> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.aqua.network/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.aqua.network/governance/aquarius-governance-community-led-decision-making.md).

# Aquarius Governance

Aquarius governance empowers the AQUA community to control key aspects of the protocol and shape its future direction.

### How governance works

* Users vote on proposals using their **governICE** balance — received by [locking AQUA into ICE](/aqua-and-ice/ice-tokens-locking-aqua-and-getting-benefits.md). The tokens can be claimed back once the voting period ends.
* Governance voting does not offer rewards — it's purely for protocol decision-making.
* All active and past proposals live at [aqua.network/governance](https://aqua.network/governance).
* Governance decides protocol questions (general proposals) and [Asset Registry](/governance/asset-registry.md) listings and delistings (asset proposals) — both share the same rules and voting queue.

<figure><img src="/files/GpUblRXdgXOHVjnBa5WE" alt="Governance proposals page"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

When a proposal is active, a vote counter appears in the top menu for quick access:

<figure><img src="/files/BMD4VwGAKlVSvgM9upzo" alt="Governance vote counter"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

### Creating a proposal

Anyone can submit a proposal; fees apply to create, edit, and publish, which keeps spam out. The lifecycle:

1. Once a proposal is created, a discussion thread opens in the Aquarius Discord for community feedback.
2. After the discussion period, the proposal is published into a weekly [voting slot](/user-guides/how-to-use-aquarius-governance.md#proposal-queue-and-voting-slots) — one proposal votes at a time, and slots can be booked weeks ahead.
3. To be valid, the proposal must reach quorum — the participation requirement and vote counting rules are defined in [Using Aquarius Governance](/user-guides/how-to-use-aquarius-governance.md#validity-and-quorum).
4. The proposal is approved if it finishes with more "For" than "Against" votes.

Learn more:

* [How to vote in governance](/user-guides/how-to-use-aquarius-governance.md)
* [Creating a proposal](/user-guides/how-to-use-aquarius-governance/how-to-create-a-proposal.md)