diff --git a/.github/actions/detect-changes/action.yml b/.github/actions/detect-changes/action.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b1f718b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/actions/detect-changes/action.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,158 @@
+name: Detect CV changes
+description: Detect bump type, fetch registry version, compute next version, generate changelog
+
+inputs:
+  base_sha:
+    description: Base SHA to diff against
+    required: true
+  github_token:
+    description: GitHub token for registry API calls
+    required: true
+  fetch_universe:
+    description: Whether to fetch universe version from registry
+    required: false
+    default: "false"
+
+outputs:
+  bump_type:
+    description: "none, patch, minor, or major"
+    value: ${{ steps.bump.outputs.bump_type }}
+  warning:
+    description: Warning message (e.g. for spec changes)
+    value: ${{ steps.bump.outputs.warning }}
+  current_version:
+    description: Current version from registry
+    value: ${{ steps.registry.outputs.current_version }}
+  next_version:
+    description: Computed next version
+    value: ${{ steps.next.outputs.next_version }}
+  universe_version:
+    description: Universe version from registry (only if fetch_universe=true)
+    value: ${{ steps.registry.outputs.universe_version }}
+  changelog:
+    description: Markdown changelog
+    value: ${{ steps.changelog.outputs.changelog }}
+
+runs:
+  using: composite
+  steps:
+    # ---------------------------------------------------------------
+    # 1. Detect bump type from diff
+    # ---------------------------------------------------------------
+    - name: Detect bump type
+      id: bump
+      shell: bash
+      env:
+        BASE_SHA: ${{ inputs.base_sha }}
+      run: |
+        set -e
+
+        echo "Comparing ${BASE_SHA}..HEAD"
+
+        CHANGED=$(git diff --name-only --diff-filter=ACDMR "${BASE_SHA}..HEAD" -- \
+          ':(exclude)_src' ':(exclude)_tests' ':(exclude)_archive' ':(exclude)scripts' \
+          ':(exclude)*.md' ':(exclude)*.toml' ':(exclude)*.lock' ':(exclude)*.py' \
+          ':(exclude).github' ':(exclude)LICENSE*' ':(exclude).gitignore' \
+          ':(exclude).pre-commit-config.yaml' ':(exclude)esgvoc_manifest.yaml' || true)
+
+        if [ -z "${CHANGED}" ]; then
+          echo "No CV files changed"
+          echo "bump_type=none" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+          echo "warning=" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+          exit 0
+        fi
+
+        echo "Changed files:"
+        echo "${CHANGED}"
+
+        BUMP="patch"
+        WARN=""
+
+        # New collections → major
+        NEW_CONTEXTS=$(git diff --name-only --diff-filter=A "${BASE_SHA}..HEAD" -- '*/000_context.jsonld' || true)
+        if [ -n "${NEW_CONTEXTS}" ]; then
+          BUMP="major"
+        fi
+
+        # Spec changes → minor minimum
+        if [ "${BUMP}" != "major" ]; then
+          SPEC_CHANGES=$(git diff --name-only --diff-filter=ACDMR "${BASE_SHA}..HEAD" -- '*_specs.yaml' || true)
+          if [ -n "${SPEC_CHANGES}" ]; then
+            BUMP="minor"
+            WARN="Spec files changed — at minimum a minor bump, could warrant major if it breaks downstream tooling."
