[Governance] FYI: ITCG's submission regarding the creation and membership of the IGF Leadership Panel

Tue Nov 30 16:02:18 EST 2021

Well done George and ITCG!
Excellent nominations and appointments.

On Tue, Nov 30, 2021 at 7:16 PM Arsène Tungali via Governance <
governance at lists.igcaucus.org> wrote:

> Thanks for sharing this with this group, George!
>
> On Tue, Nov 30, 2021, 8:41 PM George Sadowsky via Governance <
> governance at lists.igcaucus.org> wrote:
>
>> On 27 November 2021, the Internet Technical Collaboration Group , or
>> ITCG, (https://www.internetcollaboration.org) sent the message below to
>> the Office of the United Nations Secretary-General   We reproduce the
>> letter below, omitting the *curriculum vitae* of the candidates
>> recommended.
>>
>> The Internet Technical Collaboration Group, or ITCG (
>> https://www.internetcollaboration.org) brings together the technical and
>> policy expertise of individuals and organizations involved in the technical
>> evolution and administration of specific Internet resources in a
>> decentralized network approach to policy formulation for the Internet.
>>
>> The ITCG is dedicated to sharing information within the technical
>> community, and ensuring effective and appropriate technical representation
>> in the formulation and implementation of multi-stakeholder Internet
>> governance. Its technical contributors cooperate and coordinate to
>> facilitate constructive contributions to Internet governance fora such as
>> national and international Internet governance meetings.
>>
>> The ITCG is not endorsed by any organization within the Internet
>> ecosystem.  Members of the ITCG participate as individuals. Any output of
>> the ITCG is the result of consensus amongst these individuals, and is not
>> officially endorsed by their employers or any Internet technical
>> organisation.  The views and opinions expressed in any output of the ITCG
>> are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect official policies
>> or positions of their respective institutions.
>>
>>
>> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>>
>> Office of the Secretary-General
>> The United Nations
>> New York, NY    USA
>>
>> Dear Mr. Secretary-General,
>>
>> The Internet Technical Collaboration Group (ITCG) has noted the Call for
>> Nominations to an IGF Leadership Panel, issued by the IGF Secretariat at
>> the invitation of the UN Secretary-General on 8 November 2021. We also note
>> the Terms of Reference for the IGF Leadership Panel published on the IGF
>> website.
>>
>> As a group of individuals and organizations involved in the technical
>> evolution and administration of specific Internet resources, the ITCG has
>> regularly provided recommendations to the UN Secretary-General on
>> nominations to the IGF Multistakeholder Advisory Group (IGF-MAG) on behalf
>> of the Internet technical community stakeholder group. We believe that this
>> group plays a useful role, ensuring that the technical community can be
>> represented by individuals with relevant expertise, trust, and the support
>> of the global technical community. We feel that this model of ensuring
>> effective representation extends to all multistakeholder structures within
>> the IGF.
>>
>> In making these nominations, however, the ITCG joins other stakeholder
>> groups in expressing serious reservations about the formation process,
>> timeline, and role of the proposed IGF Leadership Panel, as outlined in the
>> Terms of Reference and the Call for Nominations.  With these serious
>> reservations, detailed below, we provide the following nominations to the
>> seats reserved for the Internet technical community stakeholder group on
>> the proposed IGF Leadership Panel.  Their professional qualifications are
>> attached below:
>>
>>
>> *•  Maria Häll •  Toomas Hendrik Ilves*
>> * •  Nii Narku Quaynor*
>>
>> The ITCG has concluded that each of these individuals possess extensive,
>> relevant experience and an understanding of the Internet's technical
>> operations adequate to bring those perspectives to this panel and discuss
>> them with others.  They would therefore be able to contribute significant
>> value to the work of this panel and the quality of its conclusions.   The
>> ITCG collectively supports these candidates without reservation. Pertinent
>> biographical information in included below.
>>
>> With regard to our reservations, we start by noting that  that various
>> organisations and individuals in the global Internet technical community
>> responded to the earlier call for comment regarding the formation of a
>> multi-stakeholder high-level body (the ‘Consultation on Paragraph 93(a) of
>> the Roadmap for Digital Cooperation’, held in March 2021:
>> https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/93a-questionnaire-template).
>> The points made in the responses from organisations including APNIC, the
>> RIPE NCC, the Internet Society and others clearly resonate with the
>> concerns that we now have in relation to the proposed IGF Leadership
>> Panel.  Our two key concerns are as follows:
>>
>> 1. We deplore that the the Terms of Reference for this IGF Leadership
>> Panel have been produced with minimal multistakeholder community
>> engagement. It is not evident that the engagement carried out earlier in
>> 2021 has been incorporated in the final Terms of Reference. Strong concerns
>> have been raised that the role of the Leadership Panel, particularly in
>> relation to the MAG, and the way in which the Leadership Panel is expected
>> to, “complement and support similar and ongoing efforts by the MAG.”
>>
>> A "Leadership Panel", by its name alone, is inconsistent with the
>> multistakeholder approach of the IGF, and the current proposal has drawn
>> strong criticism from all of the stakeholder groups of whom we are aware
>> and whhave statements (or expressed opinions) on the matter.  A more
>> inclusive, multistakeholder approach to defining this body may have helped
>> to address this, and any process going forward must prioritise openness,
>> transparency, and a commitment to the IGF's multistakeholder approach.
>>
>> We would therefore strongly suggest that the formation process itself be
>> now paused to allow for substantial community input and feedback during the
>> upcoming IGF 2021.
>>
>> 2. The process in relation to the formation of the Leadership Panel is
>> very short, with less than a month to collect nominations. Numerous
>> stakeholders groups have noted this lack of time, and it does not suggest a
>> good-faith effort to find the most effective representatives of each
>> stakeholder group. This is particularly important given that this proposal
>> would inject a new and potentially highly influential function within the
>> IGF ecosystem.
>>
>> We welcome this opportunity to put  these concerns on record, and we ask
>> that the Office of the Secretary-General now reflect on them and take steps
>> to address them with stakeholders directly.
>>
>> We trust that if the formation of the IGF Leadership Panel proceeds as
>> outlined, due consideration will be given to the individuals nominated by
>> the ITCG on behalf of the global Internet technical community, and there
>> will be transparent communication regarding the final selection process.
>>
>> Best regards,
>>
>> George Sadowsky, Chair
>> The Internet Technical Collaboration Group (ITCG)
>>
>>
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