[ICANN][icann.org]<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.icann.org_&d=DwMFaQ&...> News Alert https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-3-2017-04-20-en[icann.org]<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.icann.org_news_announcement-2D3-2D2017-2D04-2D20-2Den&d=DwMFaQ&c=FmY1u3PJp6wrcrwll3mSVzgfkbPSS6sJms7xcl4I5cM&r=mrDeztziKLa7gZqGADzxcnHA3QXmXYsnChWYBR4NElI&m=mC-T93fHbA_7VPvfHx1Rk3zUszbDCg42ZmSOaKpSSfM&s=BXz4fQ21Zy6lgz6l5fSw1QXERu7UZOF8dxK7vxICKcQ&e=> ________________________________ ICANN Holds First Capacity Development Workshop for Pacific GAC Members 20 April 2017 The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN[icann.org]<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.icann.org_&d=DwMFaQ...>) in cooperation with the ICANN Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC[gacweb.icann.org]<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__gacweb.icann.org_displa...>) Under-served Regions Working Group will hold the first capacity development workshop for Pacific GAC members and representatives from 28 - 29 April 2017 in Nadi, Fiji. The workshop, themed "Harnessing the Potential of the Pacific GAC Representatives for Better Participation in ICANN", will focus on raising awareness and assist in building capacity of Pacific GAC representatives and governments on how best to effectively participate and contribute to policy making at ICANN. It is supported by the Fiji Government's Department of Communications[communications.gov.fj]<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.communications.gov.f...>. Shivnesh Prasad, Director of the Department of Communications, Government of Fiji, will be making the opening remarks. 20 government delegates representing 16 Pacific countries (Australia, Cook Islands, Federated State of Mircronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu) will also be attending the workshop. For the Pacific region, challenges such as inadequate Internet access, human resource or unreliable Internet can make participation in ICANN difficult. The workshop will discuss ways to assist Pacific GAC representatives' contribution to ICANN discussions. It will also introduce critical active relevant policy topics, working groups including relevant GAC and cross-community working groups that require the immediate attention and participation of GAC members. The workshop will seek feedback from the Pacific GAC representatives on how to better help them improve their regional footprint as well as at ICANN. The workshop will cover a range of topics including: * Introduction to the ICANN ecosystem * Participation in ICANN's policy development process * Discussion on domain names (new generic top-level domains (gTLD), country code top-level domains (ccTLDs), etc.) and role of GAC * Security, stability and resiliency of the Internet * Next steps for Pacific GAC representatives The full agenda can be found here[icann.org]<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.icann.org_en_system...> [PDF, 247 KB]. About ICANN ICANN's mission is to help ensure a stable, secure and unified global Internet. To reach another person on the Internet, you need to type an address into your computer or other device - a name or a number. That address must be unique so computers know where to find each other. ICANN helps coordinate and support these unique identifiers across the world. ICANN was formed in 1998 as a not-for-profit public-benefit corporation and a community with participants from all over the world. For more information, please visit: www.icann.org[icann.org]<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.icann.org_&d=DwMFaQ...>