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- Aya Miyaguchi steps down as Executive Director of the Ethereum Foundation, transitioning to the role of President.
- Vitalik Buterin confirms a new leadership structure will be announced soon.
- Miyaguchi reflects on Ethereum’s growth and the foundation’s evolving role in the ecosystem.
Aya Miyaguchi, who is currently serving as the Executive Director of the Ethereum Foundation, is switching roles, accepting a new role as its President. With seven years in her current position, she is now shifting her efforts toward institution relations and furthering the culture of the foundation.
In a blog post, Miyaguchi expressed gratitude for the journey and described her decision as a year in the making, aligning with Ethereum’s long-term vision. Miyaguchi departs from the executive director role amid a broader conversation about Ethereum’s evolution.
She indicated how current events support Ethereum’s decentralized position, mentioning its strength in being able to grow based on group discussion and contribution. The co-founder of Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, confirmed news of new leadership of the foundation being made public in due time.
Ethereum’s Core Values and Structural Growth
Miyaguchi emphasized a balance between rapid innovation and stability in the long term is pushing Ethereum forward. Citing Stewart Brand’s “Pace Layering” metaphor, she illustrated how Ethereum operates on different levels of change, balancing quickly paced experimentation and well-established principles.
She expressed that the Ethereum Foundation is not interested in taking control of the network, however, so much as in maintaining its resiliency by keeping a permissionless culture and credible neutrality. The foundation’s role, she described, is a role of stewardship, not of ownership, so that Ethereum is decentralized and is not controlled by a single entity.
Proof of this is in actions such as All Core Dev calls, client diversification strategies, and pushing for interoperability in R&D. The transition process toward a proof-of-stake system, The Merge, is a great example of Ethereum being able to make sweeping changes without trading off its decentralized status.
Miyaguchi Stresses The Network’s Growth
Miyaguchi secured the perception that Ethereum can continue to thrive without being a corporate entity. Instead of prioritizing growth for the organization, she asserted it should be on keeping Ethereum thriving in the long term. She described Ethereum as a “living, dynamic entity” shaped by its diverse contributors rather than a single organization.
She is stepping down as an executive director, a leadership change, but continuity in the broader objective of Ethereum. In taking on the role of president, she wants to expand the reach of Ethereum on a broader scale, all of it in keeping with keeping the organization true to its original intent. With anticipation of leadership change, there is excitement for what is in store.
Related Reading:Ethereum and Bitcoin: Uncorrelated Assets in a Shifting Financial Landscape