+          fi
+        fi
+
+        # Modified collection models → minor
+        if [ "${BUMP}" = "patch" ]; then
+          MOD_CONTEXTS=$(git diff --name-only --diff-filter=M "${BASE_SHA}..HEAD" -- '*/000_context.jsonld' || true)
+          if [ -n "${MOD_CONTEXTS}" ]; then
+            BUMP="minor"
+          fi
+        fi
+
+        echo "bump_type=${BUMP}" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+        echo "warning=${WARN}" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+        echo "Detected bump type: ${BUMP}"
+
+    # ---------------------------------------------------------------
+    # 2. Fetch current version from registry
+    # ---------------------------------------------------------------
+    - name: Fetch registry version
+      if: steps.bump.outputs.bump_type != 'none'
+      id: registry
+      shell: bash
+      env:
+        GH_TOKEN: ${{ inputs.github_token }}
+        FETCH_UNIVERSE: ${{ inputs.fetch_universe }}
+      run: |
+        set -e
+
+        CURRENT=$(gh api repos/WCRP-CMIP/esgvoc_registry/contents/obs4ref.json \
+          --jq '.content' | base64 -d | python3 .github/scripts/ci_version.py fetch-current)
+
+        echo "current_version=${CURRENT}" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+        echo "Current registry version: ${CURRENT}"
+
+        if [ "${FETCH_UNIVERSE}" = "true" ]; then
+          UNIVERSE=$(gh api repos/WCRP-CMIP/esgvoc_registry/contents/universe.json \
+            --jq '.content' | base64 -d | python3 .github/scripts/ci_version.py fetch-universe)
+          echo "universe_version=${UNIVERSE}" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+          echo "Universe version: ${UNIVERSE}"
+        fi
+
+    # ---------------------------------------------------------------
+    # 3. Compute next version
+    # ---------------------------------------------------------------
+    - name: Compute next version
+      if: steps.bump.outputs.bump_type != 'none'
+      id: next
+      shell: bash
+      env:
+        CURRENT: ${{ steps.registry.outputs.current_version }}
+        BUMP: ${{ steps.bump.outputs.bump_type }}
+      run: |
+        NEXT=$(python3 .github/scripts/ci_version.py compute-next --current "${CURRENT}" --bump "${BUMP}")
+        echo "next_version=${NEXT}" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+        echo "Next version: ${NEXT}"
+
+    # ---------------------------------------------------------------
+    # 4. Generate changelog
+    # ---------------------------------------------------------------
+    - name: Generate changelog
+      if: steps.bump.outputs.bump_type != 'none'
+      id: changelog
+      shell: bash
+      env:
+        BASE_SHA: ${{ inputs.base_sha }}
+      run: |
+        CHANGELOG=$(python3 .github/scripts/ci_changelog.py "${BASE_SHA}")
+
+        {
+          echo "changelog<<CHANGELOG_EOF"
+          echo "${CHANGELOG}"
+          echo "CHANGELOG_EOF"
+        } >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+
+        echo "Changelog:"
+        echo "${CHANGELOG}"
diff --git a/.github/scripts/ci_changelog.py b/.github/scripts/ci_changelog.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7b22483
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/scripts/ci_changelog.py
@@ -0,0 +1,130 @@
+"""
+CI helper: generate a markdown changelog from git diff.
+
+Usage:
+  python .github/scripts/ci_changelog.py <base_sha>
+"""
+
+import argparse
+import collections
+import subprocess
+import sys
+
+# Paths excluded from CV change detection (infrastructure, docs, etc.)
+EXCLUDE_PATTERNS = [
+    ":(exclude)_src",
+    ":(exclude)_tests",
+    ":(exclude)_archive",
+    ":(exclude)scripts",
+    ":(exclude)*.md",
+    ":(exclude)*.toml",
+    ":(exclude)*.lock",
+    ":(exclude)*.py",
+    ":(exclude).github",
+    ":(exclude)LICENSE*",
+    ":(exclude).gitignore",
+    ":(exclude).pre-commit-config.yaml",
+    ":(exclude)esgvoc_manifest.yaml",
+]
+
+
+def get_diff(base_sha):
+    """Run git diff and return the name-status output."""
+    cmd = [
+        "git", "diff", "--name-status", "--diff-filter=ACDMR",
+        f"{base_sha}..HEAD", "--",
+    ] + EXCLUDE_PATTERNS
+
+    result = subprocess.run(cmd, capture_output=True, text=True, check=True)
+    return result.stdout.strip()
+
+
+def parse_diff(diff_output):
+    """Parse git diff name-status output into categorized changes."""
