Re: [atlarge-discuss] CYBER-FED No.15: The User Voice in InternetGovernance -- ICANNatlarge.org

[James Love <james.love@cptech.org>]

Hans Klein wrote:

> Shanghai
> =======
> At the ICANN meeting in Shanghai, ICANNatlarge.org has organized a users 
> forum.  This event will be a focal point for users, civil society 
    Was this every approved by the elected panel?

> The second type of organization claiming to speak for users is a 
> top-down entity, much like a company union.  As ICANN eliminates user 
> representation from its board, it is likely to create a compliant user 
> organization.  The board will soon decide whether to create an "At Large 
> Advisory Committee" (ALAC) to replace the nine At Large Directors.  Much 
> like a company union, the ALAC will represent those user views that are 
> acceptable to the board.
>
> The third type of organization is ICANNatlarge.org.  It is open and 
> inclusive, but unlike the company union model it will not conform to 
> externally-imposed parameters.  Although more likely to serve as a forum 
> than as a united voice, it can facilitate the process whereby users work 
> out a collective voice
    Of course, one could ask for icannatlarge.org to provide some best 
practices for transparency and decision making, rather than an acting chair 
just announcing policies without bothering to get panel approval, and 
ignoring inplace structures or decisions on how to make decisions.



> Culmination of Effort
> ================
> ICANNatlarge.org is the latest step in a series of efforts.  The first 
> effort to create a united users voice was at ICANN's 2000 meeting in 
> Yokohama, where user representatives launched the Civil Society Internet 
> Forum (www.CSIF.net).  The CSIF played an important role in publicizing 
> a collective "Civil Society Platform" for the 2000 elections.  Nearly 
> all elected At Large Directors in year 2000 supported that platform.  
> However, the initial enthusiasm of the organizers led them to diffuse 
> their energies to all global issues.  As its focus expanded to issues 
> like privacy law in various countries, its attention to ICANN declined.
>
> A second attempt at a users organization was ICANNmembers.org, which was 
> led by the Interim Coordinating Committee (ICC).  That organization made 
> its appearance at the ICANN Annual Meeting in Marina del Rey in October 
> 2000.  The ICC brought together many of the leading candidates from the 
> At Large elections.  However, it lost momentum as many of its members 
> dedicated their energies to the NGO and Academic Internet Study (NAIS).
>
> A third attempt to create a user voice in 2002 was more along the lines 
> of a company union.  Some participants of the ICANN-commissioned At 
> Large Study Committee (ALSC, led by Sweden's Karl Bildt) attempted to 
> launch a new user organization called "ICANNatlarge.com."  This top-down 
> effort failed to assemble a compliant membership, and eventually the 
> founders left to start a new effort.  ICANNatlarge.com evolved into 
> today's ICANNatlarge.org.
>
> ICANNatlarge.org is an authentic bottom-up organization.  It is still 
> solidifying its internal organization and finalizing a mission statement 
> and bylaws.  It is also improving its ability to make closure on 
> discussions and to reach collective decisions.  At Shanghai it is 
> proving its ability to serve a vital purpose: to host a general users 
> forum.  It makes the voice of the user a reality.
>
> [Note: the author currently serves as "Acting Chair" of 
> ICANNatlarge.org. However, the views expressed here are solely his own.]
   You might add that he also appointed himeself the entire committee and 
chair of the web and bylaws working group, to add to his quite impressively 
authority in the group, which  now apparently allows him to do whatever he 
wants as long as there are not votes to stop him.


> ICANNatlarge.org can also be accessed via http://www.icannatlarge.com/
>
>
> =========================================================
>
> CYBER-FEDERALIST is a series of analyses and commentaries
> on Internet governance and ICANN produced by the
> Civil Society Democracy Project (CivSoc) of
> Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility (CPSR).
> See:
>     http://www.cyber-federalist.org (archive)
>     http://www.civsoc.org
>     http://www.cpsr.org
>
> The author of the CYBER-FEDERALIST is Hans Klein.
>
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--
------
James Love, Consumer Project on Technology
http://www.cptech.org, mailto:love@cptech.org
voice: 1.202.387.8030; mobile 1.202.361.3040



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