add release checklist

Author: hannahlanzrath

.github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/release_checklist.md

@@ -0,0 +1,45 @@
+---
+name: Release checklist
+about: Checklist to make a release
+title: ''
+labels: 'maintenance'
+assignees: ''
+
+---
+
+# CADET-Python Release Checklist
+
+CADET-Python follows the semantic versioning system described at [semver.org](https://semver.org/).
+
+CADET-Python is released direcntly from the master branch and deployed to PyPi via a GitHub workflow.
+
+The following checklist describes the steps to execute sequentially for creating a new release.
+
+---
+
+## Preparation
+
+- [ ] Create a version bump commit `Bump version to vX.X.X`:
+  - Update the version number in 
+  - `__init__.py`
+  - `zenodo.json` (two places), `cadet.hpp` and 
+
+---
+
+## Creating the release on GitHub
+
+- [ ] Go to [GitHub Releases](https://github.com/cadet/CADET-Core/releases/new):
+  - Set the release branch as the target
+  - Specify the tag `vX.X.X` according to semantic versioning
+  - Add release notes with sections for Added, Fixed, Changed, and Updated
+  - Publish the release.
+- [ ] Check creation of docker image with the new release
+- [ ] Verify Zenodo archiving:
+  - Confirm that a version-specific DOI was created
+  - Ensure that the source code and associated files are archived
+  - Note that the [concept DOI](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14132721) remains constant
+
+---
+
+## Follow-up
+- [ ] If this release checklist was updated, add these changes to the corresponding issue template