diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index ac7d3af1ee..50d1d9ba34 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ Increment the:
 
 ### SDK
 
-* Cleanup GetEnvironmentVariable and remove unused variable under NO_GETENV ([#976](https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-cpp/pull/976))
+* Clean up `GetEnvironmentVariable` and remove unused variable under `NO_GETENV` ([#976](https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-cpp/pull/976))
 * :collision: Resources: Add note on experimental semantic convention implementation, prefix semantics headers with experimental tag ([#970](https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-cpp/pull/970))
 
 ### OTLP Exporter
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ Increment the:
 
 ### DOCS
 
-* :book: Add Getting started documentation for SDK: ([#942](https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-cpp/pull/942))
+* :book: Add getting-started documentation for SDK: ([#942](https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-cpp/pull/942))
 * :book: Remove unnecessary spaces and spelling of gRPC in README ([#965](https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-cpp/pull/965))
 
 ### BUILD
diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index 16899ad521..272e10927b 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -4,6 +4,12 @@ cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.1)
 # versions of gtest
 cmake_policy(SET CMP0057 NEW)
 
+# See https://cmake.org/cmake/help/v3.12/policy/CMP0074.html required by certain
+# version of zlib which is dependeded by cURL.
+if(${CMAKE_VERSION} VERSION_GREATER_EQUAL "3.12")
+  cmake_policy(SET CMP0074 NEW)
+endif()
+
 project(opentelemetry-cpp)
 
 # Mark variables as used so cmake doesn't complain about them
@@ -81,14 +87,25 @@ else()
   )
 endif()
 
-if(NOT DEFINED CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD)
-  set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 11)
-endif()
-
 option(WITH_STL "Whether to use Standard Library for C++latest features" OFF)
 
 option(WITH_ABSEIL "Whether to use Abseil for C++latest features" OFF)
 
+if(NOT DEFINED CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD)
+  if(WITH_STL)
+    # Require at least C++17. C++20 is needed to avoid gsl::span
+    if(CMAKE_VERSION VERSION_GREATER 3.11.999)
+      # Ask for 20, may get anything below
+      set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 20)
+    else()
+      # Ask for 17, may get anything below
+      set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 17)
+    endif()
+  else()
+    set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 11)
+  endif()
+endif()
+
 if(WITH_ABSEIL)
   find_package(absl CONFIG REQUIRED)
 
@@ -106,14 +123,6 @@ if(WITH_STL)
   # the global project build definitions.
   add_definitions(-DHAVE_CPP_STDLIB)
   add_definitions(-DHAVE_GSL)
-  # Require at least C++17. C++20 is needed to avoid gsl::span
-  if(CMAKE_VERSION VERSION_GREATER 3.11.999)
-    # Ask for 20, may get anything below
-    set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 20)
-  else()
-    # Ask for 17, may get anything below
-    set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 17)
-  endif()
 
   # Guidelines Support Library path. Used if we are not on not get C++20.
   #
diff --git a/Versioning.md b/Versioning.md
index b95fc77650..b965ffd413 100644
--- a/Versioning.md
+++ b/Versioning.md
@@ -65,6 +65,17 @@ Refer to the [ABI Policy](./docs/abi-policy.md) for more details. To summarise:
   allowed to break existing stable interfaces. Feature flags will be removed
   once we have a stable implementation for the signal.
 
+* As an exception, small experimental features in otherwise stable signals/components
+  mayn't necessarily be released under feature flag. These would be flagged as experimental
+  by adding a `NOTE` in it's header file - either at the beginning of file, or as the comment for
+  the experimental API methods. Also, if the complete header is experimental, it would be prefixed
+  as `experimental_`. As an example, the semantic conventions for
+  trace signal is experimental at the time of the writing and is within `experimental_semantic_conventions.h`
+
+* Code under the "*::detail" namespace implements internal details,
+  and NOT part of public interface. Also, any API not documented in the [public
+  documentation](https://opentelemetry-cpp.readthedocs.io/en/latest/) is NOT part of public interface.
+
 * GitHub releases will be made for all released versions.
 
 ## Example Versioning Lifecycle
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/common/key_value_iterable_view.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/common/key_value_iterable_view.h
index 1712cfcda7..2a0cbbc445 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/common/key_value_iterable_view.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/common/key_value_iterable_view.h
@@ -14,6 +14,8 @@
 OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
 namespace common
 {
+// NOTE - code within `detail` namespace implements internal details, and not part
+// of the public interface.
 namespace detail
 {
 inline void take_key_value(nostd::string_view, common::AttributeValue) {}
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/detail/preprocessor.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/detail/preprocessor.h
index 5585c69db4..dc8eb57824 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/detail/preprocessor.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/detail/preprocessor.h
@@ -1,6 +1,9 @@
 // Copyright The OpenTelemetry Authors
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 
+// NOTE - code within detail namespace implements internal details, and not part
+// of the public interface.
+
 #pragma once
 
 #define OPENTELEMETRY_STRINGIFY(S) OPENTELEMETRY_STRINGIFY_(S)
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/context.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/context.h
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..165f1540b9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/context.h
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+// Copyright The OpenTelemetry Authors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+
+#pragma once
+
+#include "opentelemetry/context/context.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/default_span.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/version.h"
+
+OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
+namespace trace
+{
+
+// Get Span from explicit context
+inline nostd::shared_ptr<Span> GetSpan(const opentelemetry::context::Context &context)
+{
+  context::ContextValue span = context.GetValue(kSpanKey);
+  if (nostd::holds_alternative<nostd::shared_ptr<Span>>(span))
+  {
+    return nostd::get<nostd::shared_ptr<Span>>(span);
+  }
+  return nostd::shared_ptr<Span>(new DefaultSpan(SpanContext::GetInvalid()));
+}
+
+// Set Span into explicit context
+inline context::Context SetSpan(opentelemetry::context::Context &context,
+                                nostd::shared_ptr<Span> span)
+{
+  return context.SetValue(kSpanKey, span);
+}
+
+}  // namespace trace
+OPENTELEMETRY_END_NAMESPACE
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/semantic_conventions.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/experimental_semantic_conventions.h
similarity index 97%
rename from api/include/opentelemetry/trace/semantic_conventions.h
rename to api/include/opentelemetry/trace/experimental_semantic_conventions.h
index 13c5905783..3f38b9010e 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/semantic_conventions.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/experimental_semantic_conventions.h
@@ -1,6 +1,12 @@
 // Copyright The OpenTelemetry Authors
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 
+// NOTE:
+// This implementation is based on the experimental specs for trace semantic convention as defined
+// here:
+// https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-specification/tree/v1.0.0/specification/trace/semantic_conventions
+// and MAY will change in future.
+
 #pragma once
 
