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[ga] CYBER-FED No.15: The User Voice in Internet Governance -- ICANNatlarge.org
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Cyber-Federalist No. 15 25 October 2002
THE USER VOICE IN INTERNET GOVERNANCE --
ICANNatlarge.org
Civil Society Democracy Project (CivSoc)
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility (CPSR)
http://www.civsoc.org
The Internet Democracy Project
http://www.internetdemocracyproject.org/
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The User Voice in Internet Governance -- ICANNatlarge.org
ICANN has been a bold experiment in many areas, not least of which is
giving users a role in Internet policy-making. However, user
representation on ICANN's board has been vigorously contested, and ICANN's
current board seems likely to eliminate it. Nonetheless, even if users are
excluded from ICANN, their collective voice will persist.
Today, the collective voice of the user in ICANN exists in the organization
named ICANNatlarge.org. ICANNatlarge.org (http://www.ICANNatlarge.org) is
a mass membership organization founded in early 2002 to unite users in
Internet governance, most notably in ICANN. With over 1000 members, a web
site and mailing lists, and an elected governing panel, ICANNatlarge.org
provides a framework for continued user participation in policy making.
The creation of an institutional framework for users is
important. ICANNatlarge.org demonstrates that a global user community
really exists, and it gives that community a vehicle by which to express
its views and its interests. It facilitates the difficult tasks of
creating a general forum, aggregating interests for users from around the
world, and developing a collective voice. With members from over 72
countries, the organization possesses a legitimacy that a closed, top-down
organization cannot. It is global, participatory, and transparent.
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 groups,
At Large Directors (before their positions are eliminated), and other
stakeholders to meet and to coordinate their activities around the board
meeting.
At this meeting ICANNatlarge.org will not offer any statements on behalf of
all users. That seems an unlikely role for such an inclusive organization
that hosts such a diversity of views. Rather, ICANNatlarge.org will serve
as a forum within which groups can articulate their own views. The
organization's role may be more to facilitate than to lead.
Three Voices of Users
==================
Over the past years three types of organizations have emerged to speak for
users in ICANN. The first is the individual NGO. NGOs (including
university-based researchers) are able to offer strongly-worded analysis
and recommendations in ICANN. With a basis in a few experts and without
the need to gain approval from a large membership, NGOs can engage in
decisive action.
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.
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.]
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.
Subscribe to the CYBER-FEDERALIST!
Send an Email to: cyber-federalist-subscribe@cpsr.org
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