[Governance] Invitation to sign on : Civil society calls for a virtual IGF 2021 to strengthen inclusivity

[farzaneh badii]

I don’t think the statement is saying anything against going back to the
normal life. It just has some broad suggestions that are very legit
considering “hybrid” models never really worked even outside of COVID what
was normal for some wasn’t normal for remote participants. Equal footing in
hybrid models during or outside of covid restrictions has unfortunately
been unattainable. Pasted the paragraph from APC statement just to point
out what they are actually arguing:

“We remain fully committed to the IGF and to making the 16th annual meeting
a success story. This is why we call on organisers to carefully shape the
hybrid event to address our concerns and ensure a successful, inclusive and
balanced meeting.

In particular, we recommend that mechanisms are put in place to tackle the
issue of time zones and connectivity costs. Adopting the Polish time as the
single standard would significantly limit participation of those based in
incompatible time zones. Also, participants should have access to a data
support scheme, in addition to the travel support already announced, to
ensure participation is affordable to all, especially those coming from
countries where broadband connectivity is not the default and data packages
are expensive.

The signatories of this statement express their willingness to participate
in the discussion and implementation of ideas, structures, methodologies
and technologies to ensure meaningful remote participation during all
phases of the annual event. The key challenge of ensuring meaningful remote
participation in the IGF as valued and impactful as in-person participation
cannot be overstated or taken for granted. This is an essential part in the
present and future of making the IGF a more open, inclusive and globally
relevant process.”

On Sunday, August 8, 2021, Shcherbovich Andrey via Governance <
governance at lists.igcaucus.org> wrote:

> Dear all!
>
> Strictly against. Let's return to the normal life and restore all links.
>
> 07.08.2021, 03:27, "Christian Nzhie via Governance" <
> governance at lists.igcaucus.org>:
>
> Hi,
> Dear @Valeria, thanks for sharing.
> While we welcome the initiative, kindly not that the link provided is not
> accessible.
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> *lock_may_be_available()* (line *167* of
> */var/drupal-core-v7/drupal-7.81/includes/lock.inc*)
>
> Best,
>
> Christian.
>
>
> On Fri, Aug 6, 2021 at 7:19 PM Valeria Betancourt via Governance <
> governance at lists.igcaucus.org> wrote:
>
> Dear all,
>
> The 2021 IGF has been announced as a hybrid event. APC considers that it
> is important to make a call to ensure inclusiveness and balanced
> participation of stakeholders, particularly the ones from the Global South.
>
> In our view, the pandemic has multiplied inequalities in access and
> participation in policy processes, especially global and regional ones
> where travel is required. We fear that the adoption of a hybrid model,
> while mobility constraints imposed by the pandemic have not yet been
> fully lifted, will contribute to exacerbating those inequalities and
> limit opportunities for meaningful participation and engagement. We urge
> the organisers to ensure that the decision of adopting a hybrid model is
> accompanied by relevant measures to ensure a truly inclusive meeting.
>
> We've prepared a statement in this regard and would like to invite you
> to join us in raising these issues.
>
> Here is the link to the draft and the form to endorse it: Civil society
> calls for a virtual IGF 2021 to strengthen inclusivity | Association for
> Progressive Communications (apc.org):
> https://crm.apc.org/statement/VirtualParticipation-IGF2021
>
> The statement will be made public on Tuesday Aug 10th and submitted
> formally to the IGF Secretariat and MAG.
>
> We would kindly ask you to confirm your endorsement by Monday 10pm ET.
>
> Thank you,
>
> Valeria
>
> --
> Valeria Betancourt
> Directora / Manager
> Programa de Políticas de Information y Comunicación / Communication and
> Information Policy Programme
> Asociación para el Progreso de las Comunicaciones / Association for
> Progressive Communications, APC
> http://www.apc.org
>
> --
> Governance mailing list
> Governance at lists.igcaucus.org
> https://lists.igcaucus.org/mailman/listinfo/governance
>
> ,--
> Governance mailing list
> Governance at lists.igcaucus.org
> https://lists.igcaucus.org/mailman/listinfo/governance
>
>

-- 
Farzaneh
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