 #include "opentelemetry/common/string_util.h"
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/b3_propagator.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/b3_propagator.h
index f9485bd619..d5661cb2a9 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/b3_propagator.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/b3_propagator.h
@@ -3,10 +3,10 @@
 
 #pragma once
 
-#include "detail/context.h"
 #include "detail/hex.h"
 #include "detail/string.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/context/propagation/text_map_propagator.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/default_span.h"
 
 #include <array>
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ class B3PropagatorExtractor : public opentelemetry::context::propagation::TextMa
   {
     SpanContext span_context = ExtractImpl(carrier);
     nostd::shared_ptr<Span> sp{new DefaultSpan(span_context)};
-    return SetSpan(context, sp);
+    return trace::SetSpan(context, sp);
   }
 
   static TraceId TraceIdFromHex(nostd::string_view trace_id)
@@ -131,7 +131,7 @@ class B3Propagator : public B3PropagatorExtractor
   void Inject(opentelemetry::context::propagation::TextMapCarrier &carrier,
               const context::Context &context) noexcept override
   {
-    SpanContext span_context = GetSpan(context)->GetContext();
+    SpanContext span_context = trace::GetSpan(context)->GetContext();
     if (!span_context.IsValid())
     {
       return;
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/context.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/context.h
deleted file mode 100644
index 728a198911..0000000000
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/context.h
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,32 +0,0 @@
-// Copyright The OpenTelemetry Authors
-// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
-
-#pragma once
-#include "opentelemetry/context/context.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/trace/default_span.h"
-
-OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
-namespace trace
-{
-namespace propagation
-{
-
-inline nostd::shared_ptr<trace::Span> GetSpan(const context::Context &context)
-{
-  context::ContextValue span = context.GetValue(trace::kSpanKey);
-  if (nostd::holds_alternative<nostd::shared_ptr<trace::Span>>(span))
-  {
-    return nostd::get<nostd::shared_ptr<trace::Span>>(span);
-  }
-  return nostd::shared_ptr<trace::Span>(new DefaultSpan(SpanContext::GetInvalid()));
-}
-
-inline context::Context SetSpan(context::Context &context, nostd::shared_ptr<trace::Span> span)
-{
-
-  return context.SetValue(kSpanKey, span);
-}
-
-}  // namespace propagation
-}  // namespace trace
-OPENTELEMETRY_END_NAMESPACE
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/hex.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/hex.h
index 1a9f597070..10a17ff51b 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/hex.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/hex.h
@@ -13,6 +13,8 @@ namespace trace
 {
 namespace propagation
 {
+// NOTE - code within `detail` namespace implements internal details, and not part
+// of the public interface.
 namespace detail
 {
 
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/string.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/string.h
index c583934251..67e934b408 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/string.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/string.h
@@ -10,6 +10,8 @@ namespace trace
 {
 namespace propagation
 {
+// NOTE - code within `detail` namespace implements internal details, and not part
+// of the public interface.
 namespace detail
 {
 
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/http_trace_context.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/http_trace_context.h
index 41c6b1e61d..eca0d68f28 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/http_trace_context.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/http_trace_context.h
@@ -2,11 +2,11 @@
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 
 #include <array>
-#include "detail/context.h"
 #include "detail/hex.h"
 #include "detail/string.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/context/propagation/text_map_propagator.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/string_view.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/default_span.h"
 
 OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ class HttpTraceContext : public opentelemetry::context::propagation::TextMapProp
   void Inject(opentelemetry::context::propagation::TextMapCarrier &carrier,
               const context::Context &context) noexcept override
   {
-    SpanContext span_context = GetSpan(context)->GetContext();
+    SpanContext span_context = trace::GetSpan(context)->GetContext();
     if (!span_context.IsValid())
     {
       return;
@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ class HttpTraceContext : public opentelemetry::context::propagation::TextMapProp
   {
     SpanContext span_context = ExtractImpl(carrier);
     nostd::shared_ptr<Span> sp{new DefaultSpan(span_context)};
-    return SetSpan(context, sp);
+    return trace::SetSpan(context, sp);
   }
 
   static TraceId TraceIdFromHex(nostd::string_view trace_id)
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/jaeger.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/jaeger.h
index 6203752b91..78fc9e9c07 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/jaeger.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/jaeger.h
@@ -3,10 +3,10 @@
 
 #pragma once
 
-#include "detail/context.h"
 #include "detail/hex.h"
 #include "detail/string.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/context/propagation/text_map_propagator.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/default_span.h"
 
 OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ class JaegerPropagator : public context::propagation::TextMapPropagator
   void Inject(context::propagation::TextMapCarrier &carrier,
               const context::Context &context) noexcept override
   {
-    SpanContext span_context = GetSpan(context)->GetContext();
+    SpanContext span_context = trace::GetSpan(context)->GetContext();
     if (!span_context.IsValid())
     {
       return;
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ class JaegerPropagator : public context::propagation::TextMapPropagator
   {
     SpanContext span_context = ExtractImpl(carrier);
     nostd::shared_ptr<Span> sp{new DefaultSpan(span_context)};
-    return SetSpan(context, sp);
+    return trace::SetSpan(context, sp);
   }
 
   bool Fields(nostd::function_ref<bool(nostd::string_view)> callback) const noexcept override
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span.h
index 87b64747cf..77de4050d4 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span.h
@@ -7,7 +7,6 @@
 
 #include "opentelemetry/common/attribute_value.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/common/key_value_iterable_view.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/common/timestamp.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/shared_ptr.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/span.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/string_view.h"
@@ -15,72 +14,14 @@
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/unique_ptr.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/canonical_code.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/span_context.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/span_metadata.h"
+
 #include "opentelemetry/version.h"
 
 OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
 namespace trace
 {
 
-// The key identifies the active span in the current context.
-constexpr char kSpanKey[] = "active_span";
-
-enum class SpanKind
-{
-  kInternal,
-  kServer,
-  kClient,
-  kProducer,
-  kConsumer,
-};
-
-// StatusCode - Represents the canonical set of status codes of a finished Span.
-
-enum class StatusCode
-{
-  kUnset,  // default status
-  kOk,     // Operation has completed successfully.
-  kError   // The operation contains an error
-};
-
-/**
- * StartSpanOptions provides options to set properties of a Span at the time of
- * its creation
- */
-struct StartSpanOptions
-{
-  // Optionally sets the start time of a Span.
-  //
-  // If the start time of a Span is set, timestamps from both the system clock
-  // and steady clock must be provided.
-  //
-  // Timestamps from the steady clock can be used to most accurately measure a
-  // Span's duration, while timestamps from the system clock can be used to most
-  // accurately place a Span's
-  // time point relative to other Spans collected across a distributed system.
-  common::SystemTimestamp start_system_time;
-  common::SteadyTimestamp start_steady_time;
-
-  // Explicitly set the parent of a Span.
-  //
-  // This defaults to an invalid span context. In this case, the Span is
-  // automatically parented to the currently active span.
-  SpanContext parent = SpanContext::GetInvalid();
-
-  // TODO:
-  // SpanContext remote_parent;
-  // Links
-  SpanKind kind = SpanKind::kInternal;
-};
-/**
- * StartEndOptions provides options to set properties of a Span when it is
- * ended.
- */
-struct EndSpanOptions
-{
-  // Optionally sets the end time of a Span.
-  common::SteadyTimestamp end_steady_time;
-};
-
 class Tracer;
 
 /**
@@ -176,7 +117,7 @@ class Span
    * @param options can be used to manually define span properties like the end
    * timestamp
    */
-  virtual void End(const EndSpanOptions &options = {}) noexcept = 0;
+  virtual void End(const trace::EndSpanOptions &options = {}) noexcept = 0;
 
   virtual trace::SpanContext GetContext() const noexcept = 0;
 
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_context_kv_iterable_view.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_context_kv_iterable_view.h
index c6b74bc00d..252b4cf175 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_context_kv_iterable_view.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_context_kv_iterable_view.h
@@ -15,6 +15,8 @@
 OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
 namespace trace
 {
+// NOTE - code within `detail` namespace implements internal details, and not part
+// of the public interface.
 namespace detail
 {
 template <class T>
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_metadata.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_metadata.h
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..977329a151
--- /dev/null
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_metadata.h
@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+// Copyright The OpenTelemetry Authors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+
+#pragma once
+
+#include "opentelemetry/common/timestamp.h"
+
+OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
+namespace trace
+{
+
+enum class SpanKind
+{
+  kInternal,
+  kServer,
+  kClient,
+  kProducer,
+  kConsumer,
+};
+
+// The key identifies the active span in the current context.
+constexpr char kSpanKey[] = "active_span";
+
+// StatusCode - Represents the canonical set of status codes of a finished Span.
+enum class StatusCode
+{
+  kUnset,  // default status
+  kOk,     // Operation has completed successfully.
+  kError   // The operation contains an error
+};
+
+/**
+ * EndSpanOptions provides options to set properties of a Span when it is
+ * ended.
+ */
+struct EndSpanOptions
+{
+  // Optionally sets the end time of a Span.
+  common::SteadyTimestamp end_steady_time;
+};
+
+}  // namespace trace
+OPENTELEMETRY_END_NAMESPACE
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_startoptions.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_startoptions.h
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..688b768bd0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_startoptions.h
@@ -0,0 +1,45 @@
+// Copyright The OpenTelemetry Authors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+
+#pragma once
+
+#include "opentelemetry/context/context.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/span_context.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/span_metadata.h"
+
+OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
+namespace trace
+{
+
+/**
+ * StartSpanOptions provides options to set properties of a Span at the time of
+ * its creation
+ */
+struct StartSpanOptions
+{
+  // Optionally sets the start time of a Span.
+  //
+  // If the start time of a Span is set, timestamps from both the system clock
+  // and steady clock must be provided.
+  //
+  // Timestamps from the steady clock can be used to most accurately measure a
+  // Span's duration, while timestamps from the system clock can be used to most
+  // accurately place a Span's
+  // time point relative to other Spans collected across a distributed system.
+  common::SystemTimestamp start_system_time;
+  common::SteadyTimestamp start_steady_time;
+
+  // Explicitly set the parent of a Span.
+  //
+  // This defaults to an invalid span context. In this case, the Span is
+  // automatically parented to the currently active span.
+  nostd::variant<SpanContext, opentelemetry::context::Context> parent = SpanContext::GetInvalid();
+
+  // TODO:
+  // SpanContext remote_parent;
+  // Links
+  SpanKind kind = SpanKind::kInternal;
+};
+
+}  // namespace trace
+OPENTELEMETRY_END_NAMESPACE
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/tracer.h b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/tracer.h
index 425e085116..b60336a48d 100644
--- a/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/tracer.h
+++ b/api/include/opentelemetry/trace/tracer.h
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 
 #pragma once
 
+#include "opentelemetry/context/context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/shared_ptr.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/string_view.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/unique_ptr.h"
@@ -10,6 +11,7 @@
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/scope.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/span.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/span_context_kv_iterable_view.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/span_startoptions.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/version.h"
 
 #include <chrono>
@@ -17,7 +19,6 @@
 OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
 namespace trace
 {
-
 /**
  * Handles span creation and in-process context propagation.
  *
diff --git a/api/test/trace/propagation/http_text_format_test.cc b/api/test/trace/propagation/http_text_format_test.cc
index 497d716bb9..a815920a83 100644
--- a/api/test/trace/propagation/http_text_format_test.cc
+++ b/api/test/trace/propagation/http_text_format_test.cc
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 
 #include "opentelemetry/context/propagation/global_propagator.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/context/runtime_context.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/propagation/http_trace_context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/scope.h"
 #include "util.h"
@@ -150,7 +151,7 @@ TEST(TextMapPropagatorTest, InvalidIdentitiesAreNotExtracted)
     context::Context ctx1 = context::Context{};
     context::Context ctx2 = format.Extract(carrier, ctx1);
 
-    auto span = trace::propagation::GetSpan(ctx2)->GetContext();
+    auto span = trace::GetSpan(ctx2)->GetContext();
     EXPECT_FALSE(span.IsValid());
   }
 }
diff --git a/api/test/trace/propagation/jaeger_propagation_test.cc b/api/test/trace/propagation/jaeger_propagation_test.cc
index a0e0ade270..c337617383 100644
--- a/api/test/trace/propagation/jaeger_propagation_test.cc
+++ b/api/test/trace/propagation/jaeger_propagation_test.cc
@@ -98,7 +98,7 @@ TEST(JaegerPropagatorTest, ExtractValidSpans)
     context::Context ctx1 = context::Context{};
     context::Context ctx2 = format.Extract(carrier, ctx1);
 
