chore(license): relicense to Apache-2.0 + DCO/NOTICE/CONTRIBUTING (#67)

The rendered driver and templates land INSIDE the consuming repo, so a GPLv3
template makes the rendered output a derivative that clashes with a permissive
host and fails a cargo-deny-style allowlist (AGPL/GPL denied). Relicensing to
Apache-2.0 removes the blocker for in-tree use and broadens adoptability. This
is Workstream A / requirement #1 of the project-neutrality epic (#67); it does
NOT close #67 (PR2-PR5 follow).

- LICENSE + template/LICENSE → canonical Apache-2.0 text.
- Add NOTICE (root) + template/NOTICE.jinja (Apache attribution).
- Add DCO (Developer Certificate of Origin 1.1) + CONTRIBUTING.md documenting
  `git commit -s` sign-off; ship template/DCO + template/CONTRIBUTING.md.jinja
  for rendered projects.
- Rendered-project license: new `project_license` copier question (default
  Apache-2.0) → pyproject `license`, referenced in NOTICE/CONTRIBUTING/README.
- README §License + docs/index.yml updated (the GPLv3 derivative-copyleft
  paragraph — the actual blocker — is removed).

The GPL-header gate EXAMPLES in docs are left as-is: they illustrate a consuming
project's conformance rule, not this harness's license.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
Signed-off-by: Eduard Ralph <15236434+eduralph@users.noreply.github.com>

Author: eduralph

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+# Contributing to pdca-harness
+
+Thanks for contributing. This project is licensed under the
+[Apache License, Version 2.0](LICENSE); contributions are accepted under the same
+license.
+
+## Developer Certificate of Origin (sign-off)
+
+Contributions are gated on the [Developer Certificate of Origin](DCO) (DCO 1.1).
+By signing off you certify the DCO's terms for your contribution. Sign off every
+commit with:
+
+```bash
+git commit -s
+```
+
+This appends a `Signed-off-by: Your Name <you@example.com>` trailer (using your
+`git config user.name` / `user.email`). Amend a commit that's missing it with
+`git commit --amend -s`.
+
+## Engineering discipline
+
+- One logical change per commit / PR; split unrelated changes.
+- A change ships with the means to verify it — a test, or a stated reason why a test
+  is impractical plus a manual repro.
+- Keep the offline suite green: `cd template && PYTHONPATH=src python3 -m unittest discover -s tests`.
+
+See the vendored process model under `template/PCDA/quality-cycle/` for the full
+Plan · Do · Check · Act discipline this harness embodies.

DCO

@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+Developer Certificate of Origin
+Version 1.1
+
+Copyright (C) 2004, 2006 The Linux Foundation and its contributors.
+
+Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this
+license document, but changing it is not allowed.
+
+
+Developer's Certificate of Origin 1.1
+
+By making a contribution to this project, I certify that:
+
+(a) The contribution was created in whole or in part by me and I
+    have the right to submit it under the open source license
+    indicated in the file; or
+
+(b) The contribution is based upon previous work that, to the best
+    of my knowledge, is covered under an appropriate open source
+    license and I have the right under that license to submit that
+    work with modifications, whether created in whole or in part
+    by me, under the same open source license (unless I am
+    permitted to submit under a different license), as indicated
+    in the file; or
+
+(c) The contribution was provided directly to me by some other
+    person who certified (a), (b) or (c) and I have not modified
+    it.
+
+(d) I understand and agree that this project and the contribution
+    are public and that a record of the contribution (including all
+    personal information I submit with it, including my sign-off) is
+    maintained indefinitely and may be redistributed consistent with
+    this project or the open source license(s) involved.

LICENSE

@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+pdca-harness
+Copyright 2026 Eduard Ralph
+
+This product is licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License").
+You may obtain a copy of the License in the LICENSE file at the repository root
+or at http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

NOTICE

@@ -116,7 +116,14 @@ See `template/PCDA/quality-cycle.md` for the model and the maturity ladder.
 
 Copyright © 2026 Eduard Ralph.
 
