> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://dev.guardian.hedera.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://dev.guardian.hedera.com/community-and-contributing/community-standards.md).

# Community Standards

Community Standards define the shared agreements that keep the Guardian ecosystem consistent, trustworthy, and legible to contributors at every level — from new policy authors to platform engineers.

They exist because an open-source project grows fastest when contributors can orient themselves quickly. A well-defined policy standard, a predictable documentation structure, and a visible record of platform decisions reduce the cost of contribution and raise the quality floor across the board.

### What's here

* **Guardian Policy Standards (GPS)** — requirements for policies to be accepted into the Methodology Library, covering science-based claims, verifiability, and documentation completeness.
* **Guardian System Standards (GSS)** — engineering standards for Guardian platform components.
* **Documentation Standards** — how to write and structure pages in this documentation site, including page type definitions and templates.
* **RFCs** — design documents capturing ideas and decisions made during platform development, kept here for record keeping.