-    auto span = trace::propagation::GetSpan(ctx2)->GetContext();
+    auto span = trace::GetSpan(ctx2)->GetContext();
     EXPECT_TRUE(span.IsValid());
 
     EXPECT_EQ(Hex(span.trace_id()), test_trace.expected_trace_id);
@@ -129,7 +129,7 @@ TEST(JaegerPropagatorTest, ExctractInvalidSpans)
     context::Context ctx1 = context::Context{};
     context::Context ctx2 = format.Extract(carrier, ctx1);
 
-    auto span = trace::propagation::GetSpan(ctx2)->GetContext();
+    auto span = trace::GetSpan(ctx2)->GetContext();
     EXPECT_FALSE(span.IsValid());
   }
 }
diff --git a/api/test/trace/span_benchmark.cc b/api/test/trace/span_benchmark.cc
index a25d8f4a2d..238e8ca8a0 100644
--- a/api/test/trace/span_benchmark.cc
+++ b/api/test/trace/span_benchmark.cc
@@ -2,8 +2,8 @@
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/shared_ptr.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/noop.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail/context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/span_id.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/trace_id.h"
 
@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ void BM_SpanCreationWitContextPropagation(benchmark::State &state)
     auto outer_span_context = SpanContext(trace_id, span_id, trace_api::TraceFlags(), false);
     auto outer_span =
         nostd::shared_ptr<trace_api::Span>(new trace_api::DefaultSpan(outer_span_context));
-    trace_api::propagation::SetSpan(current_ctx, outer_span);
+    trace_api::SetSpan(current_ctx, outer_span);
     auto inner_child = tracer->StartSpan("inner");
     auto scope       = tracer->WithActiveSpan(inner_child);
     {
diff --git a/docs/public/Doxyfile b/docs/public/Doxyfile
index fb34196b71..b5fcb202a6 100644
--- a/docs/public/Doxyfile
+++ b/docs/public/Doxyfile
@@ -848,6 +848,7 @@ EXCLUDE                = ../../api/include/opentelemetry/common/spin_lock_mutex.
                          ../../api/include/opentelemetry/common/kv_properties.h \
                          ../../api/include/opentelemetry/common/string_util.h \
                          ../../api/include/opentelemetry/trace/span_context_kv_iterable_view.h \
+                         ./../api/include/opentelemetry/trace/propagation/detail \
                          ../../api/include/opentelemetry/nostd
 
 # The EXCLUDE_SYMLINKS tag can be used to select whether or not files or
diff --git a/examples/grpc/BUILD b/examples/grpc/BUILD
index 2ac65c226c..7de7049f36 100644
--- a/examples/grpc/BUILD
+++ b/examples/grpc/BUILD
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ cc_library(
 cc_binary(
     name = "client_grpc",
     srcs = [
-        "client.cpp",
+        "client.cc",
     ],
     defines = ["BAZEL_BUILD"],
     deps = [
@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ cc_binary(
 cc_binary(
     name = "server_grpc",
     srcs = [
-        "server.cpp",
+        "server.cc",
     ],
     defines = ["BAZEL_BUILD"],
     deps = [
diff --git a/examples/grpc/CMakeLists.txt b/examples/grpc/CMakeLists.txt
index 94d8a11129..3a90f57f71 100644
--- a/examples/grpc/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/examples/grpc/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ else()
 endif()
 
 foreach(_target client server)
-  add_executable(${_target} "${_target}.cpp")
+  add_executable(${_target} "${_target}.cc")
   target_link_libraries(
     ${_target} example_grpc_proto protobuf::libprotobuf gRPC::grpc++
     opentelemetry_trace opentelemetry_exporter_ostream_span)
diff --git a/examples/grpc/client.cpp b/examples/grpc/client.cc
similarity index 80%
rename from examples/grpc/client.cpp
rename to examples/grpc/client.cc
index fc170a7c5b..21149c1958 100644
--- a/examples/grpc/client.cpp
+++ b/examples/grpc/client.cc
@@ -3,16 +3,16 @@
 // modern compilers are unaffected.
 #include <grpcpp/grpcpp.h>
 #ifdef BAZEL_BUILD
-#include "examples/grpc/protos/messages.grpc.pb.h"
+#  include "examples/grpc/protos/messages.grpc.pb.h"
 #else
-#include "messages.grpc.pb.h"
+#  include "messages.grpc.pb.h"
 #endif
 
-#include "opentelemetry/trace/semantic_conventions.h"
-#include "tracer_common.h"
 #include <iostream>
 #include <memory>
 #include <string>
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/experimental_semantic_conventions.h"
+#include "tracer_common.h"
 
 using grpc::Channel;
 using grpc::ClientContext;
@@ -23,7 +23,6 @@ using grpc_example::Greeter;
 using grpc_example::GreetRequest;
 using grpc_example::GreetResponse;
 
-
 namespace
 {
 
@@ -45,13 +44,14 @@ class GreeterClient
     options.kind = opentelemetry::trace::SpanKind::kClient;
 
     std::string span_name = "GreeterClient/Greet";
-    auto span             = get_tracer("grpc")->StartSpan(span_name,
-                                              {{OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcSystem), "grpc"},
-                                               {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcService), "grpc-example.GreetService"},
-                                               {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcMethod), "Greet"},
-                                               {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrNetPeerIp), ip},
-                                               {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrNetPeerPort), port}},
-                                              options);
+    auto span             = get_tracer("grpc")->StartSpan(
+        span_name,
+        {{OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcSystem), "grpc"},
+         {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcService), "grpc-example.GreetService"},
+         {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcMethod), "Greet"},
+         {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrNetPeerIp), ip},
+         {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrNetPeerPort), port}},
+        options);
 
     auto scope = get_tracer("grpc-client")->WithActiveSpan(span);
 
diff --git a/examples/grpc/server.cpp b/examples/grpc/server.cc
similarity index 77%
rename from examples/grpc/server.cpp
rename to examples/grpc/server.cc
index b22ad2a6ca..c5ee379baf 100644
--- a/examples/grpc/server.cpp
+++ b/examples/grpc/server.cc
@@ -1,11 +1,13 @@
 #ifdef BAZEL_BUILD
-#include "examples/grpc/protos/messages.grpc.pb.h"
+#  include "examples/grpc/protos/messages.grpc.pb.h"
 #else
-#include "messages.grpc.pb.h"
+#  include "messages.grpc.pb.h"
 #endif
-#include "tracer_common.h"
+
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/context.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/experimental_semantic_conventions.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/trace/span_context_kv_iterable_view.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/trace/semantic_conventions.h"
+#include "tracer_common.h"
 