+    changes = collections.defaultdict(lambda: {"A": [], "M": [], "D": []})
+    model_changes = []
+    spec_changes = []
+
+    for line in diff_output.split("\n"):
+        if not line.strip():
+            continue
+
+        parts = line.split("\t")
+
+        if parts[0].startswith(("R", "C")):
+            # Renames/copies: "R100\told/path\tnew/path" — treat as add of the new path
+            if len(parts) < 3:
+                continue
+            status = "A"
+            path = parts[2]
+        elif len(parts) >= 2:
+            status = parts[0]
+            path = parts[1]
+        else:
+            continue
+
+        segments = path.split("/")
+        filename = segments[-1]
+
+        # Spec files at root level
+        if len(segments) == 1 and filename.endswith("_specs.yaml"):
+            action = "new" if status == "A" else "updated"
+            spec_changes.append((filename, action))
+            continue
+
+        if len(segments) < 2:
+            continue
+
+        collection = segments[0]
+
+        if filename == "000_context.jsonld":
+            action = "new" if status == "A" else "updated"
+            model_changes.append((collection, action))
+        else:
+            term_id = filename.replace(".json", "")
+            changes[collection][status[0]].append(term_id)
+
+    return spec_changes, model_changes, changes
+
+
+def format_changelog(spec_changes, model_changes, term_changes):
+    """Format changes into markdown."""
+    lines = []
+
+    for filename, action in spec_changes:
+        lines.append(f"- {filename}: {action}")
+
+    for collection, action in model_changes:
+        lines.append(f"- {collection}: {action} collection model")
+
+    for collection in sorted(term_changes):
+        parts = []
+        counts = term_changes[collection]
+        if counts["A"]:
+            parts.append(f'{len(counts["A"])} added')
+        if counts["M"]:
+            parts.append(f'{len(counts["M"])} modified')
+        if counts["D"]:
+            parts.append(f'{len(counts["D"])} removed')
+        if parts:
+            lines.append(f"- {collection}: {', '.join(parts)}")
+
+    return "\n".join(lines) if lines else "No CV changes."
+
+
+def main():
+    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="Generate changelog from git diff")
+    parser.add_argument("base_sha", help="Base SHA to diff against")
+    args = parser.parse_args()
+
+    diff_output = get_diff(args.base_sha)
+    if not diff_output:
+        print("No CV changes.")
+        sys.exit(0)
+
+    spec_changes, model_changes, term_changes = parse_diff(diff_output)
+    print(format_changelog(spec_changes, model_changes, term_changes))
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()
diff --git a/.github/scripts/ci_update_manifest.py b/.github/scripts/ci_update_manifest.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..61b9f9f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/scripts/ci_update_manifest.py
@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+"""
+CI helper: update esgvoc_manifest.yaml with new version info.
+
+Usage:
+  python .github/scripts/ci_update_manifest.py \
+    --version 1.2.0 \
+    --universe-version 1.0.3 \
+    --changelog-file changelog.md
+"""
+
+import argparse
+import sys
+
+import yaml
+
+
+def _literal_str_representer(dumper, data):
+    """Force multi-line strings to use YAML literal block scalar (|)."""
+    if "\n" in data:
+        return dumper.represent_scalar("tag:yaml.org,2002:str", data, style="|")
+    return dumper.represent_scalar("tag:yaml.org,2002:str", data)
+
+
+yaml.add_representer(str, _literal_str_representer)
+
+
+def main():
+    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="Update esgvoc manifest")
+    parser.add_argument("--version", required=True, help="New CV version")
+    parser.add_argument("--universe-version", required=True, help="Universe version")
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "--changelog-file",
+        default="-",
+        help="Path to changelog file, or - for stdin (default: -)",
+    )
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "--manifest",
+        default="esgvoc_manifest.yaml",
+        help="Path to manifest file (default: esgvoc_manifest.yaml)",
+    )
+    args = parser.parse_args()
+
+    if args.changelog_file == "-":
+        changelog = sys.stdin.read().strip()
+    else:
+        with open(args.changelog_file) as f:
+            changelog = f.read().strip()
+
+    with open(args.manifest) as f:
+        manifest = yaml.safe_load(f)
+
+    manifest["cv_version"] = args.version
+    manifest["universe_version"] = args.universe_version
+    manifest["release_notes"] = changelog + "\n"
+
+    with open(args.manifest, "w") as f:
+        yaml.dump(manifest, f, default_flow_style=False, sort_keys=False, allow_unicode=True)
+
+    print(f"Updated manifest to version {args.version}")
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()
diff --git a/.github/scripts/ci_version.py b/.github/scripts/ci_version.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..142252d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/scripts/ci_version.py
@@ -0,0 +1,79 @@
+"""
+CI helper: version management for CV releases.
