Dear Judith, I appreciate your perspective, but I must respectfully disagree. This is precisely an example of an autonomous action taken without consultation, which is at the core of my concerns. The decision on where and how to present my concerns is mine alone as the author of the comment. While you are, of course, welcome to express your own views, unilaterally starting a new thread on my concerns, exemplifies the very issue I am raising. Best, Pari On Thu, Feb 6, 2025 at 3:12 PM Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> wrote:
Hi all
Since Pari’s topic is a separate issue it deserves its own thread. I agree that staff have not been explaining the new approach to public comments well and that has contributed to the confusion around. People who have written public comments before followed the same process as they had before as no one had told them anything was changed. Adding in Reviewers and commenters to the process without fully explaining what they are doing and how they are different from pen holders is contributing to the problem.
Since idea of reviewers is new and it is also new that these persons give the first presentation. Itis very confusing as the pen holders are then thrust into the spotlight and as they see on the agenda that a presentation needs to be made in a few days. It breeds confusion and contributes to the issues Pari mentioned.
In her case, her contributions were not erased they were just moved around. Credit was given to both people who significantly contributed to the drafting. Normally when an item is presented to ALAC the comments are accepted and a clean document is presented and this was the misunderstanding as the presentation was only given by the reviewer and not by the pen holder.
The Budget and operating plans are often voluminous and many hours are spent reading the document seeing what was said in the past and crafting a well organized response. Moving sections around to make the points more cogently and readable is normal. To say that all the work was not used and that the person who made these changes is at fault is wrong as it puts the blame on that person. All the person did was reorganize the sections, make them more readable, and avoid duplicative ideas.
The Pen holders should have editing rights but normally only clean up the document before it is being presented. With this new system it is confusing on which stage that occurs. There are several presentations and so that may result in confusion on when the pen holder should clean up the document. However, once the system is clearly understood than Ithink there will be less problems.
I repeat these issues are very different than what happened in the CIP case and the two should not be conjoined together.
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On Feb 6, 2025, at 8:01 AM, Pari Esfandiari via ALAC <alac@icann.org> wrote:
Dear ALAC Colleagues,
I would like to echo the concerns raised by the small team and others and share my own frustration over the continued lack of transparency in our policy processes and the disregard for volunteer contributions.
After dedicating a full week to reading relevant material and drafting a response that I inserted in the Google document - ICANN FY26-30 Operating & Finacial Plan, ICANN IANA FY26 Operating Plans and Budgets.
in suggestion mode, I was dismayed to find my name removed and my input edited—without any discussion or consultation. This is not an isolated incident. Despite raising similar concerns in December and January, no meaningful action has been taken, discouraging volunteers from further engagement.
Our current document management system lacks fundamental safeguards:
- Anyone with a link can edit freely, creating an unstructured and unaccountable process. - No clear version control or discussion precedes changes. - A proper system should allow open viewing, designated members to comment in suggestion mode, and editing only after collective review.
Additionally, other troubling practices—such as assigning tasks to volunteers without their consent, which burdens others with follow-ups, and granting undue credit that alienates genuine contributors—only create the illusion of engagement rather than fostering true participation. While these actions may be well-intended, they undermine trust and diminish meaningful involvement.
These issues—unstructured processes, performative engagement, and dismissive, top-down leadership—threaten the integrity of the multistakeholder model from within. A volunteer-driven community thrives on transparency, respect, and inclusion, not opaque decision-making and anonymous interventions.
I urge leadership to take immediate steps to implement structured, fair, and transparent processes that respect the time, effort, and autonomy of all contributors.
Best regards, Pari
On Thu, Feb 6, 2025 at 11:37 AM Alfredo Calderon via ALAC <alac@icann.org> wrote:
Dear Natalia,
I have to agree with the key points outlined by other community members. Something is happening that is discouraging some of us to feel more engaged as volunteers in the community of At-Large.
Is it transparency, efficiency or clarity on the definitions of policy comments or even openness when some announcements for EOI or SOI arise? Let’s correct these issues, and as mentioned by others the CIP is a great opportunity to rectify and improve our community.
The next generation to engage in At-Large needs to have a clear idea of what is done and how his/her contributions “could” improve on the work done as volunteers.
Let’s start a conversation as mentioned by Natalia.
Alfredo Calderon Email: calderon.alfredo@gmail.com Twitter: acalderon52 LinkedIn: pr.linkedin.com/in/acalderon52 Skype: alfredo_1212 Business Card: http://myonepage.com/acalderon Blog: https://aprendizajedistancia.blogspot.com VSIG: Virtual School on Internet Governance - https://virtualsig.org
On Feb 6, 2025, at 3:02 AM, Natalia Filina via ALAC <alac@icann.org> wrote:
Hello all,
Dear, Joanna, Maureen, Marita. Thank you for the work you have done. As a participant of the CIP I see in it a real opportunity for our improvement (on RALO level and in the At-Large - ALAC interaction we all are so waiting for). Your analysis and comments on CIP construction is professional and valuable. And the situation with the doc and records is ugly. Dear At-Large colleagues, Isn't it?