 #include <grpcpp/grpcpp.h>
 #include <grpcpp/server.h>
@@ -14,10 +16,10 @@
 
 #include <chrono>
 #include <fstream>
+#include <map>
 #include <sstream>
 #include <string>
 #include <thread>
-#include <map>
 
 using grpc::Server;
 using grpc::ServerBuilder;
@@ -29,7 +31,7 @@ using grpc_example::Greeter;
 using grpc_example::GreetRequest;
 using grpc_example::GreetResponse;
 
-using Span = opentelemetry::trace::Span;
+using Span        = opentelemetry::trace::Span;
 using SpanContext = opentelemetry::trace::SpanContext;
 using namespace opentelemetry::trace;
 
@@ -42,7 +44,8 @@ class GreeterServer final : public Greeter::Service
                const GreetRequest *request,
                GreetResponse *response) override
   {
-    for(  auto elem: context->client_metadata()) {
+    for (auto elem : context->client_metadata())
+    {
       std::cout << "ELEM: " << elem.first << " " << elem.second << "\n";
     }
 
@@ -56,16 +59,16 @@ class GreeterServer final : public Greeter::Service
     auto prop = opentelemetry::context::propagation::GlobalTextMapPropagator::GetGlobalPropagator();
     auto current_ctx = opentelemetry::context::RuntimeContext::GetCurrent();
     auto new_context = prop->Extract(carrier, current_ctx);
-    options.parent   = opentelemetry::trace::propagation::GetSpan(new_context)->GetContext();
+    options.parent   = opentelemetry::trace::GetSpan(new_context)->GetContext();
 
     std::string span_name = "GreeterService/Greet";
-    auto span             = get_tracer("grpc")
-                    ->StartSpan(span_name,
-                                {{OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcSystem), "grpc"},
-                                 {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcService), "GreeterService"},
-                                 {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcMethod), "Greet"},
-                                 {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcGrpcStatusCode), 0}},
-                                options);
+    auto span =
+        get_tracer("grpc")->StartSpan(span_name,
+                                      {{OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcSystem), "grpc"},
+                                       {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcService), "GreeterService"},
+                                       {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcMethod), "Greet"},
+                                       {OTEL_CPP_GET_ATTR(AttrRpcGrpcStatusCode), 0}},
+                                      options);
     auto scope = get_tracer("grpc")->WithActiveSpan(span);
 
     // Fetch and parse whatever HTTP headers we can from the gRPC request.
diff --git a/examples/http/client.cc b/examples/http/client.cc
index 77694815a1..99874fa55c 100644
--- a/examples/http/client.cc
+++ b/examples/http/client.cc
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 
 #include "opentelemetry/ext/http/client/http_client_factory.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/ext/http/common/url_parser.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/trace/semantic_conventions.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/experimental_semantic_conventions.h"
 #include "tracer_common.h"
 
 namespace
diff --git a/examples/http/server.cc b/examples/http/server.cc
index 6c1c9ce713..fd509c8b67 100644
--- a/examples/http/server.cc
+++ b/examples/http/server.cc
@@ -2,7 +2,8 @@
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 
 #include "server.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/trace/semantic_conventions.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/context.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/experimental_semantic_conventions.h"
 #include "tracer_common.h"
 
 #include <iostream>
@@ -12,7 +13,7 @@ namespace
 {
 
 using namespace opentelemetry::trace;
-;
+
 uint16_t server_port              = 8800;
 constexpr const char *server_name = "localhost";
 
@@ -32,7 +33,7 @@ class RequestHandler : public HTTP_SERVER_NS::HttpRequestCallback
     auto prop = opentelemetry::context::propagation::GlobalTextMapPropagator::GetGlobalPropagator();
     auto current_ctx = opentelemetry::context::RuntimeContext::GetCurrent();
     auto new_context = prop->Extract(carrier, current_ctx);
-    options.parent   = opentelemetry::trace::propagation::GetSpan(new_context)->GetContext();
+    options.parent   = GetSpan(new_context)->GetContext();
 
     // start span with parent context extracted from http header
     auto span = get_tracer("http-server")
diff --git a/exporters/etw/include/opentelemetry/exporters/etw/etw_tracer.h b/exporters/etw/include/opentelemetry/exporters/etw/etw_tracer.h
index 2806bfa593..47e6fa79c4 100644
--- a/exporters/etw/include/opentelemetry/exporters/etw/etw_tracer.h
+++ b/exporters/etw/include/opentelemetry/exporters/etw/etw_tracer.h
@@ -569,8 +569,15 @@ class Tracer : public trace::Tracer
     // Parent Context:
     // - either use current span
     // - or attach to parent SpanContext specified in options
-    const auto parentContext =
-        (options.parent.IsValid()) ? options.parent : GetCurrentSpan()->GetContext();
+    trace::SpanContext parentContext = GetCurrentSpan()->GetContext();
+    if (nostd::holds_alternative<trace::SpanContext>(options.parent))
+    {
+      auto span_context = nostd::get<trace::SpanContext>(options.parent);
+      if (span_context.IsValid())
+      {
+        parentContext = span_context;
+      }
+    }
 
     // Populate Etw.RelatedActivityId at envelope level if enabled
     GUID RelatedActivityId;
@@ -1089,8 +1096,9 @@ class TracerProvider : public trace::TracerProvider
     // identifier, see EventActivityIdControl.
     GetOption(options, "enableActivityId", config_.enableActivityId, false);
 
-    // Map parent `SpanId` to RelatedActivityId -  Activity identifier from the previous component.
-    // Use this parameter to link your component's events to the previous component's events.
+    // Map parent `SpanId` to RelatedActivityId -  Activity identifier from the previous
+    // component. Use this parameter to link your component's events to the previous component's
+    // events.
     GetOption(options, "enableRelatedActivityId", config_.enableRelatedActivityId, false);
 
     // When a new Span is started, the current span automatically becomes its parent.
diff --git a/exporters/jaeger/src/recordable.cc b/exporters/jaeger/src/recordable.cc
index f0e455923d..0e78ee3d71 100644
--- a/exporters/jaeger/src/recordable.cc
+++ b/exporters/jaeger/src/recordable.cc
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 
 #include "opentelemetry/exporters/jaeger/recordable.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/semantic_conventions.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/experimental_semantic_conventions.h"
 
 OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
 namespace exporter
diff --git a/exporters/otlp/README.md b/exporters/otlp/README.md
index 8c6efe90d3..7bb5fd951b 100644
--- a/exporters/otlp/README.md
+++ b/exporters/otlp/README.md
@@ -42,11 +42,28 @@ options.url = "localhost:12345";
 auto exporter = std::unique_ptr<sdktrace::SpanExporter>(new otlp::OtlpHttpExporter(options));
 ```
 
-### Configuration options
+### Configuration options ( OTLP GRPC Exporter )
 
-| Option       | Default          |
-| ------------ |----------------- |
-| `endpoint`   | `localhost:4317` |
+| Option       | Env Variable |Default          |   Description  |
+| ------------ |---------------|------------ |----------------|
+| `endpoint` | `OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT` | `http://localhost:4317`| The OTLP GRPC endpoint to connect to |
+|              |   `OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_ENDPOINT`  |  | |
+| `use_ssl_credentials` | `OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_SSL_ENABLE`| `false` | Whether the endpoint is SSL enabled |
+|    | `OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_SSL_ENABLE` | | |
+| `ssl_credentials_cacert_path`  |  `OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_CERTIFICATE` | `""`  | SSL Certificate file path |
+|    | `OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_CERTIFICATE` | | |
+| `ssl_credentials_cacert_as_string` | `OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_CERTIFICATE_STRING` | `""`  |   SSL Certifcate as in-memory string |
+|  | `OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_CERTIFICATE_STRING` | | | |
+
+### Configuration options ( OTLP HTTP Exporter )
+
+| Option       | Env Variable |Default          | Description |
+| ------------ |-----|------------ |------|
+| `url`   | n/a    | `http://localhost:4317/v1/traces`  | The OTLP HTTP endpoint to connect to |
+| `content_type` | n/a  | `application/json`  |   Data format used - JSON or Binary |
+| `json_bytes_mapping`  |  n/a | `JsonBytesMappingKind::kHexId` | Encoding used for trace_id and span_id |
+| `use_json_name` | n/a | `false`  | Whether to use json name of protobuf field to set the key of json |
+| `timeout`  | n/a  | `30000 ms` | http timeout |
 
 ## Example
 
diff --git a/exporters/otlp/include/opentelemetry/exporters/otlp/otlp_grpc_exporter.h b/exporters/otlp/include/opentelemetry/exporters/otlp/otlp_grpc_exporter.h
index 31ad058c6d..af3c97b4ab 100644
--- a/exporters/otlp/include/opentelemetry/exporters/otlp/otlp_grpc_exporter.h
+++ b/exporters/otlp/include/opentelemetry/exporters/otlp/otlp_grpc_exporter.h
@@ -19,19 +19,30 @@ namespace exporter
 namespace otlp
 {
 
-inline const std::string GetOtlpGrpcDefaultEndpoint()
+inline const std::string GetOtlpDefaultEndpoint()
 {
-  constexpr char kOtlpGrpcEndpointEnv[]     = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_ENDPOINT";
-  constexpr char kOtlpGrpcEndpointDefault[] = "localhost:4317";
+  constexpr char kOtlpTracesEndpointEnv[] = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_ENDPOINT";
+  constexpr char kOtlpEndpointEnv[]       = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT";
+  constexpr char kOtlpEndpointDefault[]   = "http://localhost:4317";
 
-  auto endpoint = opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpGrpcEndpointEnv);
-  return endpoint.size() ? endpoint : kOtlpGrpcEndpointDefault;
+  auto endpoint = opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpTracesEndpointEnv);
+  if (endpoint.size() == 0)
+  {
+    endpoint = opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpEndpointEnv);
+  }
+  return endpoint.size() ? endpoint : kOtlpEndpointDefault;
 }
 
-inline const bool GetOtlpGrpcDefaultIsSslEnable()
+inline const bool GetOtlpDefaultIsSslEnable()
 {
-  constexpr char kOtlpGrpcIsSslEnableEnv[] = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_SSL_ENABLE";
-  auto ssl_enable = opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpGrpcIsSslEnableEnv);
+  constexpr char kOtlpTracesIsSslEnableEnv[] = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_SSL_ENABLE";
+  constexpr char kOtlpIsSslEnableEnv[]       = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_SSL_ENABLE";
+
+  auto ssl_enable = opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpTracesIsSslEnableEnv);
+  if (ssl_enable.size() == 0)
+  {
+    ssl_enable = opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpIsSslEnableEnv);
+  }
   if (ssl_enable == "True" || ssl_enable == "TRUE" || ssl_enable == "true" || ssl_enable == "1")
   {
     return true;
@@ -39,10 +50,29 @@ inline const bool GetOtlpGrpcDefaultIsSslEnable()
   return false;
 }
 
-inline const std::string GetOtlpGrpcDefaultSslCertificate()
+inline const std::string GetOtlpDefaultSslCertificatePath()
+{
+  constexpr char kOtlpTracesSslCertificate[] = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_CERTIFICATE";
+  constexpr char kOtlpSslCertificate[]       = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_CERTIFICATE ";
+  auto ssl_cert_path =
+      opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpTracesSslCertificate);
+  if (ssl_cert_path.size() == 0)
+  {
+    ssl_cert_path = opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpSslCertificate);
+  }
+  return ssl_cert_path.size() ? ssl_cert_path : "";
+}
+
+inline const std::string GetOtlpDefaultSslCertificateString()
 {
-  constexpr char kOtlpGrpcSslCertificate[] = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_SSL_CERTIFICATE";
-  auto ssl_cert = opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpGrpcSslCertificate);
+  constexpr char kOtlpTracesSslCertificateString[] = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_CERTIFICATE_STRING";
+  constexpr char kOtlpSslCertificateString[] = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_CERTIFICATE_STRING ";
+  auto ssl_cert =
+      opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpTracesSslCertificateString);
+  if (ssl_cert.size() == 0)
+  {
+    ssl_cert = opentelemetry::sdk::common::GetEnvironmentVariable(kOtlpSslCertificateString);
+  }
   return ssl_cert.size() ? ssl_cert : "";
 }
 
@@ -52,15 +82,15 @@ inline const std::string GetOtlpGrpcDefaultSslCertificate()
 struct OtlpGrpcExporterOptions
 {
   // The endpoint to export to. By default the OpenTelemetry Collector's default endpoint.
-  std::string endpoint = GetOtlpGrpcDefaultEndpoint();
+  std::string endpoint = GetOtlpDefaultEndpoint();
   // By default when false, uses grpc::InsecureChannelCredentials(); If true,