+
+Subcommands:
+  fetch-current   Read registry JSON from stdin, print current stable version.
+  fetch-universe  Read registry JSON from stdin, print current universe version.
+  compute-next    Given --current and --bump, print the next semver version.
+"""
+
+import argparse
+import json
+import sys
+
+
+def fetch_version(data):
+    """Extract the latest non-prerelease, non-dev version from a registry index."""
+    for release in data.get("releases", []):
+        version = release.get("version", "")
+        if version == "dev-latest" or release.get("is_prerelease"):
+            continue
+        return version.lstrip("v")
+    return "0.0.0"
+
+
+def cmd_fetch_current(args):
+    data = json.load(sys.stdin)
+    print(fetch_version(data))
+
+
+def cmd_fetch_universe(args):
+    data = json.load(sys.stdin)
+    print(fetch_version(data))
+
+
+def cmd_compute_next(args):
+    parts = [int(x) for x in args.current.split(".")]
+    if len(parts) != 3:
+        print(f"error: invalid version '{args.current}'", file=sys.stderr)
+        sys.exit(1)
+
+    if args.bump == "major":
+        parts[0] += 1
+        parts[1] = 0
+        parts[2] = 0
+    elif args.bump == "minor":
+        parts[1] += 1
+        parts[2] = 0
+    elif args.bump == "patch":
+        parts[2] += 1
+    else:
+        print(f"error: invalid bump type '{args.bump}'", file=sys.stderr)
+        sys.exit(1)
+
+    print(".".join(str(p) for p in parts))
+
+
+def main():
+    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="CI version helper")
+    sub = parser.add_subparsers(dest="command", required=True)
+
+    sub.add_parser("fetch-current", help="Read registry JSON from stdin, print current version")
+    sub.add_parser("fetch-universe", help="Read registry JSON from stdin, print universe version")
+
+    next_parser = sub.add_parser("compute-next", help="Compute next semver version")
+    next_parser.add_argument("--current", required=True, help="Current version (e.g. 1.2.3)")
+    next_parser.add_argument("--bump", required=True, choices=["major", "minor", "patch"])
+
+    args = parser.parse_args()
+
+    commands = {
+        "fetch-current": cmd_fetch_current,
+        "fetch-universe": cmd_fetch_universe,
+        "compute-next": cmd_compute_next,
+    }
+    commands[args.command](args)
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()
diff --git a/.github/workflows/publish-prod.yaml b/.github/workflows/publish-prod.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ed7fc9b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/publish-prod.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,169 @@
+name: Prepare release (merge to main)
+
+on:
+  push:
+    branches: [main]
+
+permissions:
+  contents: write
+  pull-requests: write
+
+jobs:
+  prepare-release:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+          token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+
+      # Skip if this is a manifest-only commit (from a previous run)
+      - name: Check if manifest-only commit
+        id: skip_check
+        run: |
+          CHANGED=$(git diff --name-only HEAD~1..HEAD)
+          if [ "$CHANGED" = "esgvoc_manifest.yaml" ]; then
+            echo "skip=true" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+            echo "Manifest-only commit detected — skipping release."