-pdca-harness is free software, licensed under the **GNU General Public License,
-version 3** ([LICENSE](LICENSE)) — use, study, modify, and redistribute it under
-the GPLv3; derivative works must also be GPLv3. The driver code and docs this
-template copies into a rendered project carry the GPLv3 into that project.
+pdca-harness is licensed under the **Apache License, Version 2.0**
+([LICENSE](LICENSE), [NOTICE](NOTICE)) — a permissive license. The driver code and
+templates this project copies into a rendered repo are Apache-2.0, so the rendered
+output carries no copyleft and is compatible with a permissive license policy (e.g. a
+`cargo-deny`-style allowlist); a host repo keeps its own license. A rendered project
+declares its own license via the `project_license` copier question (default
+`Apache-2.0`).
+
+Contributions are accepted under Apache-2.0 and gated on the
+[Developer Certificate of Origin](DCO) — sign off commits with `git commit -s`. See
+[CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md).

README.md

@@ -71,6 +71,15 @@ author_email:
   help: Primary author / maintainer email
   default: ""
 
+# License the rendered project declares (pyproject + NOTICE). The harness itself is
+# Apache-2.0; the rendered output carries no copyleft, so a permissive host can keep
+# its own policy. An SPDX identifier (e.g. Apache-2.0, MIT, BSD-3-Clause). The shipped
+# LICENSE file is the Apache-2.0 text — swap it if you choose a different license here.
+project_license:
+  type: str
+  help: SPDX license the rendered project declares (Apache-2.0 keeps the shipped LICENSE)
+  default: "Apache-2.0"
+
 # ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # Integration: tracker (docs 05 item 1)
 # ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

copier.yml

@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ meta:
   title: "PDCA Harness — verified AI contribution, one quality cycle at a time"
   description: "A Copier template for an AI-driven PDCA quality-cycle harness: Plan, Do, Check, Act over every contribution, with a human at the three touch points that matter."
   og_title: "PDCA Harness — verified AI contribution, one quality cycle at a time"
-  og_description: "Turn each AI contribution into one PDCA cycle: a precise brief, an automated build, a deterministic red→green Check, and a human sign-off. Copier template, GPLv3."
+  og_description: "Turn each AI contribution into one PDCA cycle: a precise brief, an automated build, a deterministic red→green Check, and a human sign-off. Copier template, Apache-2.0."
 
 hero:
   status: "Iterating your way to a better process, one contribution at a time."

docs/index.yml

@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+# Contributing to {{ project_name }}
+
+This project is licensed under the [{{ project_license }}](LICENSE) license;
+contributions are accepted under the same license.
+
+## Developer Certificate of Origin (sign-off)
+
+Contributions are gated on the [Developer Certificate of Origin](DCO) (DCO 1.1).
+By signing off you certify the DCO's terms for your contribution. Sign off every
+commit with:
+
+```bash
+git commit -s
+```
+
+This appends a `Signed-off-by: Your Name <you@example.com>` trailer. Amend a commit
+that's missing it with `git commit --amend -s`.
+
+## Quality cycle
+
+This project runs the PDCA quality cycle (Plan · Do · Check · Act). Read
+`PCDA/quality-cycle/` for the model and `docs/INTEGRATION.md` for this repo's
+concretizations. Keep the deterministic Check gates green before contributing — see
+`pdca gates` and `.github/` for how they re-run at the merge boundary.

template/CONTRIBUTING.md.jinja

@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+Developer Certificate of Origin
+Version 1.1
+
+Copyright (C) 2004, 2006 The Linux Foundation and its contributors.
+
+Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this
+license document, but changing it is not allowed.
+
+
+Developer's Certificate of Origin 1.1
+
+By making a contribution to this project, I certify that:
+
+(a) The contribution was created in whole or in part by me and I
+    have the right to submit it under the open source license
+    indicated in the file; or
+
+(b) The contribution is based upon previous work that, to the best
+    of my knowledge, is covered under an appropriate open source
+    license and I have the right under that license to submit that
+    work with modifications, whether created in whole or in part
+    by me, under the same open source license (unless I am
+    permitted to submit under a different license), as indicated
+    in the file; or
+
+(c) The contribution was provided directly to me by some other
+    person who certified (a), (b) or (c) and I have not modified
+    it.
+
+(d) I understand and agree that this project and the contribution
+    are public and that a record of the contribution (including all
+    personal information I submit with it, including my sign-off) is
+    maintained indefinitely and may be redistributed consistent with
+    this project or the open source license(s) involved.