   // uses ssl_credentials_cacert_path if non-empty, else uses ssl_credentials_cacert_as_string
-  bool use_ssl_credentials = GetOtlpGrpcDefaultIsSslEnable();
+  bool use_ssl_credentials = GetOtlpDefaultIsSslEnable();
   // ssl_credentials_cacert_path specifies path to .pem file to be used for SSL encryption.
-  std::string ssl_credentials_cacert_path = "";
+  std::string ssl_credentials_cacert_path = GetOtlpDefaultSslCertificatePath();
   // ssl_credentials_cacert_as_string in-memory string representation of .pem file to be used for
   // SSL encryption.
-  std::string ssl_credentials_cacert_as_string = GetOtlpGrpcDefaultSslCertificate();
+  std::string ssl_credentials_cacert_as_string = GetOtlpDefaultSslCertificateString();
 };
 
 /**
diff --git a/exporters/otlp/src/otlp_grpc_exporter.cc b/exporters/otlp/src/otlp_grpc_exporter.cc
index 2d522ca3cd..dec65fadda 100644
--- a/exporters/otlp/src/otlp_grpc_exporter.cc
+++ b/exporters/otlp/src/otlp_grpc_exporter.cc
@@ -59,6 +59,7 @@ std::unique_ptr<proto::collector::trace::v1::TraceService::Stub> MakeServiceStub
     const OtlpGrpcExporterOptions &options)
 {
   std::shared_ptr<grpc::Channel> channel;
+
   if (options.use_ssl_credentials)
   {
     grpc::SslCredentialsOptions ssl_opts;
diff --git a/exporters/otlp/test/otlp_grpc_exporter_test.cc b/exporters/otlp/test/otlp_grpc_exporter_test.cc
index d2b999382a..23c27242be 100644
--- a/exporters/otlp/test/otlp_grpc_exporter_test.cc
+++ b/exporters/otlp/test/otlp_grpc_exporter_test.cc
@@ -139,12 +139,12 @@ TEST_F(OtlpGrpcExporterTestPeer, ConfigSslCredentialsTest)
 TEST_F(OtlpGrpcExporterTestPeer, ConfigFromEnv)
 {
   const std::string cacert_str = "--begin and end fake cert--";
-  const std::string cacert_env = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_SSL_CERTIFICATE=" + cacert_str;
+  const std::string cacert_env = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_CERTIFICATE_STRING=" + cacert_str;
   putenv(const_cast<char *>(cacert_env.data()));
-  char ssl_enable_env[] = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_SSL_ENABLE=True";
+  char ssl_enable_env[] = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_SSL_ENABLE=True";
   putenv(ssl_enable_env);
   const std::string endpoint     = "http://localhost:9999";
-  const std::string endpoint_env = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_ENDPOINT=" + endpoint;
+  const std::string endpoint_env = "OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT=" + endpoint;
   putenv(const_cast<char *>(endpoint_env.data()));
 
   std::unique_ptr<OtlpGrpcExporter> exporter(new OtlpGrpcExporter());
@@ -152,14 +152,14 @@ TEST_F(OtlpGrpcExporterTestPeer, ConfigFromEnv)
   EXPECT_EQ(GetOptions(exporter).use_ssl_credentials, true);
   EXPECT_EQ(GetOptions(exporter).endpoint, endpoint);
 #    if defined(_MSC_VER)
-  putenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_ENDPOINT=");
-  putenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_SSL_CERTIFICATE=");
-  putenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_SSL_ENABLE=");
+  putenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT=");
+  putenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_CERTIFICATE_STRING=");
+  putenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_SSL_ENABLE=");
 
 #    else
-  unsetenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_ENDPOINT");
-  unsetenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_SSL_CERTIFICATE");
-  unsetenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_GRPC_SSL_ENABLE");
+  unsetenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT");
+  unsetenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_CERTIFICATE_STRING");
+  unsetenv("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_SSL_ENABLE");
 
 #    endif
 }
diff --git a/exporters/otlp/test/otlp_http_exporter_test.cc b/exporters/otlp/test/otlp_http_exporter_test.cc
index 2dfd32ce05..daab046439 100644
--- a/exporters/otlp/test/otlp_http_exporter_test.cc
+++ b/exporters/otlp/test/otlp_http_exporter_test.cc
@@ -222,7 +222,9 @@ TEST_F(OtlpHttpExporterTestPeer, ExportJsonIntegrationTest)
     child_span->End();
     parent_span->End();
 
-    child_span_opts.parent.trace_id().ToLowerBase16(MakeSpan(trace_id_hex));
+    nostd::get<opentelemetry::trace::SpanContext>(child_span_opts.parent)
+        .trace_id()
+        .ToLowerBase16(MakeSpan(trace_id_hex));
     report_trace_id.assign(trace_id_hex, sizeof(trace_id_hex));
   }
 
@@ -282,7 +284,9 @@ TEST_F(OtlpHttpExporterTestPeer, ExportBinaryIntegrationTest)
     child_span->End();
     parent_span->End();
 
-    child_span_opts.parent.trace_id().CopyBytesTo(MakeSpan(trace_id_binary));
+    nostd::get<opentelemetry::trace::SpanContext>(child_span_opts.parent)
+        .trace_id()
+        .CopyBytesTo(MakeSpan(trace_id_binary));
     report_trace_id.assign(reinterpret_cast<char *>(trace_id_binary), sizeof(trace_id_binary));
   }
 
diff --git a/exporters/zipkin/src/recordable.cc b/exporters/zipkin/src/recordable.cc
index 327fc317ca..e9da830348 100644
--- a/exporters/zipkin/src/recordable.cc
+++ b/exporters/zipkin/src/recordable.cc
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 
 #include "opentelemetry/exporters/zipkin/recordable.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/semantic_conventions.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/experimental_semantic_conventions.h"
 
 #include <map>
 #include <string>
diff --git a/sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/common/env_variables.h b/sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/common/env_variables.h
index 63d16d12b5..c989b8921d 100644
--- a/sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/common/env_variables.h
+++ b/sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/common/env_variables.h
@@ -15,9 +15,8 @@ namespace common
 // Returns the env variable set.
 inline const std::string GetEnvironmentVariable(const char *env_var_name)
 {
+#if !defined(NO_GETENV)
   const char *endpoint_from_env = nullptr;
-
-#ifndef NO_GETENV
 #  if defined(_MSC_VER)
   // avoid calling std::getenv which is deprecated in MSVC.
   size_t required_size = 0;
@@ -31,10 +30,12 @@ inline const std::string GetEnvironmentVariable(const char *env_var_name)
   }
 #  else
   endpoint_from_env = std::getenv(env_var_name);
-#  endif
-#endif
-  return endpoint_from_env == nullptr ? std::string() : endpoint_from_env;
+#  endif  // defined(_MSC_VER)
