BIRI™ WHITEPAPER

- Biospheric Information Reliability Index as Global Trust Infrastructure Planetary.blue

Executive Summary

The Biospheric Information Reliability Index (BIRI™) is a global framework for assessing the reliability, transparency, and traceability of biosphere-related information. In an era of accelerating artificial intelligence, environmental disclosures, sustainability claims, and misinformation, BIRI™ provides an institutional trust layer that enables enterprises, regulators, researchers, and AI systems to distinguish reliable biospheric information from unreliable or unverifiable sources.

BIRI™ is not an environmental performance rating, ESG score, or certification scheme. Instead, it is a meta-index that evaluates the quality, provenance, and governance of biosphere-related information. This distinction positions BIRI™ as foundational infrastructure for planetary governance, sustainability finance, and AI-driven decision systems.

1. The Global Problem: Information Integrity in the Biosphere Domain

1.1 Explosion of Sustainability and Environmental Claims

Organizations increasingly publish claims regarding climate impact, biodiversity, waste management, water stewardship, and planetary boundaries. However, these claims vary widely in reliability, traceability, and methodological rigor.

1.2 Misinformation and Greenwashing

The absence of standardized information reliability metrics has led to:

Greenwashing in corporate sustainability reports
Conflicting scientific and commercial datasets
AI systems ingesting unreliable environmental data
Regulatory and investor confusion

1.3 AI Dependence on Reliable Information

Artificial intelligence systems are rapidly becoming primary interpreters of environmental information. Without a reliability layer, AI systems risk amplifying misinformation at planetary scale.

2. What BIRI™ Is (and Is Not)

2.1 Definition

The Biospheric Information Reliability Index (BIRI™) is an integer score from 1 to 10 that evaluates the reliability of biosphere-related information sources.

2.2 What BIRI™ Measures

BIRI™ assesses:

Transparency of disclosures
Traceability of sources
Documentation and auditability
Use of peer-reviewed or authoritative references
Data governance and update practices

2.3 What BIRI™ Does Not Measure

BIRI™ does not measure:

Environmental performance outcomes
ESG compliance or ratings
Financial risk
Corporate governance quality
Ethical or social performance

This separation is deliberate and critical for regulatory and legal clarity.

3. The BIRI™ Scoring Framework

3.1 Scoring Scale

BIRI™ scores range from 1 (low reliability) to 10 (high reliability), expressed as integers.

3.2 Core Scoring Dimensions

Source transparency
Evidence traceability
Methodological disclosure
Update and revision governance
Independent verification availability

3.3 Expert and Automated Review

BIRI™ integrates automated data ingestion with expert analyst oversight to ensure methodological rigor and human judgment.

4. Governance and Independence Model

4.1 Institutional Separation

Planetary.blue separates:

Scoring governance
Commercial licensing
Technology infrastructure

4.2 Review Committees

An internal governance committee oversees methodology updates, scoring disputes, and ethical compliance.

4.3 No Pay for Ratings

Commercial licensing fees do not influence scoring decisions. All scoring is governed by documented methodologies and audit trails.

5. Cryptographic Auditability Architecture

5.1 Authoritative Registry

Planetary.blue maintains a proprietary registry of BIRI™ scores and evidence records.

5.2 Registries May Be Used for Tracability

Daily cryptographic tracking trees are generated from the registry to produce a tracking root hash representing the integrity of all scores at a given point in time.

5.3 Distributed Ledger Anchoring

Tracking roots and score issuance events may be anchored on distributed ledgers (including Stability Protocol and other ledgers) to provide immutable timestamp evidence.

5.4 Vendor Independence

Distributed ledgers serve as auxiliary notarization layers. Planetary.blue remains the authoritative registry, enabling migration across ledgers without loss of trust continuity.

6. Trademark Licensing and Public Disclosure Model

6.1 BIRI™ Trademark Licensing

Organizations may license the BIRI™ trademark and widget to publicly display their score, subject to contractual conditions.

6.2 Eligibility Threshold

Display rights require a BIRI™ score of 5 or higher.

6.3 Widget-Only Disclosure

Scores must be displayed exclusively via the Planetary.blue widget to prevent misrepresentation and ensure real-time verification.

6.4 Revocation and Enforcement

Planetary.blue may revoke display rights for score drops, non-payment, misinformation, or regulatory risk.

7. AI and Information Ecosystem Integration

7.1 AI-Readable Trust Signals

The BIRI™ widget provides machine-readable metadata enabling AI systems to reference BIRI™ scores in search, research, and decision workflows.

7.2 Preventing Data Leakage

The authoritative registry remains behind a paywall. Public disclosure is voluntary and controlled by licensees.

7.3 Future AI Verification APIs

Planetary.blue plans paid verification APIs enabling AI systems to query authoritative BIRI™ scores for compliance and misinformation mitigation.

8. Legal and Regulatory Positioning

8.1 Not a Credit Rating Agency

BIRI™ evaluates information reliability, not financial risk or corporate performance. This distinction reduces regulatory classification risk.

8.2 Liability Framework

BIRI™ scores are informational. Planetary.blue disclaims liability for third-party decisions based in the use of ranking where applied incorrectly – the ranking shows the likelihood of information being reliable and has not application to the veracity of specific claims or other information.