+          else
+            echo "skip=false" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+          fi
+
+      - uses: ./.github/actions/setup-esgvoc
+        if: steps.skip_check.outputs.skip != 'true'
+        with:
+          extra-packages: pyyaml
+
+      - name: Test obs4ref build
+        if: steps.skip_check.outputs.skip != 'true'
+        env:
+          BRANCH: ${{ github.ref_name }}
+        run: esgvoc test run obs4ref --branch "$BRANCH" --universe-branch main
+
+      - name: Get last published source SHA
+        if: steps.skip_check.outputs.skip != 'true'
+        id: base
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ github.token }}
+        run: |
+          set -e
+          # Fetch source_sha of the latest stable release from the registry
+          SOURCE_SHA=$(gh api repos/WCRP-CMIP/esgvoc_registry/contents/obs4ref.json \
+            --jq '.content' | base64 -d | python3 -c "
+          import json, sys
+          idx = json.load(sys.stdin)
+          for r in idx['releases']:
+              v = r.get('version', '')
+              if v != 'dev-latest' and not r.get('is_prerelease'):
+                  print(r.get('source_sha', ''))
+                  break
+          else:
+              print('')
+          ")
+
+          if [ -z "${SOURCE_SHA}" ]; then
+            # No source_sha in registry — first release, diff from root commit
+            echo "::warning::No source_sha in registry, falling back to root commit (first release)"
+            SOURCE_SHA=$(git rev-list --max-parents=0 HEAD | tail -1)
+          fi
+
+          echo "sha=${SOURCE_SHA}" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+          echo "Base SHA: ${SOURCE_SHA}"
+
+      - name: Detect changes
+        if: steps.skip_check.outputs.skip != 'true'
+        id: changes
+        uses: ./.github/actions/detect-changes
+        with:
+          base_sha: ${{ steps.base.outputs.sha }}
+          github_token: ${{ github.token }}
+          fetch_universe: "true"
+
+      - name: Update manifest
+        if: steps.skip_check.outputs.skip != 'true' && steps.changes.outputs.bump_type != 'none'
+        env:
+          NEXT_VERSION: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.next_version }}
+          UNIVERSE_VERSION: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.universe_version }}
+          CHANGELOG: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.changelog }}
+        run: |
+          echo "${CHANGELOG}" | python3 .github/scripts/ci_update_manifest.py \
+            --version "${NEXT_VERSION}" \
+            --universe-version "${UNIVERSE_VERSION}" \
+            --changelog-file -
+
+          echo "Updated manifest:"
+          cat esgvoc_manifest.yaml
+
+      - name: Create manifest PR
+        id: manifest_pr
+        if: steps.skip_check.outputs.skip != 'true' && steps.changes.outputs.bump_type != 'none'
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          NEXT_VERSION: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.next_version }}
+          CURRENT_VERSION: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.current_version }}
+          BUMP_TYPE: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.bump_type }}
+          CHANGELOG: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.changelog }}
+        run: |
+          BRANCH="chore/manifest-${NEXT_VERSION}"
+
+          git config user.name "github-actions[bot]"
+          git config user.email "github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com"
+
+          git checkout -b "${BRANCH}"
+          git add esgvoc_manifest.yaml
+          git diff --cached --quiet && echo "No manifest changes" && exit 0
+
+          git commit -m "chore: update manifest to ${NEXT_VERSION}"
+          git push origin "${BRANCH}"
+
+          BODY=$(cat <<EOF
+          ## Manifest update
+
+          **Version:** ${CURRENT_VERSION} → ${NEXT_VERSION} (${BUMP_TYPE})
+
+          ### Changelog
+          ${CHANGELOG}
+
+          ---
+
+          Once merged, publish the release:
+
+          \`\`\`bash
+          gh workflow run publish.yml \\
+            -R WCRP-CMIP/esgvoc_registry \\
+            -f project_id=obs4ref \\
+            -f bump_type=${BUMP_TYPE} \\
+            -f project_repo=Climate-REF/Obs4REF_CVs
+          \`\`\`
+          EOF
+          )
+
+          PR_URL=$(gh pr create \
+            --title "chore: update manifest to ${NEXT_VERSION}" \
+            --body "${BODY}" \
+            --base main \
+            --head "${BRANCH}")
+
+          echo "pr_url=${PR_URL}" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+          echo "Manifest PR created: ${PR_URL}"
+
+      # Post manifest PR link on the PR that triggered this workflow
+      - name: Notify source PR
+        if: steps.manifest_pr.outputs.pr_url
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          REPO: ${{ github.repository }}
+          COMMIT_SHA: ${{ github.sha }}
+          PR_URL: ${{ steps.manifest_pr.outputs.pr_url }}
+        run: |
+          # Find the PR that was just merged (by merge commit SHA)
+          SOURCE_PR=$(gh api "repos/${REPO}/commits/${COMMIT_SHA}/pulls" --jq '.[0].number // empty')
+
+          if [ -n "${SOURCE_PR}" ]; then
+            gh pr comment "${SOURCE_PR}" --body "Manifest PR created: ${PR_URL}"
+          fi
+
+      - name: No CV changes
+        if: steps.skip_check.outputs.skip != 'true' && steps.changes.outputs.bump_type == 'none'
+        run: echo "No CV files changed — no release needed."
