Darwin Core July additions ratified and next public review
DwC triannual review is moving at a fast pace, don’t miss out
Triannual review and release cycle
Starting in June this year, the Darwin Core Maintenance Group implemented a regular triannual review and release cycle. Each cycle runs for approximately five and a half months from the first announcement through the target release date.
You can read more details in the Calendar Section of the Darwin Core Maintenance page.
Darwin Core July additions ratified
Back in July 2026, the starting triannual review cycle opened for public review. This cycle has culminated in the recent ratification by the TDWG Executive committee on October 13, 2026.
You can find a detailed list of changes on the public review milestone page https://github.com/tdwg/dwc/milestone/22 and see all of the changes in action on the updated Darwin Core website.
Start of November public review
Continuing with the fast paced review cycles, the public review for the next cycle will start on November 16, 2026.
In order for proposed changes to be accepted, mature proposals must be in place in the Darwin Core issues tracker (https://github.com/tdwg/dwc/issues) by November 1. A mature term proposal is one that is submitted using a completed issue template (available as a choice when a new issue is created) that is appropriate for the type of change (New term, Term change), and has demonstrated that it meets the three requirements for moving to public review. Those requirements are: demand (the change or addition is supported by several independent parties), efficacy (an explanation of how the proposed change will solve a problem), and stability (the proposed change will not have adverse effects on existing implementations of Darwin Core). Other types of issues (suggested updates to standard documents) do not have a specific template, but the text of the issue should propose precise changes that can be evaluated by the Maintenance Group. Proposals that are not mature can be proposed and discussed in the issues tracker, but they won’t be evaluated for ratification until they mature.
Questions
For any questions please reach out to the Darwin Core Maintenance Group.