[bestbits] [governance] IMPORTANT : Merging IGC with Best Bits

Thu Feb 7 11:47:24 EST 2019

Dear all,

This is just a gentle reminder that the call on next steps is this coming
Monday, 11 February from* 4- 6 PM UTC*. The full details are included in my
previous email and I've updated the etherpad
<https://etherpad.wikimedia.org/p/Bestbitscallfuture> with those planning
to attend.

Looking forward to speaking to you then!

Best
Sheetal.

On Wed, 30 Jan 2019 at 10:07, Sheetal Kumar <sheetal at gp-digital.org> wrote:

> Dear all,
>
> Thank you for filling out the doodle! It seems the best time for the call
> is* 4-6 PM UTC on February 11*. The full details of the call, including
> how to join, are below.
>
> Thanks to Farzaneh for setting up the room. Looking forward to speaking to
> as many of you as possible on the 11th!
>
> Best
> Sheetal.
>
> *Bestbits call: Future pathways *
>
>
> *Date and time: *
> 11 February, 4:00-6:00 PM UTC <http://worldtimebuddy.com/>
>
> *Online Meeting room: *
> To join the Meeting:
> https://bluejeans.com/819760256
>
> To join via Room System:
> Video Conferencing System: bjn.vc -or-199.48.152.152
> Meeting ID : 819760256
>
> To join via phone :
> 1)  Dial:
> +1.408.740.7256 (US (San Jose))
> +1.888.240.2560 (US Toll Free)
> +1.408.317.9253 (US (Primary, San Jose))
> (see all numbers - http://bluejeans.com/numbers)
>
> 2)  Enter Conference ID : 819760256
>
> Please note that if you call in, your phone number will appear on the
> Bluejeans room page. We would like to record and share the link with the
> BestBits network on the mailing list. Please let us know if you do not want
> the recording to be shared on an open mailing list if you call in.
>
> *Proposed agenda: *
> *Aim: *to discuss the future of the Bestbits and IGC lists, including the
> possibility of a merger + other options
> 1) Identification/agreement of challenges and issues faced in each
> network
> 2) Discussion of options, e.g merger of lists/establishment of
> new/maintenance of status quo - using lists as information sharing devices:
> pros and cons of each
> 3) Discussion of next steps/agreement on process for decision making
> regarding future of the lists
>
> *RSVP on etherpad*
> I've put the agenda in this pad
> <https://etherpad.wikimedia.org/p/Bestbitscallfuture>and I've also added
> the names of those who indicated they were available for the call at this
> time. Of course, as a Bestbits member you can join the call without
> indicating that in the pad, this is just to have a vague idea of numbers.
>
>
> On Fri, 18 Jan 2019 at 14:13, Sheetal Kumar <sheetal at gp-digital.org>
> wrote:
>
>> Dear all
>>
>> It's been great to see the engagement on this topic, and thanks to those
>> who have shared their perspectives and the relevant documents too.
>>
>> In December when we had the call we agreed to touch base again in the
>> middle of January to agree a way forward. The discussions here provide rich
>> ground for the discussion, and Farzaneh has kindly offered to set up a
>> conference call space for us.
>>
>> I am circulating below a doodle for our second call to decide next steps.
>> This is a suggested agenda:
>>
>> 1) Identification/agreement of challenges and issues faced in each
>> network
>> 2) Discussion of options, e.g merger of lists/establishment of
>> new/maintenance of status quo, e.g using lists as information sharing
>> devices: pros and cons of each approach
>> 3) Discussion of next steps/agreement on process for decision making
>> regarding future of Bestbits
>>
>> Having spoken to those who arranged the last call, we suggest only
>> Bestbits members are invited but that we also reach out to some IGC folks
>> to help provide some background and inform the discussion only.
>>
>> https://doodle.com/poll/yzmbvibwp6n4s976
>>
>> If everyone could fill out the doodle by the end of next week (Friday, 25
>> Jan) we can set a time and send the conference room link too.
>>
>> Best
>> Sheetal.
>>
>>
>> On Fri, 11 Jan 2019 at 13:10, Deirdre Williams <
>> williams.deirdre at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Please excuse the cross-posting.
>>> I've been following this discussion with care, and have a couple of
>>> questions which seem to fall in line with what Nnenna and Jeremy are saying.
>>> 1. If we had more or less stopped sharing information/discussing things/
