RSB Publishes Findings on Book & Claim Interoperability Research
Funded by the ISEAL Innovations Fund, this pilot project marks an important step towards connecting sustainability registries through shared digital frameworks and data standards.
Driving innovation and credibility in sustainability systems
The Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB) has released the findings from the Book and Claim Registry Interoperability Project, an initiative funded by the ISEAL Innovations Fund with support from the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).
Led by RSB with guidance from an industry Expert Group and delivered with technical support from Platformable, the three-phase project assessed the feasibility of interoperability between Book and Claim registries and developed the core components needed for a connected and credible digital ecosystem for sustainability claims.
Building the foundations for interoperability
The project addressed a central challenge in the expanding Book and Claim landscape. Independent registries often use different data structures and governance approaches, which creates fragmentation and inconsistency across the system.
Through a collaborative, multi stakeholder process, RSB coordinated the development of three key outputs:
- A governance and ecosystem characteristics framework that outlines principles for transparent collaboration across registry operators and stakeholders.
- A harmonised data model, that aligns core data definitions to support consistency across systems.
- A technical API specification that provides a pathway for secure and standardised data exchange that protects sensitive information and preserves system independence.
These results demonstrate that interoperability is both achievable and beneficial, and that it’s vital to reduce duplication, improve traceability, and build confidence in Book & Claim transactions across the sustainable aviation fuel sector and beyond.
Why interoperability matters
As Book and Claim systems continue to expand into hard-to-abate sectors such as aviation, shipping and heavy industry, ensuring consistency and credibility is essential. Without common data structures, governance principles or technical protocols, registries risk creating confusion for users and reducing trust in the claims they support.
This research demonstrates that interoperability can reinforce confidence by enabling more consistent data practices and strengthening assurance across value chains.
“Interoperability is ultimately about building trust across an entire ecosystem,” said Max Eichelbaum, Associate Director of Digital Solutions and Book & Claim. “This project showed that when experts from registries, auditing bodies and technical fields work together with openness, we can find solutions that strengthen credibility for everyone. The Expert Group’s insights were essential in shaping an approach that supports reliable and transparent sustainability claims.”
A collaborative approach for the future
The project highlights RSB’s ability to convene diverse stakeholders and support credible market solutions. By engaging registry operators, auditors, technical experts and industry representatives, the work identified shared challenges such as data sensitivity, governance alignment and transparency. It also demonstrated how collaboration can lead to practical solutions without compromising competition or system independence.
While the findings remain exploratory, they offer a solid basis for further testing and refinement with registries, standards systems and value chain partners.
Next steps
RSB will continue working with Book and Claim stakeholders to build on the frameworks developed in this research. This includes further governance development through the Book and Claim Community Secretariat and preparing for future real world testing in registry environments. RSB will also explore how the interoperability tools can be scaled to additional sectors and integrated within the broader RSB Book and Claim Programme.
This work is part of RSB’s ongoing mission to strengthen trust, transparency and traceable impact across global sustainability markets.
Explore the pilot findings
Read the full Interoperability Project Report
Learn more about the RSB Book & Claim Programme