[ICANN]<http://www.icann.org/> News Alert https://www.icann.org/resources/press-material/release-2015-10-19-en ________________________________ Irish Communications Minister Expresses Support for Multistakeholder Model, IANA Stewardship Transition 19 October 2015 Dublin, Ireland... Irish Minister of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Alex White, expressed Ireland's support of both the multistakeholder model of Internet governance and the IANA Stewardship Transition today, during the Opening Ceremony of ICANN's 54th Public Meeting. The meeting, taking place in Dublin, Ireland, from 18-22 October, has convened members of the global ICANN community to discuss and develop policy related to the Internet's Domain Name System (DNS). "I commend the work of all those who have devoted so much of their time and energy to engage with the multistakeholder process. Ireland firmly supports the multistakeholder model of Internet governance," said White. The ICANN community has convened in Dublin to collaborate on a variety of issues impacting the DNS, including a set of proposals related to last year's announcement that the United States intends to transition its stewardship of the IANA functions, which are key elements of the Internet's Domain Name System (DNS)<https://www.iana.org/about>, to the global multistakeholder community. White expressed Ireland's support for the United States' decision during the ceremony, stating, "I believe...that this diverse and vibrant community must have a voice in how the Internet is governed. So I welcome and applaud the decision of the United States government to give voice to this community and to facilitate the transition to a truly multistakeholder model of Internet governance." ICANN Board Chair Dr. Stephen Crocker assured the community of the Board's continued support, stating, "This meeting, ICANN54, is an important milestone. The finish line we believe is now in sight. The Board has certainly come together and is committed to facilitate and support the community in every way that we can, and it's my sincere hope that we all come together in a positive spirit that is punctuated by mutual respect." ICANN also announced the winner of the 2015 Leadership award - Armenian Internet pioneer and former ICANN Fellow Siranush Vardanyan. The award is given to members of the global Internet community who have demonstrated a commitment to protecting and promoting the multistakeholder model. Those unable to attend ICANN54 in person are highly encouraged to participate remotely. Details for doing so can be found for any of the sessions listed at https://meetings.icann.org/en/dublin54/schedule-full. # # # To learn more about ICANN54 in Dublin, please visit: https://meetings.icann.org/en/dublin54. To download high-resolution photos of the meeting, please visit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/icann. Media Contacts Luna Madi Communications Director, EMEA London, U.K. Tel: +44 7780947574 Email: luna.madi@icann.org<mailto:luna.madi@icann.org> James Cole Global Media Coordinator Washington, D.C. Tel: +1 202 733 7598 Email: james.cole@icann.org<mailto:james.cole@icann.org> About ICANN ICANN's mission is to ensure a stable, secure and unified global Internet. To reach another person on the Internet you have to type an address into your computer - a name or a number. That address has to be unique so computers know where to find each other. ICANN coordinates these unique identifiers across the world. Without that coordination we wouldn't have one global Internet. ICANN was formed in 1998. It is a not-for-profit public-benefit corporation with participants from all over the world dedicated to keeping the Internet secure, stable and interoperable. It promotes competition and develops policy on the Internet's unique identifiers. ICANN doesn't control content on the Internet. It cannot stop spam and it doesn't deal with access to the Internet. But through its coordination role of the Internet's naming system, it does have an important impact on the expansion and evolution of the Internet. For more information please visit: www.icann.org<https://www.icann.org/>.