I would support you, ladies and follow Abdulkarim's message. We have changed (looks like cancelled without community's decision) a lot in our approaches to consolidated work, to respect volunteer work, to take into account the opinion of the community, to transparency and accountability and responsibility. Unfortunately and definitely, as a result, there is a lack of motivation and active participation in the work, less bottom-up components, fewer and fewer expectations of taking into account At-Large as a main and only one source of... Everithing for ALAC - expertise, energy, feedback from the local community etc, ideas, knowledge etc.
That's why - silence here, people (volunteers especially) working where they trust. We have to go to our classic way to build the community together. Maybe this situation will help us to wake up?
Sincerely, Natalia Filina
Secretary of EURALO https://atlarge.icann.org/alses/euralo
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чт, 6 февр. 2025 г., 09:09 Abdulkarim Oloyede via ALAC <alac@icann.org>:
Dear all
Transparency and accountability within ALAC have long been an issue because we have refused to address most of the root causes, among which are some individuals treating ALAC as their full-time responsibility(Job), imposing their way as the ONLY way. Unfortunately, many have chosen to remain silent. While I am not surprised by these events, what truly surprises me is the overwhelming silence in the face of it. Maybe we are all growing older like myself and have decided to allow everything to slide.
I see this as yet another wake-up call for us to confront these issues. I know this will likely be swept under the carpet, as usual, with the Chair offering a vague explanation without addressing the real issue because ......( i complete this another day). However, we must strive to emulate other SOs and ACs within ICANN, where transparency and openness are upheld. There are many better examples we can follow.
Each time I reflect on ALAC and my time, it pains me deeply.
*Prof. A. A. Oloyede*. *Full Professor of Wireless Telecommunications* *Department of Telecommunications Science, University of Ilorin, Nigeria* *Director, Centre for Research Development and In-House Training (CREDIT) University of Ilorin, Nigeria*
On Mon, Jan 20, 2025 at 9:41 AM Joanna Kulesza via ALAC <alac@icann.org> wrote:
Dear ALAC Colleagues,
I hope this message finds you well.
As agreed during the OFB meeting last Thursday, I am sending you a formal, detailed review of the CIP comment drafting timeline, which has been prepared by the drafting team: Maureen Hilyard, Marita Moll, and myself (Joanna Kulesza, undersigned below, currently serving as the ALAC Liaison to the GAC) attached to this message. In response to the request made, we have provided a comprehensive recap of the events surrounding the development of this document.
You can find the original document, as submitted by the drafting team for the ALAC vote, also attached for your review. This document includes all the recommendations that resulted from the inclusive and open process, which has been the standard for developing consensus within the At-Large community.
We would like to express once again our continuing disappointment with the processes that have accompanied the drafting of this document, in particular the lack of transparency and accountability that has been identified. We hope that this difficult situation will serve as a catalyst for improving internal procedures to promote greater transparency and clearer accountability mechanisms for all those involved in the preparation of At-Large documents. Ultimately, we seek real progress — not just 'continuous' effort - in improving the multi-stakeholder model for decision making within the ICANN community and, in particular, for the benefit of the unique end-user community whose interests we aspire to represent.
We look forward to continuing our work together to address these important issues.
Best regards,
Joanna Kulesza
(on behalf of the drafting team: Maureen Hilyard, Marita Moll, and Joanna Kulesza) _______________________________________________ ALAC mailing list -- alac@icann.org To unsubscribe send an email to alac-leave@icann.org
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-- Pari Esfandiari President *Global TechnoPolitics Forum <http://www.technopolitics.org> * *Pario <http://www.parioconsultants.com>- Architects of Ideas* info@TechnoPolitics.org <info@technopolitics.org> *Linkedin Profile <https://www.linkedin.com/in/pariesfandiari/>* Tel: +1-202*-735-1415* (Office) : +1-310-435-0888 (Cell) : +44-731-210-4049 (Cell) _______________________________________________ ALAC mailing list -- alac@icann.org To unsubscribe send an email to alac-leave@icann.org
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-- Pari Esfandiari President *Global TechnoPolitics Forum <http://www.technopolitics.org> * *Pario <http://www.parioconsultants.com>- Architects of Ideas* info@TechnoPolitics.org <info@technopolitics.org> *Linkedin Profile <https://www.linkedin.com/in/pariesfandiari/>* Tel: +1-202*-735-1415* (Office) : +1-310-435-0888 (Cell) : +44-731-210-4049 (Cell)