The Rise of Blockchain Egregores
Primavera De Filippi · Morshed Mannan · Wessel Reijers
January 2025
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4891183
How to DAO: The Role of Trust and Confidence in Institutional Design
Primavera De Filippi · Tara Merk
January 2025
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4891179
The Emergence of Blockchain Constitutionalism
Morshed Mannan · Primavera De Filippi · Wessel Reijers
January 2025
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4891181
Blockchain Governance in the Wild
Kevin Werbach · Primavera De Filippi · Joshua Tan · Gina C. Pieters
January 2025
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4891175
Accountability Protocols? On-Chain Dynamics in Blockchain Governance
Kelsie Nabben · Primavera De Filippi
January 2025
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/26317877251376930
The Impact of Regulation on Blockchain and DeFi
Primavera De Filippi
January 2025
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4891172
Chapters & Research Reports
Regulatory Equivalence in Blockchain Systems: The Role of Public Values and Legitimacy
Primavera De Filippi · Morshed Mannan
Book chapter, March 2025
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/378945113
The Blockchain Governance Toolkit: A Cookbook for a Resilient and Robust Ecosystem
Primavera De Filippi · Morshed Mannan · Sofia Cossar · Tara Merk · Jamilya Kamalova et al.
January 2025
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/388435571
Report on Blockchain Governance Dynamics
Primavera De Filippi · Sofia Cossar · Morshed Mannan · Tara Merk · Jamilya Kamalova
January 2025
https://blockchaingov.eu/report-on-blockchain-governance-dynamics
Proof of Humanity: Ethnographic Research of a “Democratic” DAO
Sofia Cossar · Tara Merk · Jamilya Kamalova · Primavera De Filippi
January 2025
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/26317877251376928
That’s all for this months newsletter, we’re excited for all the madness and clarification that lies ahead.
Thank you for reading and see you next month,
The BlockchainGov Team 🕸️👀