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2025-07-25 0956 AEST

Jul 25, 2025

UN CEFACT GTR - AEST / PST​

Invited Jo Spencer Alina Nica Gales Steve Capell John Phillips

Attachments UN CEFACT GTR - AEST / PST

Meeting records Transcript Recording

Summary​

John Phillips opened the meeting for the UN/CEFACT Global Trust Registry project, welcoming participants like Paul Templeman, Klaeri Schelhowe, Mark Lizar, Marcos Allende, and Gondaliya Yash. Phillips outlined the project's scope, aiming to recommend a "global trust registry" to UN/CEFACT by July 2026, focusing on supply chains and trade without infringing on national sovereignty. The project will define authoritative registries, develop digital identity anchors, and produce six key deliverables, with Marcos Allende and Paul Templeman volunteering to contribute.

Details​

  • Meeting Introduction and Participant Introductions John Phillips, co-lead of the UN/CEFACT Global Trust Registry project, opened the meeting, acknowledging Alina Nikales's absence. Phillips, a co-founder of Suzu, introduced themself as a UNCCFACT representative working on the global trust registry and the United Nations transparency protocol (00:00:00). The meeting included brief self-introductions from participants, including Paul Templeman, a digital identity expert from Australia (00:00:59); Klaeri Schelhowe, CEO of Schedderbrock, with a background in product identification and supply chain transparency; Mark Lizar, an expert in digital identity, surveillance, and consent from Canada (00:02:03); Marcos Allende, CEO of Blitify, a quantum physicist and identity space professional from Spain (00:04:22); and gondaliya yash, from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, working on digital identity for cross-border trade (00:06:33).

  • Codes of Conduct and Intellectual Property John Phillips outlined the codes of conduct for United Nations CEFACT projects, emphasizing respectful behavior and welcoming experts. Phillips noted that the project's output, including recommendations and content, would be treated as royalty-free and open-use intellectual property (00:07:49). Participants were advised to review the intellectual property rights if they wished to retain proprietary rights over their contributions, though the project is open to referencing and using existing standards (00:08:42).

  • Project Scope and Objectives John Phillips detailed the project's aim to produce a set of recommendations for the UN/CEFACT plenary by July 2026, focusing on a "global trust registry" (00:08:42). Phillips clarified that the project would not infringe on the sovereign rights of nations to register businesses or issue credentials, nor would it undermine existing business models. The project's concept is akin to ICAO's PKD system for passports, allowing voluntary participation by sovereign states to facilitate global recognition of digital signatures without centralizing authority (00:10:31).

  • Project Phases and Use Cases John Phillips explained the three phases of the project: understanding existing systems, defining recognition criteria, and piloting recommendations (00:11:30). The project's primary focus is on supply chains and trade, distinct from personal identity. A key use case involves a buyer verifying a new supplier's claims, which ideally would be presented as verifiable credentials (VCs) (00:12:19). Two types of VCs are of direct interest: digital product passports (DPPs) and digital conformance credentials, both crucial for verifying product and manufacturer claims (00:13:13).

  • Digital Identity Anchors and Authoritative Registries John Phillips highlighted the importance of verifying business IDs, requiring an authoritative source for company registration (00:15:20). The United Nations Transparency Protocol (UNP) introduces the concept of a "digital identity anchor," issued by an authority (e.g., a national registrar) to link a business's identifier with the keys they use for signing documents. The project's role is to review and enhance these anchors for the global trust registry (00:16:16). A critical question remains: what makes a registry authoritative and prevents the fabrication of fake structures (00:18:11)?

  • Registry Characteristics and Research John Phillips explained that the project seeks to establish a global directory of authoritative registries, akin to a "register of registers" (00:18:11) (00:40:22). Alina Nikales’s work on land asset registers provided a strong legal framework perspective, emphasizing that each country's legal system for registration remains sovereign (00:19:14). The project is interested in various types of registries relevant to supply chains, such as business, land, facility, product, and trademark registers (00:20:10). Initial research, utilizing an AI engine, has identified 28 countries and their relevant registries, including legal basis, managing authority, services, and digital access (00:21:08).

  • Project Deliverables and Collaboration John Phillips outlined six key deliverables for the project: requirements for registrars, types of registries, digital identity anchor data structure, governance model, implementation pilots, and implementation guidance (00:24:25). Marcos Allende expressed their intent to review the deliverables to identify areas for contribution (00:26:36). Paul Templeman volunteered to contribute to the governance area (00:27:51). John Phillips explained that the project uses Google Docs for collaborative editing, with sharing rights managed based on expert registration (00:28:50).

  • Document Structure and Content Review John Phillips showcased the common structure of the project's Google Docs, which include shared elements like project information, a glossary, and a BCP classic style for requirement statements (00:29:51). John Phillips noted that current content, primarily authored by Alina Nikales and their team, will undergo review by contributors to assess its reasonableness, sufficiency, and identify gaps (00:30:43). John Phillips also mentioned that the project documents are openly accessible for viewing and commenting (00:31:39).

  • Transparency Graph and Project Timeline John Phillips described the UNP's "transparency graph" model, which allows navigating upstream supply chains to find information about suppliers and their products (00:32:38). The project aims to complete the digital identity anchors and self-governance requirements by the end of the calendar year, with pilots beginning before then, to allow sufficient time for review before the UNCCFACT plenary (00:33:46). John Phillips noted that the project currently uses Google services but plans to transition to a GitLab environment in the future due to licensing rules (00:34:46).

  • Inter-organizational Alignment and Future Work Paul Templeman raised a crucial question about aligning this project with other UN programs related to digital public infrastructure, digital wallets, and trade (00:35:56). John Phillips affirmed the importance of this alignment, stating they would reach out to leaders of similar initiatives to avoid duplication and integrate efforts (00:37:07). Marcos Allende suggested connecting with the ISO TC 307 blockchain working group, which is forming a working group on instruction (00:38:06). Klaeri Schelhowe recommended including projects from Sweden and Germany that are already issuing VCs for company registers, viewing the project as a "register of registers" that can leverage these spearheading initiatives (00:39:22). John Phillips acknowledged the ambitious goal of universal application for recommendations, recognizing that forced changes are not feasible (00:41:21).

  • Communication and Progress John Phillips encouraged participants to use the groups.io email group and Slack channel for communication, noting that the email group acts as a broadcast mechanism (00:42:20). John Phillips outlined the immediate goal of defining roles and making progress asynchronously over the next two weeks (00:43:53). Gondaliya yash inquired about the VC4 Trade project, to which John Phillips confirmed its relatedness and encouraged participation, offering to follow up on unaddressed nominations (00:43:53).

Suggested next steps​

  • Paul Templeman will put his hand up to help in the governance area.

  • John Phillips will compile and share a list of all suggested projects and initiatives with the group.

  • gondaliya yash will send John Phillips an email if they have not received a response regarding the VC4 trade project, and John Phillips will follow up on their behalf.