A next-generation policy language unifying normative, descriptive, and operational semantics for digital rights and data governance.
RL2 provides a semantic superset of ODRL 2.2 with:
- Formal semantics suitable for verified runtime kernels
- Hohfeldian normative relations (privilege, duty, claim, power, liability, immunity)
- Promise Theory integration for voluntary cooperation
- Operational semantics with explicit state transitions
- RDF/OWL native with SHACL validation
New to RL2? Start here:
- RL2_Primer.md — Learn RL2 concepts, see ODRL mapping (Appendix A)
- RL2_Vocabulary.md — Look up any class or property
- usecases/ — Practical policy patterns
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
| RL2_Primer.md | Technical introduction with ODRL mapping |
| RL2_Vocabulary.md | Complete class and property reference |
| usecases/ | 17 use cases demonstrating RL2 patterns |
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
| RL2_Semantics.md | Formal denotational and operational semantics |
| RL2_Architecture.md | Evaluation pipeline and design rationale |
| RL2_Protocol.md | Runtime evaluation protocol |
| File | Description |
|---|---|
| rl2.ttl | OWL ontology |
| rl2-shacl.ttl | SHACL validation shapes |
| rl2p.ttl | Protocol ontology |
| rl2p-shacl.ttl | Protocol SHACL shapes |
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
| backlog.md | Open decisions and work items |
| RL2_References.md | Citations and glossary |
@prefix rl2: <https://rl2.example/ontology#> .
@prefix ex: <https://example.org/> .
# A simple data use agreement
ex:agreement a rl2:Agreement ;
rl2:grantor ex:DataOwner ;
rl2:grantee ex:Researcher ;
rl2:clause ex:usePrivilege, ex:deletionDuty .
# Researcher may use the dataset
ex:usePrivilege a rl2:Privilege ;
rl2:subject ex:Researcher ;
rl2:action ex:use ;
rl2:object ex:Dataset .
# Researcher must delete by deadline
ex:deletionDuty a rl2:Duty ;
rl2:subject ex:Researcher ;
rl2:action ex:delete ;
rl2:object ex:Dataset ;
rl2:obligationState rl2:Pending .See RL2_Primer.md for a complete walkthrough.
RL2 defines policy semantics and evaluation protocols. For deployments requiring full audit trails and non-repudiation:
- Temporal/versioned data stores — Reconstruct state at any historical point
- Immutable audit logs — Append-only storage for decisions and evidence
- Cryptographic attestation — Signed decisions for non-repudiation
- Policy version control — Bind cases to specific policy generations
Draft v0.5 — Under active development.
TBD