>>> working together within IGC and Bestbits separately, would merging the two
>>> groups again really improve participation?
>>> 2. Is there a way for us to look at what needs to be done, what we want
>>> to do, how we want to do it?
>>> 3. Who are "we"? Are we the same as the people who started IGC and
>>> Bestbits - same objectives, same perceptions and perspectives, same
>>> priorities?
>>> Without answers to these questions it seems unlikely that we would make
>>> much progress.
>>> Purely as an illustration please consider IRPC (which many of us also
>>> belong to) which is currently having some difficulty with identifying
>>> volunteers to carry out management tasks for the group.
>>> Civil society still needs a means to discuss issues and find a common
>>> voice, but is this the right way to do that now or do we need to devise
>>> something different?
>>> Best wishes for 2019
>>> Deirdre
>>>
>>> On Thu, 10 Jan 2019 at 14:09, Jeremy Malcolm <jeremy at malcolm.id.au>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> On 1/10/19 2:01 AM, Sheetal Kumar wrote:
>>>>
>>>> > For those who were part of the first Steering Committee of Bestbits -
>>>> > could you share more information about how it was constituted and why?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> It was because IGC discourse had become toxic and dysfunctional, and
>>>> people were dropping out. It had been a while since it had been able to
>>>> agree on a joint statement. At the same time, the 2012 ITU WCIT was
>>>> coming up, and being able to collaborate on joint action was important,
>>>> so a few conversations between people both inside and outside of IGC
>>>> resulted in them becoming the first volunteer steering committee.
>>>>
>>>> But then the same civil society politics that had driven the IGC into
>>>> the ground started to disrupt Best Bits too. There were (misplaced but
>>>> damaging) allegations about various participants having hidden agendas
>>>> or not being transparent enough about their own funding. So whereas the
>>>> original committee had been fairly lightweight and informal, pressure to
>>>> adopt more formal mechanisms of accountability resulted in us investing
>>>> a lot of time in creating a more elaborate set of rules and processes.
>>>> As it turned out, this was too heavy and people weren't motivated to
>>>> engage in these new processes, indicating that the more lightweight
>>>> structure had probably been better.
>>>>
>>>> If there was a group of willing people who could resuscitate Best Bits,
>>>> even without formal elections, I'd be all for that. But I don't think
>>>> there is. I personally have given as much time to it as I'd like to
>>>> give, because I'm focusing my energy on my new nonprofit Prostasia
>>>> Foundation now.
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Jeremy Malcolm PhD LLB (Hons) B Com
>>>> Internet lawyer, ICT policy advocate, geek
>>>> echo "9EEAi^^;6C6]>J^=^>6"|tr '\!-~' 'P-~\!-O'|wget -q -i - -O -
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ____________________________________________________________
>>>> You received this message as a subscriber on the list:
>>>>      bestbits at lists.bestbits.net.
>>>> To unsubscribe or change your settings, visit:
>>>>      http://lists.bestbits.net/wws/info/bestbits
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> “The fundamental cure for poverty is not money but knowledge" Sir
>>> William Arthur Lewis, Nobel Prize Economics, 1979
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>>
>> *Sheetal Kumar*
>> Programme Lead | GLOBAL PARTNERS DIGITAL
>> Second Home, 68-80 Hanbury Street, London, E1 5JL
>> T: +44 (0)20 3 818 3258| M: +44 (0)7739569514  |
>> PGP ID: E592EFBBEAB1CF31  | PGP Fingerprint: F5D5 114D 173B E9E2 0603
>> DD7F E592 EFBB EAB1 CF31|
>>
>>
>
> --
>
>
> *Sheetal Kumar*
> Programme Lead | GLOBAL PARTNERS DIGITAL
> Second Home, 68-80 Hanbury Street, London, E1 5JL
> T: +44 (0)20 3 818 3258| M: +44 (0)7739569514  |
> PGP ID: E592EFBBEAB1CF31  | PGP Fingerprint: F5D5 114D 173B E9E2 0603
> DD7F E592 EFBB EAB1 CF31|
>
>

-- 

*Sheetal Kumar*
Programme Lead | GLOBAL PARTNERS DIGITAL
Second Home, 68-80 Hanbury Street, London, E1 5JL
T: +44 (0)20 3 818 3258| M: +44 (0)7739569514  |
PGP ID: E592EFBBEAB1CF31  | PGP Fingerprint: F5D5 114D 173B E9E2 0603 DD7F
E592 EFBB EAB1 CF31|
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