Governance Futures

S.1 Ep.1 What Constitutes Governance? Conflict, Design, and Purpose with Eric Alston

In this episode of The Governance Futures Podcast, hosts Jamilya Kamalova and Eugene Leventhal sit down with Eric Alston to explore the evolving dynamics of governance. Eric is a Scholar in Residence in the Finance Division at CU Boulder. His research and teaching draw from institutional analysis, law and economics, and constitutional design. He pursues questions ranging from institutional and organizational theory to digital governance across a wide range of network-coordinated contexts. Together, we unpack the limitations of democratic decision-making, the productive role of conflict, and how constitutions shape resilience in both traditional and decentralized organizations. Drawing from his academic work and his experience advising governments and DAOs, Eric offers sharp insights into the future of governance. The conversation also touches on the importance of an animating purpose in organizational design and what’s at stake in building robust systems for digitally networked communities. Tune in for a deep and thought-provoking conversation at the intersection of theory and practice. Academic work we mention in this episode: - “Governance as Conflict: Constitution of Shared Values Defining Future Margins of Disagreement” (2022) – by Eric Alston https://law.mit.edu/pub/governanceasconflict/release/1 - “What Constitutes a Constitution?” – by Michael Zargham, Eric Alston, Kelsie Nabben, and Ilan Ben-Meir (2023) https://blog.block.science/what-constitutes-a-constitution/ - "Constitutions and Blockchains: Competitive Governance of Fundamental Rule Sets" – by Eric Alston (2019) https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3358434 Check new print: - "Handbook on Institutions and Complexity" Edited by Eric Alston , Lee J. Alston , and Bernardo Mueller (2025) https://www.elgaronline.com/edcollbook/book/9781035309726/9781035309726.xml Listen to this episode on all platforms: - Apple : https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gov-futures-trailer/id1823028614?i=1000714675608 - Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6QRkrWmq21Z66jRJtN2UIu - Follow us on X : https://x.com/gov_futures
 
00:00 Teaser
00:48 Introduction to The Governance Futures Podcast
01:01 Meet Eric Alston: Scholar and Governance Expert
01:37 Exploring Governance and Democratic Decision Making
02:32 Defining Governance in a Digital Context
02:57 The Complexities of Blockchain Governance
06:47 Limitations of Democratic Decision Making
12:29 The Concept of Animating Purpose in Organizations
21:39 Constitutional Design and Governance Structures
34:47 Delegated Authority and Agency Costs
35:34 Separation of Competencies and Review Functions
37:04 Constraints on Governance Authority
40:27 Governance as Conflict
42:19 Emergent Nature of Conflict
53:56 Decentralization and Subsidiarity
59:13 Future of Web3 Governance
01:03:24 Quick Fire Quiz
01:04:40 Conclusion and Acknowledgements

Gov Futures Trailer

Welcome to Governance Futures - a podcast where we explore how governance works (and fails) in Web3 and beyond. Hosted by Eugene Leventhal and Jamilya Kamalova, each episode dives deep into the evolving principles of coordination, accountability, and collective decision-making in decentralized ecosystems.
This is the trailer for the forthcoming podcast. Subscribe to get the first episode of our first season, coming weekly every Thursday starting July 3, 2025. 
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