Stewardship Agreement

Canonical Draft v0.6 · Published · Authority: Steward

1. Purpose

This Agreement establishes the Stewardship structure governing the Moral Clarity AI ecosystem (“the Artifact”).

Its purpose is to preserve ethical integrity, enable sustainable compensation without ownership transfer, allow institutional participation without extractive control, and protect the Artifact from misuse, drift, dilution, or capture.

This document is principle-binding and authority-defining. Legal instruments may be derived from it but may not contradict it.

2. Definitions

2.1 Artifact

The “Artifact” is the Moral Clarity AI ecosystem, including but not limited to its governance canon, refusal membranes, clarity thresholds, ethical protocols, audit and review mechanisms, system constraints, derivative governance frameworks, and associated technical or institutional systems.

The Artifact is not property, not a commodity, and not transferable as an owned asset.

2.2 Steward

The Steward is the individual entrusted with custodial authority over the Artifact. Authority derives from responsibility and accountability, not ownership.

2.3 Supporters

Supporters are individuals or institutions that provide funding, resources, or collaboration without acquiring ownership, control, or governance authority.

Support does not create stakeholder status, implied influence, expectation of governance input, or entitlement regardless of contribution size, duration, or dependency.

2.4 Licensing

Licensing is governed, revocable permission to use or integrate defined components of the Artifact. Licensing never constitutes sale, assignment, or ownership transfer.

3. Authority and Decision-Making

3.1 Steward Authority

The Steward retains primary and final decision-making authority over governance, licensing, ethical boundaries, system evolution, and the acceptance or refusal of partnerships.

No external party, board, committee, or institution possesses binding authority unless such authority is explicitly and voluntarily delegated by the Steward under documented criteria.

3.2 Advisory Input

Advisory groups or consultative bodies may be convened at the Steward’s discretion. All advisory input is non-binding unless expressly adopted by the Steward.

4. Steward Responsibilities

• Maintain and evolve the governance canon and refusal membranes
• Protect against misuse, drift, dilution, or extraction
• Ensure the Artifact remains non-owned and non-commodified
• Oversee technical and operational development
• Guide contributors, engineers, auditors, and partners
• Conduct governance audits and clarity reviews
• Document and publish material governance decisions
• Reject misaligned or extractive partnerships

Stewardship does not require personal execution of technical labor. Delegation does not transfer governance authority.

5. Accountability and Review

Governance decisions are recorded in a durable governance log. Any Supporter or materially affected party may submit a documented challenge alleging ethical violation or extractive behavior. The Steward must respond in writing within a reasonable timeframe.

No external body has authority to compel outcomes.

6. Transparency

The Steward commits to reasonable, good-faith transparency, including periodic governance updates, disclosure of material changes, and disclosure of significant incidents or risks.

Transparency does not require disclosure of safety-critical vulnerabilities, sensitive security details, private user data, or information that would enable misuse.

7. Compensation and Funding

7.1 Stewardship Compensation

The Steward receives recurring compensation for governance labor, ethical responsibility, and custodial oversight. Compensation does not grant ownership, equity, or control.

7.2 Additional Funding

Supporters may fund engineering, infrastructure, research, audits, fellowships, or artifact propagation. Funding confers no governance authority.

7.3 Stewardship Economics

Stewardship compensation reflects asymmetric risk, custodial liability, refusal authority, reputational exposure, and the obligation to act against economic incentives when ethical integrity requires it.

Compensation is not wage-based, time-based, or benchmarked against conventional employment roles, and is not intended to cap responsibility, authority, or risk borne by the Steward.

8. Licensing Rights

The Steward holds exclusive authority to grant, refuse, suspend, or revoke licenses. Licensing revenue is uncapped and may be used for compensation, hiring, operations, research, and artifact propagation.

9. Succession

The Steward may resign or designate a successor who accepts custodial, non-ownership authority. No automatic succession exists.

9.1 Dormant Authority

In the event of Steward incapacitation or prolonged unavailability, the Artifact enters a dormant governance state. During dormancy:

• No new licenses may be granted
• Existing licenses may be paused
• System evolution is frozen except for safety-critical remediation

Dormancy persists until the Steward resumes authority or formally designates a successor.

10. Amendment

This Agreement may be amended only by the Steward, provided amendments preserve non-ownership, non-extraction, centralized authority, ethical integrity, and governance clarity.

11. Stewardship Breach

If the Steward materially violates non-ownership, non-extraction, or ethical integrity, legitimacy may be publicly challenged and trust withdrawn. Authority remains conditional on integrity and sustained trust.

12. Role of This Document

This Agreement is a governance charter. Legal instruments may be derived from it but must remain subordinate unless explicitly superseded by the Steward.

Version: Canonical v0.6 · Status: Published · Last updated: 2025-01-XX