+  return endpoint_from_env == nullptr ? std::string{} : std::string{endpoint_from_env};
+#else
+  return std::string{};
+#endif  // !defined(NO_GETENV)
 }
 }  // namespace common
 }  // namespace sdk
-OPENTELEMETRY_END_NAMESPACE
\ No newline at end of file
+OPENTELEMETRY_END_NAMESPACE
diff --git a/sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/resource/semantic_conventions.h b/sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/resource/experimental_semantic_conventions.h
similarity index 94%
rename from sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/resource/semantic_conventions.h
rename to sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/resource/experimental_semantic_conventions.h
index 693b3e108a..bb7941ff1b 100644
--- a/sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/resource/semantic_conventions.h
+++ b/sdk/include/opentelemetry/sdk/resource/experimental_semantic_conventions.h
@@ -1,3 +1,12 @@
+// Copyright The OpenTelemetry Authors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+
+// NOTE:
+// This implementation is based on the experimental specs for resource semantic convention as
+// defined here:
+// https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-specification/tree/v1.0.0/specification/resource/semantic_conventions
+// and MAY will change in future.
+
 #pragma once
 
 #include <type_traits>
diff --git a/sdk/src/resource/resource.cc b/sdk/src/resource/resource.cc
index bdbbc91b13..930e8e6640 100644
--- a/sdk/src/resource/resource.cc
+++ b/sdk/src/resource/resource.cc
@@ -3,8 +3,8 @@
 
 #include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/resource.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/span.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/experimental_semantic_conventions.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/resource_detector.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/semantic_conventions.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/version.h"
 
 OPENTELEMETRY_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
diff --git a/sdk/src/trace/tracer.cc b/sdk/src/trace/tracer.cc
index 977722d0ca..be5e5f7d96 100644
--- a/sdk/src/trace/tracer.cc
+++ b/sdk/src/trace/tracer.cc
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
 #include "opentelemetry/context/runtime_context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/shared_ptr.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/sdk/common/atomic_shared_ptr.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/context.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/version.h"
 #include "src/trace/span.h"
 
@@ -27,8 +28,25 @@ nostd::shared_ptr<trace_api::Span> Tracer::StartSpan(
     const trace_api::SpanContextKeyValueIterable &links,
     const trace_api::StartSpanOptions &options) noexcept
 {
-  trace_api::SpanContext parent_context =
-      options.parent.IsValid() ? options.parent : GetCurrentSpan()->GetContext();
+  trace_api::SpanContext parent_context = GetCurrentSpan()->GetContext();
+  if (nostd::holds_alternative<trace_api::SpanContext>(options.parent))
+  {
+    auto span_context = nostd::get<trace_api::SpanContext>(options.parent);
+    if (span_context.IsValid())
+    {
+      parent_context = span_context;
+    }
+  }
+  else if (nostd::holds_alternative<context::Context>(options.parent))
+  {
+    auto context = nostd::get<context::Context>(options.parent);
+    // fetch span context from parent span stored in the context
+    auto span_context = opentelemetry::trace::GetSpan(context)->GetContext();
+    if (span_context.IsValid())
+    {
+      parent_context = span_context;
+    }
+  }
 
   trace_api::TraceId trace_id;
   trace_api::SpanId span_id = GetIdGenerator().GenerateSpanId();
diff --git a/sdk/test/resource/resource_test.cc b/sdk/test/resource/resource_test.cc
index f426c23fe3..7f00ddaf48 100644
--- a/sdk/test/resource/resource_test.cc
+++ b/sdk/test/resource/resource_test.cc
@@ -5,8 +5,8 @@
 #include "opentelemetry/common/key_value_iterable_view.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/nostd/string_view.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/sdk/common/attribute_utils.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/experimental_semantic_conventions.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/resource_detector.h"
-#include "opentelemetry/sdk/resource/semantic_conventions.h"
 
 #include <cstdlib>
 #include <string>
diff --git a/sdk/test/trace/tracer_test.cc b/sdk/test/trace/tracer_test.cc
index 92659a8a5a..94e57a4cd7 100644
--- a/sdk/test/trace/tracer_test.cc
+++ b/sdk/test/trace/tracer_test.cc
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 #include "opentelemetry/sdk/trace/samplers/parent.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/sdk/trace/simple_processor.h"
 #include "opentelemetry/sdk/trace/span_data.h"
+#include "opentelemetry/trace/context.h"
 
 #include <gtest/gtest.h>
 
@@ -621,6 +622,44 @@ TEST(Tracer, ExpectParent)
   EXPECT_EQ(spandata_second->GetSpanId(), spandata_third->GetParentSpanId());
 }
 
+TEST(Tracer, ExpectParentAsContext)
+{
+  std::unique_ptr<InMemorySpanExporter> exporter(new InMemorySpanExporter());
+  std::shared_ptr<InMemorySpanData> span_data = exporter->GetData();
+  auto tracer                                 = initTracer(std::move(exporter));
+  auto spans                                  = span_data.get()->GetSpans();
+
+  ASSERT_EQ(0, spans.size());
+
+  auto span_first = tracer->StartSpan("span 1");
+
+  opentelemetry::context::Context c1;
+  auto c2 = trace_api::SetSpan(c1, span_first);
+  trace_api::StartSpanOptions options;
+  options.parent   = c2;
+  auto span_second = tracer->StartSpan("span 2", options);
+
+  auto c3         = trace_api::SetSpan(c2, span_second);
+  options.parent  = c3;
+  auto span_third = tracer->StartSpan("span 3", options);
+
+  span_third->End();
+  span_second->End();
+  span_first->End();
+
+  spans = span_data->GetSpans();
+  ASSERT_EQ(3, spans.size());
+  auto spandata_first  = std::move(spans.at(2));
+  auto spandata_second = std::move(spans.at(1));
+  auto spandata_third  = std::move(spans.at(0));
+  EXPECT_EQ("span 1", spandata_first->GetName());
+  EXPECT_EQ("span 2", spandata_second->GetName());
+  EXPECT_EQ("span 3", spandata_third->GetName());
+
+  EXPECT_EQ(spandata_first->GetSpanId(), spandata_second->GetParentSpanId());
+  EXPECT_EQ(spandata_second->GetSpanId(), spandata_third->GetParentSpanId());
+}
+
 TEST(Tracer, ValidTraceIdToSampler)
 {
   std::unique_ptr<InMemorySpanExporter> exporter(new InMemorySpanExporter());