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News & Links - Current Events

The goal of this page is to list the most recent three months of developments, significant activities, and relevant GNSO Council and Board decisions that impact the GNSO Improvements process. Please also consult Community Reference > Public Notices

October 2009

The Structural Improvements Committee (SIC) hosted a public meeting in Seoul on 28 October 2009 to update Board members on the progress of GNSO Improvements. The slide presentation was delivered by Rob Hoggarth, Sr. Policy Director.

September 2009:

In response to community and Board member questions and comments concerning its original New Constituency application (submitted 28 Feb 2009), the Consumers Constituency has revised its "Notice of Intent to Form" (NOIF) petition as of 15 Sep 2009, which can be accessed at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/newco-process-en.htm. In addition, to make its original Constituency Charter provisions consistent with recent Board decisions pertaining to Stakeholder Groups (30 July 2009), particularly the NCSG Transitional Charter, the petitioners revised their proposed Charter document (also viewable at the above link).

August 2009:

ICANN Bylaws Amendments, related to GNSO Restructuring, were approved by the Board on 27 August (http://www.icann.org/en/minutes/prelim-report-27aug09.htm) after a second public comment period (referred to as V2) that closed on 24 August. The following documents are being published to assist the community in identifying all changes made between V2 and the final approved version, referenced as V3.

June 2009:

ICANN Meeting, Sydney:

A formal New Constituency Petition and Charter, submitted by the City Top-Level Domain Constituency (CTLDC), can be found at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/newco-process-en.htm. A Public Comment Forum will also open, effective 5 June 2009 through 10 July 2009.

May 2009:

On 24 April, David Maher, on behalf of the Registry Constituency, provided an updated Registry Stakeholder Group Charter to the ICANN Board. It can be viewed at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/stakeholder-process-en.htm. A Public Forum Comment is also open effective 11 May 2009 through 10 June 2009.

April 2009:

A formal New Constituency Petition and Charter, submitted by the proposed IDNgTLD Constituency, can be found at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/newco-process-en.htm. A Public Comment Forum is also open, effective 21 April 2009 through 20 May 2009.

A formal New Constituency Petition and Charter, submitted by the Consumers Constituency, can be found at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/newco-process-en.htm. A Public Comment Forum is also open, effective 15 April 2009 through 14 May 2009.

A new "Notice of Intent to Form a New Constituency" (NOIF) has been received by the proposed IDNTLD Constituency and can be viewed at this link: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/newco-process-en.htm

February 2009:

Update of GNSO Improvements presented by Denise Michel to the community on 6 March 2009, Mexico City:

Stakeholder Group Charters, which were due prior to the ICANN Board meeting in Mexico City, can be found at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/stakeholder-process-en.htm

Constituency Charter Reconfirmations, due prior to the ICANN Board meeting in Mexico City, can be found at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/renewal-process-en.htm

A formal New Constituency Petition and Charter, submitted by the CyberSafety Constituency, can be found at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/newco-process-en.htm

Two new "Notice of Intent to Form New Constituencies" (NOIF) have been received and are posted at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/newco-process-en.htm

Role of Individual Users within the GNSO in response to 11 December Board Resolution (for Background, see December 2008 entry below)

January 2009:

Existing Constituency Charter Renewals/Recertifications can be found at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/renewal-process-en.htm

New Constituency "Notices of Intent " Forms and New Petitions/Charters can be found at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/newco-process-en.htm

An announcement has been posted on ICANN.org concerning the GNSO Improvements and how you can become involved.

Volunteers are now being accepted to joint Work Teams that will develop GNSO Improvement Implementation plans. To view the actual announcement, please click here.

A new Stakeholder Group Petition/Charter Template (Draft #2) was released by Denise Michel on 15 January 2009. The template and transmittal email can be found at: http://gnso.icann.org/en/improvements/stakeholder-process-en.htm

December 2008:

Council Submits Draft Restructuring Plan to Board (5 Dec 2008) [PDF, 61K]

Role of Individual Users in GNSO - Briefing and Action

Explanation: The ICANN Board has requested (see Resolution below) that the community provide a recommendation on or before 24 January 2009 on the appropriate role and representation of individual non-commercial Internet users in the GNSO as well as the composition and organization of the Non-Commercial Stakeholder Group (NCSG). The Board continues to consider this issue and has asked that various stakeholders in the GNSO, ALAC and At-Large groups, and any relevant applicants for new constituencies, work together to structure a recommendation for Board consideration.

Whereas, the Board has received varying recommendations on registrant and user involvement in the GNSO, and the issue of how to incorporate the legitimate interests of individual Internet users in constructive yet non-duplicative ways remains an open issue that affects GNSO restructuring.

Resolved, (2008-12-11-02) the Board requests that members of the GNSO community work with members of the ALAC/At-Large community and representatives of potential new "non-commercial" constituencies to jointly develop a recommendation for the composition and organizational structure of a Non-Commercial Stakeholder Group that does not duplicate the ALAC and its supporting structures, yet ensures that the gTLD interests of individual Internet users (along with the broader non-commercial community) are effectively represented within the GNSO. This recommendation should be submitted no later than 24 January 2009 for consideration by the Board.

November 2008:

GNSO Improvements Session (Cairo), conducted by Denise Michel, Abdeen Room, 8:45-9:45 a.m.

GNSO Improvements Presentation by Chuck Gomes at GNSO Council Open Meeting 5 Nov 2008 (Cairo), Saroya Room

GNSO Improvements: Constituency Survey (Update: survey period closed effective 14 December 2008)

The ICANN Policy Staff, in cooperation with the GNSO Council, is seeking broad based feedback on a number of Board Governance Committee (BGC) recommendations, specifically related to GNSO constituency operations, that were approved by the Board this past summer. To this end, we have developed an online survey instrument designed to collect individual constituency member opinions that will be used to inform the community's discussions concerning how those BGC recommendations might be implemented.

The survey contents, as well as the online system in which it is published (Big Pulse at www.bigpulse.com), have been through two months of design/development and more than three full weeks of staff and community testing.

The survey is planned to run from November 3rd - December 2nd (30 days) taking advantage of the opportunity to stimulate participation at the ICANN meeting in Cairo. (Note: survey input was extended through 14 December 2008)

Staff's goal is to analyze the survey data publish a report in early January, 2009.