[governance]

[Becky Lentz, Dr.]

Dear colleagues,

As a scholar/educator researching and teaching about civil society capacity building on internet freedom issues, it's been incredibly inspiring to observe how your work has taken shape and the amount of careful collaboration that has evolved from that work. This particular episode--NetMundial--of that story has many lessons to offer. Izumi's post (below) helps place this in important historical context, and to add to that, I would also direct you to a new book (as an addition to those already published, such as Marianne Franklin's recent book) that offers some useful historical insights into some of the issues Izumi raises related to NGO relations, which relate to the capacity to influence policy: Global Governance and NGO Participation: Shaping the Information Society in the United Nations, by Charlotte Dany (http://books.google.com/books/about/Global_Governance_and_NGO_Participation.html?id=jgr5tOQNhYYC). I've written a book review if anyone is interested in a quick overview (please email me offlist).

Congratulations to everyone involved!
Becky Lentz, McGill University

________________________________
From: izumiaizu at gmail.com [izumiaizu at gmail.com] on behalf of Izumi AIZU [iza at anr.org]
Sent: Sunday, April 27, 2014 7:44 AM
To: governance; <bestbits at lists.bestbits.net>
Subject: [governance]

A little reflection

Like some of you, I was thinking how far we came from INET/IFWP/ICANN/WSIS/WGIG/IGF days to NETMundial when Adam and Jeanette were reading the final outcome statement and receiving strong standing ovations.

Adam and Jeanette were the 2nd or 3rd generation of the Co-coordinators of the Civil Society Internet Governance Caucus, at the days of WSIS Tunis phase if I am not mistaken. YJ Park and Wolfgang Kleinwacther were the first ones at the first WSIS process.

At the initial WSIS process. not only them, but most Civil Society members were not given much role other than making statements within limited and controlled frameworks. Yes we had the bureau, made negotiations with government reps, but not in the MSH modality of say "working together". By and large, we were the "outsiders" trying to lobby "them".

Compared with that, civil society members in the EMC and HLMC were "insiders" and often "lobbied" by not only other CS members but also by other stakeholders.
They were taking the lead in the drafting sessions. IF they, or all of us, CS members were not there, there would be no NETMundial and its outcome.

It is not their (CS members at EMC and HLMC) efforts per se, but, but our collective energy, blood sweat and tears, tough and sharp arguments among CS circle, engagement, passion, patience, all of these that resulted in building-up of the credibility we today got at NETMundial.

In that regard, I would say, congratulations to Adam and Jeanette, but also to Nnenna, Marilia, Carlos, Stephanie, Luis, Subi and all others who worked hard in NETMundial process including those who did not get the explicit role, but nevertheless played important roles here and there.

I felt we are maturing and making good progress. Of course, we still have a lot to achieve.

Now, going forward!

izumi

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