diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index a32a97393..57e0f14fb 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -5,6 +5,38 @@ All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
 The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/),
 and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
 
+## [0.72.0] - 2026-07-28
+### ✨ Highlights
+
+This release introduces experimental `build.steps` as an alternative to `build.script`: each step is an isolated section of the build wrapper with its own `if` condition, `interpreter`, `cwd`, and `env`, so shell state no longer leaks between steps. It requires `--experimental` and is mutually exclusive with `script`. Recipes may now also carry a top-level `$schema` field for editor validation, and two fixes land for case-insensitive `RuntimeEnv` lookups on Windows and for deletion-only patches being misdetected as already applied.
+
+
+
+### Added
+
+- Add experimental build steps by @baszalmstra in [#2646](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2646)
+- Allow $schema top-level field in recipe.yaml by @bollwyvl in [#2645](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2645)
+- Support steps in staging outputs by @baszalmstra in [#2647](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2647)
+
+
+### Fixed
+
+- Ignore case when querying variables from `RuntimeEnv` on Windows by @paperchalice in [#2676](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2676)
+- Deletion-only patches misdetected as already applied by @wolfv in [#2695](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2695)
+
+
+### Refactor
+
+- Extract pure resolve_process_env by @baszalmstra in [#2677](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2677)
+- Split process spawn from output handling by @baszalmstra in [#2690](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2690)
+- Rename `NativeShellRunner` to `ShellDialect` by @baszalmstra in [#2692](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2692)
+- Add an execution view for Directories by @baszalmstra in [#2694](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2694)
+- Inject RuntimeEnv into script environment generation by @baszalmstra in [#2691](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2691)
+
+
+### New Contributors
+* @paperchalice made their first contribution in [#2676](https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build/pull/2676)
+
 ## [0.71.0] - 2026-07-27
 ### ✨ Highlights
 
diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index 507e307f9..bbaaa6516 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -4803,7 +4803,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "rattler-build"
-version = "0.71.0"
+version = "0.72.0"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "astral-reqwest-middleware",
diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 252d73322..ba0ffd326 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [package]
 name = "rattler-build"
-version = "0.71.0"
+version = "0.72.0"
 authors = ["rattler-build contributors <hi@prefix.dev>"]
 repository = "https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build"
 edition = "2024"
diff --git a/py-rattler-build/pyproject.toml b/py-rattler-build/pyproject.toml
index 905486ab9..05bce17f8 100644
--- a/py-rattler-build/pyproject.toml
+++ b/py-rattler-build/pyproject.toml
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ build-backend = "maturin"
 
 [project]
 name = "py-rattler-build"
-version = "0.71.0"
+version = "0.72.0"
 requires-python = ">=3.10"
 description = "The fastest way to build conda packages programatically"
 readme = "README.md"
diff --git a/py-rattler-build/rust/Cargo.lock b/py-rattler-build/rust/Cargo.lock
index f612cbba4..e7f3949d5 100644
--- a/py-rattler-build/rust/Cargo.lock
+++ b/py-rattler-build/rust/Cargo.lock
@@ -4271,7 +4271,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "py-rattler-build"
-version = "0.71.0"
+version = "0.72.0"
 dependencies = [
  "clap",
  "fs-err",
@@ -4635,7 +4635,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "rattler-build"
-version = "0.71.0"
+version = "0.72.0"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "astral-reqwest-middleware",
diff --git a/py-rattler-build/rust/Cargo.toml b/py-rattler-build/rust/Cargo.toml
index eca4480a1..048df7932 100644
--- a/py-rattler-build/rust/Cargo.toml
+++ b/py-rattler-build/rust/Cargo.toml
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [package]
 name = "py-rattler-build"
-version = "0.71.0"
+version = "0.72.0"
 edition = "2024"
 license = "BSD-3-Clause"
 publish = false
diff --git a/tbump.toml b/tbump.toml
index e19beec29..8c4a9cfe5 100644
--- a/tbump.toml
+++ b/tbump.toml
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 github_url = "https://github.com/prefix-dev/rattler-build"
 
 [version]
-current = "0.71.0"
+current = "0.72.0"
 
 # Example of a semver regexp.
 # Make sure this matches current_version before