The OWG namespace is the primary asset of the project.
Identifiers must be durable, unique within their authority, and never reassigned.
The meaning of an existing OWG identifier must not be redefined by a fork, resolver, implementation, or downstream consumer.
OWG requires a canonical authority responsible for stewardship of the global namespace.
The canonical authority is responsible for:
Forks may exist.
However, a fork cannot redefine the meaning of existing OWG identifiers while remaining part of the OWG namespace.
OWG authority is scoped.
Globally managed OWG identifiers are governed by the OWG namespace.
Locally managed Item identifiers are governed by the local authority that issued them.
This distinction allows OWG to provide shared identity without taking ownership of local holdings, inventory, access rules, lending, licensing, or availability.
The public resolver is the canonical publication point for OWG reconciliation outcomes.
Alternative resolvers may exist, but they do not supersede the canonical OWG position unless governance explicitly changes the canonical authority.
The resolver is trusted because the OWG community and governance model make it trustworthy, not because of the software alone.
OWG is intended to be stewarded in the open.
Decisions should be evidence-based, transparent, and attributable.
OWG stewards do not own knowledge.
OWG stewards maintain the shared identity and reconciliation layer.
Where possible, improvements discovered through OWG should flow back to the systems where they belong.
Disagreement is expected.
Sources may disagree with one another.
Stewards may disagree with one another.
OWG should preserve provenance and history so consumers can understand the basis of a reconciliation decision.
The expected long-term governance model is an independent foundation rather than a commercial entity.
The governance model should protect: