> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://blueprint.builtbydao.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://blueprint.builtbydao.com/build-join/membership-ranks.md).

# Membership & Ranks

{% hint style="info" %}
Built By DAO runs a **14-rank membership ladder** (plus special designations). You enter as a Seeker and progress by contribution — earning EQTBLT, certifications, and governance weight as you climb.
{% endhint %}

## The ladder

| Tier            | Ranks                                                                    |
| --------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Entry**       | 🌱 Seeker · 🌿 Apprentice                                                |
| **Contributor** | 🔧 Contributor · ⚙️ Operator · 🎯 Specialist                             |
| **Leadership**  | 👷 Crew Lead · 📋 Project Lead · 🧭 Guide · 🏘️ Community Lead           |
| **Senior**      | ⚓ Anchor · 🖥️ Platform Lead · 🛡️ Guardian · 📊 Strategist · ⚜️ Steward |
| **Special**     | 👑 Leadership Council · 🖼️ Framer · ⭐ Founder                           |

```mermaid
flowchart TD
    E["Entry<br/>Seeker · Apprentice"]
    C["Contributor<br/>Contributor · Operator · Specialist"]
    L["Leadership<br/>Crew Lead · Project Lead<br/>Guide · Community Lead"]
    S["Senior<br/>Anchor · Platform Lead · Guardian<br/>Strategist · Steward"]
    SP["Special<br/>Leadership Council · Framer · Founder"]
    E --> C --> L --> S
    S -.->|branches off| SP
    L -.->|branches off| SP
```

Progression is **earned, not bought** — you advance by logging real contribution, completing training, and demonstrating leadership. Higher ranks carry more responsibility, governance weight, and access — but **not a steep pay premium.** The earn structure is flat and anti-extraction: the hard, risky, physical work of building is valued at the top of the band regardless of title, and leadership is service, not a payday. (See [Earn Ownership](/build-join/earn-ownership.md).)

## Founding cohort → Framers

The founders of each cohort are designated **Framer** — the doc-intended honor for those who build a node's initial member base.

|                     |                                     |
| ------------------- | ----------------------------------- |
| 🖼️ **Recognition** | Symbolic founding status (Token 97) |
| 🗳️ **Voting**      | 1.25× weight, permanent, soul-bound |
| 💎 **Bonus**        | An EQTBLT founding bonus            |

{% hint style="success" %}
**Per-cohort, always open.** Framer is *not* closed after the first city — every new cohort/node's founders can earn it, so each community honors its own builders. The 1.25× weight is **local to the founder's own node and capped network-wide** (anti-capture), so an expanding Framer class can shape its own community strongly without entrenching across the network.
{% endhint %}

## Activation — day one

Committed members go orientation → **first task in week 1**, earning EQTBLT from the start. Contribution begins immediately — reinforcing the builder culture and driving retention.

Onboarding flow: profile + wallet (Base) → 14-rank entry (Seeker) → intro modules → first logged contribution.

{% content-ref url="/pages/Ec2yZWjedfghetHsYJvh" %}
[Join the Cohort](/build-join/join.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}


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