Dear Colleagues: I have *abstained* in this vote and for cause. Vision statements have never attracted my favour; they tend to the gimmicky and for me, results matter more for guidance than intent. Here, the issues converge to instantiate my position. Without a doubt, the bye-laws we all must subscribe to as the At-Large constituency in general and ALAC members in particular, gives the rhyme and reason for our existence, set and subset. I am unanimous the urgent need is more intimacy with those rules. Secondly, the defined agenda for ICANN is so within the context of the MSM approach. And so far as I know, the At-Large constituency is and remains a member in good standing. Then again, if this constituency accepts the Affirmation of Commitments (AoC) framework as guide for ICANN's immediate, if not future endeavours, it is rather....well, *counterintuitive* for any part of ICANN to have a separate vision from that espoused by ICANN; *One world, One Internet*. At least, that is what makes sense to me. And in instant case, I am resolved that the Committee is wrong-headed. With respect, I am wary of conniving at error. - Carlton Samuels ============================== Carlton A Samuels Mobile: 876-818-1799 *Strategy, Planning, Governance, Assessment & Turnaround* ============================= On Wed, May 23, 2012 at 12:14 PM, Olivier MJ Crepin-Leblond <ocl@gih.com>wrote:
Dear ALAC members,
I wanted to follow-up on the vote announcement to provide a few more explanations, based on the questions I have heard during the Tuesday 22 May 2012 ALAC monthly call.
On 23/05/2012 04:44, ICANN At-Large Staff wrote :
Dear All,
Olivier Crépin-Leblond, Chair of the ALAC, has asked that a vote be held by the ALAC on the proposed "At-Large Vision Statement as Proposed by the At-Large Improvements Taskforce<https://community.icann.org/x/esPbAQ>."
***** Question: Do you support the ratification of the At-Large Vision Statement as Proposed by the At-Large Improvements Taskforce< https://community.icann.org/x/esPbAQ>?
The At-Large Vision Statement as Proposed by the At-Large Improvements Taskforce is as follows:
The ALAC, building upon the experience and views of the At-Large community, catalyzes and facilitates inclusive, meaningful participation of general Internet users world-wide, aggregates their input and brings their voice to bear in all ICANN matters. *****
Q. Why do we need a "vision statement"? A. This is one of the recommendations made in the ICANN Bylaw-mandated At-Large Review process. I remind you that this started with the community review as well as an external consultant review several years ago. As a result, the At-Large Improvements Work Team C created an action item: "to articulate ALAC's and At-Large's vision and mission."
The At-Large Improvements Task Force followed up with the recommendation and worked to draft a vision statement: https://community.icann.org/x/esPbAQ
You might not agree fully with the wording of the vision statement. But ultimately, you should be reassured that the words that make-up this vision statement were debated by all participants in the WG. They might not have been 100% ideal, but they are the best that the working group has managed to choose, given the choices of words possible.
The Vision statement in English will be the basis for vision statements in Spanish and French. Of course, if the statement does not translate well, the translator will have the discretion to adapt the statement to their mother tongue.
As part of the improvements process, the ALAC needs to present a final report to the Board Structural Improvements Committee (SIC). If we do not ratify the vision statement made here, we will not be able to ratify the At-Large/ALAC improvements report. We plan to present our final report, in time to have the SIC make a decision in Prague.
Q. Why is this not a "mission statement"? A. The ALAC already has a mission statement, as described in Article XI, Section 2.4.a:
"The At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) is the primary organizational home within ICANN for individual Internet users. The role of the ALAC shall be to consider and provide advice on the activities of ICANN, insofar as they relate to the interests of individual Internet users. This includes policies created through ICANN's Supporting Organizations, as well as the many other issues for which community input and advice is appropriate. The ALAC, which plays an important role in ICANN's accountability mechanisms, also coordinates some of ICANN's outreach to individual Internet users."
Additional information on this Statement can be found on the At-Large Vision Statement as Proposed by the At-Large Improvements Taskforce Workspace<https://community.icann.org/x/esPbAQ>.
Please note that the poll will be open from 22-May-2012 23:59 UTC to 24-May-2012 23:59 UTC.
Q. Why only a 3 day vote? A. That's because we only have about 4 weeks until the Prague meeting but the deadline for sending this report to the SIC and letting them make decisions, is much shorter. 5 days would have been better, but the ALAC then also needs to vote on the complete report to the SIC -- and 5 days will be given for this too. Add the week-ends and a deadline for sending this to the Board SIC of early June and we're running out of time.
Q. Is this really so important? Aren't we wasting time on this? A. Yes, it is important, because it is part of our bylaw-mandated review process. It is an inherent part of our improvements. Finalising it now will save us time in future ALAC Reviews. No, we're not wasting time. It was asked of the community. The community has spent a lot of work to put this together. It's important that it is done correctly.
Warmest regards,
Olivier MJ Crépin-Leblond ALAC Chair
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