[council] Motion on Individual Users in the GNSO.

[Alan Greenberg <alan.greenberg@xxxxxxxxx>]

At 29/01/2009 05:42 PM, Glen de Saint Géry wrote:
> Motion 4
> Motion re: Individual Users in the GNSO
> =======================================
> Motion proposed by Chuck Gomes seconded by Bill 
> Drake with friendly amendments by Alan Greenberg
> Whereas:
>    * On 11 December 2008, the ICANN Board 
> approved Resolution 2008-12-11-02 seeking a 
> recommendation on how to incorporate the 
> legitimate interests of individual Internet 
> users in the GNSO in constructive yet 
> non-duplicative ways and requesting that the 
> recommendation should be submitted no later 
> than 24 January 2009 for consideration by the Board.
>    * In an email message to the GNSO Council 
> list dated 20 January 2009, the ICANN Vice 
> President, Policy Development clarified that 
> the11 December Resolution is an effort to help 
> the Board identify a strategic solution that 
> balances ALAC/At-Large and GNSO opportunities 
> for all user and registrant stakeholders.
>    * The Working Group on GNSO Council 
> Restructuring Report sent to the ICANN Board of 
> Directors on 25 July 2008 recommended that the 
> Non-Contracted Party/User House would be open 
> to membership of all interested parties that 
> use or provide services for the Internet, with 
> the obvious exclusion of the contracted parties 
> and should explicitly not be restricted to 
> domain registrants as recommended by the BGC 
> and that such recommendation was made in 
> response to the suggestion of the ALAC Liaison to the Council.
>    * The GNSO Council Chair previously 
> contacted the ALAC Chair and the GNSO ALAC Liaison to discuss this topic.
>    * The potential members of the two GNSO 
> Council Non-Contracted Party Stakeholder Groups 
> have been tasked with submitting proposed 
> Stakeholder Group Charters to the ICANN Board 
> prior to the Board meeting on 6 March 2009.
> Resolve:
>    * The Council requests the GNSO Council ALAC 
> Liaison in consultation with the ALAC Chair to:
>        * Determine whether the ALAC and 
> At-Large community have any concerns with 
> regard to the recommendation that membership in 
> the Non-Contracted Party/User House would be 
> open to individual Internet users in addition 
> to domain name registrants and, if so, to 
> communicate those concerns to the GNSO Council as soon as practical
The ALAC and At-Large continue to support having 
users (which includes registrants) involved in 
the Non-contracted Party/User House of the GNSO. 
Our initial reply to the Board is appended below.
>    * Determine whether the ALAC and At-Large 
> community would like the GNSO to identify some 
> user representatives, especially individual 
> users, who would be willing to work with the 
> ALAC and At-Large community to develop a 
> recommendation regarding the Board?s request 
> that could be forwarded to the appropriate 
> groups for their consideration in developing a 
> stakeholder group charter and to the Board for 
> action on GNSO improvement recommendations.
We are most certainly interested. As noted in our 
initial response to the Board, we are committed 
to responding to the Board by February 20. Our 
intent is to try to reach some common ground with 
the GNSO-names individuals. To the extent that we 
do or do not meet this goal, our response to the Board will note it.
> If in either case the ALAC or At-large community 
> do not accept this proposal the GNSO council may reconsider the issue.
>    * Provide weekly progress reports to the 
> Council list regarding the above.
>    * The Council directs the Council Chair to:
>        * Apologize to the Board that it failed 
> to meet the Board established deadline of 24 January
>        * Inform the Board that the GNSO:
>            * Is awaiting information from the ALAC.
>            * Is willing in cooperation with 
> users to identify user representatives, 
> especially individual users, who would be 
> willing to work with the ALAC and At-Large 
> community to develop a recommendation.
>            * Will promptly consider next steps 
> and respond to the Board as quickly as possible 
> after requested information is received from 
> the ALAC as well any recommendation that may be 
> developed by the ALAC and At-Large community.
> The motion passed unanimously by voice vote

*Letter from the Chair of the ALAC to the Chair of the Board of ICANN*

I write to you today in connection with ICANN Board Resolution 2008-12-11-02.

Whilst the resolution asked that a recommendation 
on the modalities for including Individual 
Internet users in the GNSO should be presented to 
the board by 24^th January, the various parties 
have been unable to conclude work in the 
timeframe provided. Considering that much of the 
available time between 11^th December and 24^th 
January was over the festive season, I'm sure you 
and the other board members will understand that 
whilst we are working on the question, as 
volunteers during a major family holiday we have 
had less time for this issue than would otherwise be the case.
With respect to At-Large we are also very busy 
with new gTLDs, the ALAC Review, and the 
organisation of the At-Large Summit; the Board's 
request really couldn't have come at a worse time.
Nevertheless we are working on the question. I 
have had discussions with Avri Doria, GNSO 
Council Chair, on how to convene the various 
interested parties and I compliment her efforts 
to encourage constructive work on this question. 
Unfortunately the modalities for joint work by 
all interested parties has in itself proven 
controversial enough that no meeting of that kind 
has taken place yet, it does appear that things 
are moving in a positive direction and that 
discussions of a suitably representative nature will be forthcoming.
In the meantime, At-Large has convened a 
regionally-balanced ad-hoc working group and we 
have committed to having a considered response 
not later than 20^th February, irrespective of 
what efforts involving broader interests is able to produce.
What we can say to you at this point is the following:

   * At-Large and ALAC does not believe that the answer to individual
     Internet user participation in the GNSO requires -- or is even
     well-served -- by simply inserting the At-Large community's
     structures into the Non-Commercial Stakeholder Group. In fact, we
     believe that would be both confusing to the community and quite
     counterproductive.
   * The concept of opening the GNSO to "users" instead of
     "registrants" was included in the Report of the Working Group on
     GNSO Council Restructuring at the instigation of the ALAC. We
     remain convinced that the GNSO must include meaningful
     participation for those speaking on behalf of individual Internet
     users within both the commercial and non-commercial stakeholder
     groups. But to be clear, our definition of "user" includes
     registrants.
   * "meaningful participation" in this context means that those
     engaged on behalf of individual Internet users must feel that
     their voices are influential and effective and equal to the voices
     of other groups in their Stakeholder Group. Without this, there is
     no chance that new players can be drawn into the GNSO community.
   * We have seen the draft NCUC petition and charter for the NCSG,
     held a meeting with members of the NCUC during the ICANN Cairo
     meeting to discuss it and we continue to evaluate the proposal.
     Without prejudice to that proposal, we believe that the ultimate
     structure of the NCSG must provide a place where all voices and
     views can be heard on the questions of the day, and where the
     structures of the NCSG ensure that no voice is disenfranchised and
     in particular that individual personalities are unable to impose
     their views on others. Just as "takeover" is an issue within ICANN
     as a whole, it is also an issue within a SG.

Whilst I know that the above is not all that you 
hoped to receive from us this month, I hope that 
you will find it useful and we look forward to 
concluding our work on this question, as soon as possible.
Of course if you or your colleagues require 
clarification on any of the above, I,  our ALAC 
Executive, and the Working Group established for 
this topic, remain at your service.

Kindest regards,

(Signed on behalf the ALAC ad-hoc WG on NCSG : 
GNSO Improvements Implementation)
Cheryl Langdon-Orr
ALAC Chair 2007-2009