Author: Marco González

Editor: Randall Roland

Community characterizes the ENF as much as anything. After all, the foundation was born out of the mainnet community. Three core pillars were identified by ENF founders. First among them is community.

The other two pillars are technology and funding. Blockchain is a disruptive technology. Any organization wishing to develop in the space must hold technology in high regard. Funding on EOS is a touchy subject. Lack of funding was a motivating factor when the ENF replaced B1. Keep in mind that B1 had funds available. The organization just didn’t believe in the community.

Week in and week out the ENF demonstrates its commitment to EOS as well as the ecosystem. Foundation funds get distributed in a variety of ways. Regular in-house grants and Pomelo matching funds are among the better known.

Clear in the ENF’s Vision and Mission is the desire to expand. Illustrating that desire are the choice words:
​

“...a force for positive global change…”
​

And:
​

“...create positive feedback loops that fuel further innovation.”

The sections that follow are organized by developmental stages. There are no hard dividing lines between them. Also, note that the ENF is a coordinated effort. Thus, product development rarely follows a linear path. Furthermore, ENF products are symbiotic, so communication and adaptability are key among working groups.

The ENF’s first month saw the foundation introduce itself to the community along with three core pillars:

August and September were spent identifying issues, setting the tone for contributors, and planning out a clear path.

The end of 2021 was a time when the community began to feel like it was fully behind the ENF. It was such that Block.one was no longer the focal point. Support was announced for DeFi on both EOS and the greater ecosystem.

Another important area identified was to set in motion the consistent development of quality public goods. Pomelo quadratic funds serve to do just that. Other efforts, including in-house ENF grants, and more recently, EOS Respect, support the public goods initiative.

November was characterized by action. Not that actions weren’t taken the months before. Simply, it was the first month in which ENF working groups were mentioned. Working groups set the standard moving forward. They awoke EOS to a culture renewal full of hope and limitless potential.

With Pomelo, and now sponsored working groups, the ENF saw fit to take early network actions. What would follow would be the first blue paper. Mere hours before New Year’s Eve, after establishing a strong turning point, the ENF provided a clear community focus for 2022.

Those around for the final days of 2021, got a glimpse of the ENF’s character. In chat, it was made clear that profound action would be taken by year’s end. Instead of a New Year’s resolution (promise) to part ways from Block.one, the ENF took action. The foundation claimed independence for EOS beginning with that first blue paper. A strong action even if given but a few short months.

What was it that the ENF did? It released the Core+ blue paper, a clear plan to re-invent the mainnet. The release of blue papers marks a time when development took off. January might have well been known as the month of EOS blue papers. In addition to Core+, three other working groups were announced, API+, EVM+, and Audit+. Within just a few weeks, varying degrees of information were released about each working group.

An ENF Quarterly Report was presented to the community in the first month of 2022. January also marks the return of Everything EOS in the form of a weekly report.

For those thinking that the ENF might pull back on the throttle, think again. Rather, February demonstrated that not only can the ENF stand on its own, but flies in Class A airspace alongside top developers.

The foundation publicly states its position on Block.one’s treatment and responsibilities of promised development. The saga (and $4 billion lawsuit) continues to this day. Block.one may have rebranded to B1, but several billion under management can be directly traced back (via blockchain) to promises made to build on EOS.

Working groups efforts and blue paper publications continue through the launch. The ENF lists nine working groups and information about each under its Technology pillar:

That’s a heck of a lot of development, especially for a first-year organization. Not many would argue that the ENF did more in its brief time than Block.one did over its four years. The foundation delivers all the while encouraging and responding to the community’s feedback (e.g. blue papers). Maybe it’s ‘community’ that’s the difference, something that B1 failed to value and the ENF continues to embrace. The ENF continues to grow, forge partnerships, and hire new staff, not things Block.one was known for.