# Project Governance

This document defines the governance model for the BastionGuard project.

It establishes roles, responsibilities, and decision-making processes
to ensure transparency, accountability, and long-term sustainability.

---

## Project Structure

The project is governed by the Core Maintainer Team.

The Core Maintainers are responsible for:

- Defining project direction
- Managing releases
- Reviewing and approving contributions
- Enforcing policies
- Handling security incidents
- Protecting the project trademark

---

## Roles

### Core Maintainers

Core Maintainers:

- Have full write access to the repository
- Approve major changes and releases
- Resolve disputes
- Represent the project publicly

Appointment is based on:

- Technical merit
- Long-term contribution
- Security awareness
- Community conduct

---

### Maintainers

Maintainers:

- Review pull requests
- Manage specific modules
- Support contributors
- Report to Core Maintainers

Maintainers are appointed by the Core Maintainer Team.

---

### Contributors

Contributors:

- Submit code, documentation, or reports
- Participate in discussions
- Follow project policies

No special privileges are granted by default.

---

## Decision-Making Process

### Technical Decisions

- Minor changes: Maintainer approval
- Major changes: Core Maintainer review
- Architectural changes: Formal proposal and consensus

Consensus is preferred. If consensus cannot be reached,
Core Maintainers have final authority.

---

### Policy Decisions

Changes to governance, licensing, or policies require
approval by the Core Maintainer Team.

---

## Release Management

Releases are managed by Core Maintainers.

Each release must:

- Pass security audits
- Meet quality standards
- Include documentation
- Be cryptographically signed when applicable

---

## Conflict Resolution

Disputes are handled according to the Code of Conduct.

Unresolved conflicts are escalated to Core Maintainers.

Their decision is final.

---

## Security Governance

All security-related matters are coordinated
through the Security Policy.

The Core Maintainers oversee:

- Vulnerability handling
- Incident response
- Disclosure coordination

---

## Trademark Governance

Use of the BastionGuard trademark is governed
by the Trademark Policy.

Unauthorized use may result in legal action.

---

## Amendments

This governance model may be updated
by the Core Maintainer Team.

All changes will be documented publicly.