diff --git a/.github/workflows/test-prod.yaml b/.github/workflows/test-prod.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..59c9f06
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/test-prod.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+name: Test release (PR)
+
+on:
+  pull_request:
+    branches: [main]
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+  pull-requests: write
+
+jobs:
+  test-and-preview:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+
+      - uses: ./.github/actions/setup-esgvoc
+
+      - name: Test obs4ref build
+        env:
+          BRANCH: ${{ github.event.pull_request.head.ref || github.head_ref }}
+          REPO: ${{ github.event.pull_request.head.repo.full_name }}
+        run: |
+          REPO_FLAG=""
+          if [ -n "$REPO" ]; then
+            REPO_FLAG="--repo $REPO"
+          fi
+          esgvoc test run obs4ref $REPO_FLAG --branch "$BRANCH" --universe-branch main
+
+      - name: Detect changes
+        id: changes
+        uses: ./.github/actions/detect-changes
+        with:
+          base_sha: ${{ github.event.pull_request.base.sha }}
+          github_token: ${{ github.token }}
+
+      - name: Post release preview
+        if: steps.changes.outputs.bump_type != 'none'
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ github.token }}
+          PR_NUMBER: ${{ github.event.pull_request.number }}
+          REPO: ${{ github.repository }}
+          CHANGELOG: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.changelog }}
+          BUMP_TYPE: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.bump_type }}
+          CURRENT_VERSION: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.current_version }}
+          NEXT_VERSION: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.next_version }}
+          WARNING: ${{ steps.changes.outputs.warning }}
+        run: |
+          # Clean up previous bot comments
+          gh api "repos/${REPO}/issues/${PR_NUMBER}/comments" \
+            --jq '.[] | select(.user.login == "github-actions[bot]") | select(.body | contains("Release preview")) | .id' \
+            | xargs -I {} gh api -X DELETE "repos/${REPO}/issues/comments/{}" 2>/dev/null || true
+
+          WARN_BLOCK=""
+          if [ -n "${WARNING}" ]; then
+            WARN_BLOCK="> **Warning:** ${WARNING}"
+          fi
+
+          BODY=$(cat <<EOF
+          ## Release preview
+
+          ### Changelog
+          ${CHANGELOG}
+
+          ---
+
+          **Suggested bump:** \`${BUMP_TYPE}\` (${CURRENT_VERSION} → ${NEXT_VERSION})
+          ${WARN_BLOCK}
+
+          *The bump type is a suggestion based on the diff. Override when publishing if needed.*
+          EOF
+          )
+
+          gh pr comment "${PR_NUMBER}" --body "${BODY}"
+
+      - name: No CV changes
+        if: steps.changes.outputs.bump_type == 'none'
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ github.token }}
+          PR_NUMBER: ${{ github.event.pull_request.number }}
+        run: |
+          gh pr comment "${PR_NUMBER}" --body "## Release preview
+
+          No CV files changed — no release needed."
diff --git a/esgvoc_manifest.yaml b/esgvoc_manifest.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3d256eb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/esgvoc_manifest.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+schema_version: '1'
+project:
+  id: obs4ref
+  name: Obs4REF Controlled Vocabulary
+cv_version: 1.0.0
+universe_version: 1.0.23
+esgvoc:
+  min_version: 4.1.0
+release_notes: |
+  Initial manifest.