Version Governance Standard | Ecosystem Standard

The ecosystem’s rules for versioning, change control, and historical continuity. This standard defines semantic versioning, revision history requirements, supersession rules, and long‑term provenance for all institutional artifacts. It ensures updates remain transparent, traceable, and interoperable across properties without altering identity.

Version Governance Standard — Ecosystem Standard

Purpose

The Version Governance Standard establishes the authoritative rules for how institutional artifacts across the Hunter Storm ecosystem are versioned, updated, adopted, archived, and superseded. It ensures continuity, traceability, and historical integrity across all standards, frameworks, policies, governance documents, and durable works.

This standard applies universally across Hunter Storm™, Black Star Institute (BSI), Sonoran Desert Security (SDSUG), ZStormGirl (ZSG), and any future properties or institutional units.

Scope

This standard governs versioning for:

ecosystem standards
property‑specific standards
governance documents
frameworks and models
doctrine and assessments
institutional policies
records‑management artifacts
classification systems
numbering systems
continuity and operational governance documents

It applies to any durable institutional artifact intended for long‑term reference, archival preservation, or cross‑property interoperability.

It does not apply to ephemeral content, informal commentary, temporary notices, or draft materials not yet formally adopted.

Versioning Model

All governed artifacts use a three‑part semantic versioning model:

Major.Minor.Revision

Major — conceptual changes, structural redesigns, or new editions
Minor — updates that refine structure, expand scope, or clarify rules without altering foundational architecture
Revision — editorial corrections, clarifications, formatting improvements, or non‑substantive updates

Examples:

1.0.0 — Initial publication
1.1.0 — Structural refinement
1.1.3 — Editorial corrections
2.0.0 — New edition or conceptual overhaul

Change Control

All changes to governed artifacts must follow a controlled change‑management process:

1. Initiation

A change request may be initiated to:

clarify meaning
correct errors
expand applicability
incorporate new institutional capabilities
align with updated governance or ecosystem architecture

2. Review

Proposed changes undergo review by the appropriate governance authority:

Hunter Storm™ governance authority (ecosystem‑wide artifacts)
Property governance authority (property‑specific artifacts)
Standards Council or equivalent body (major or structural changes)

3. Approval

Substantive changes require formal approval by the governing authority. Minor revisions may be approved through maintenance procedures.

4. Publication

Approved changes result in a new version number and updated publication record.

5. Archival

Superseded versions are archived but never withdrawn. Historical versions remain permanently accessible for provenance and audit.

Revision History Requirements

Each governed artifact must maintain a revision history containing:

version number
adoption date
summary of changes
approving authority
status (current, superseded, archived)

Revision histories must be:

persistent
machine‑readable
human‑inspectable
linked to canonical identifiers

Supersession Rules

A new version supersedes but does not erase prior versions. Supersession must:

preserve historical continuity
maintain traceability
avoid retroactive renumbering
avoid altering canonical identifiers
clearly indicate which version is current

Supersession never invalidates the historical record.

Interoperability

Version governance integrates with:

the Ecosystem Publication and Identifier Standard
the Hunter Storm Records Management System (HSRMS)
property‑specific publication standards
classification and numbering systems
audit and verification governance
transparency and stewardship governance

Versioning must remain consistent across all properties and all institutional artifacts.

Governance Authority

The Version Governance Standard is owned by Hunter Storm™ and applies across the entire ecosystem. Property‑specific authorities may implement additional rules, provided they remain interoperable with this standard.

Status

Ecosystem Standard Owner: Hunter Storm™ Scope: Cross‑property versioning, change control, archival integrity, and institutional continuity

Hunter Storm