Wendy, I am not speaking on behalf of the ALAC, but please see my comments embedded below. ALan At 22/05/2009 09:00 AM, Wendy Seltzer wrote:
The Board engaged in some discussion of the question of At-Large seat(s) on the Board but concluded that the time was not ripe for a formal resolution. The structural improvements group will continue to consider the matter of voting board seats in the context of the several ongoing reviews (At-Large, Board, and NomCom) to which it relates.
I noted that ALAC and members had supported the concept of voting board seats at many meetings with the At-Large Review Working Group (although ALAC as a whole has not made a statement on the WG's report).
The ALAC has formally commented on the draft reports and was supportive of the Board seats in all such comments. Our last reply was to the final draft of the WG report and was ratified unanimously during an ALAC meeting. I don't know how much more formal we can get.
Since this discussion is ongoing, it would be quite helpful for the At Large to give further comments on the matter of Board seat(s): If you want them, how do you see that interacting with the 5 at-large slots on the NomCom, board liaisons, and the Board Review's recommendation for a smaller board? How does At-Large see the director(s) being selected?
As clearly stated in the comments on the final draft report of the review WG, the ALAC supports the creation of such seats. We do have concern with the mechanism with which they are selected to ensure that there is a philosophical connection between the ALAC charged with carrying out the At-Large mission of ICANN and the Board members representing At-Large. Currently the Board seats of the three SO that have them are selected by their respective councils, presumably in consultation with the constituencies and members represented by those councillors. If in the future the overall organization of At-Large is revamped (such a future change is suggested in the various review documents), then of course how the Board member(s) are selected would need to be reconsidered. I see no conflict between voting Board seats and people placed on the NomCom. The GNSO currently selects two voting Board members and cumulatively, they have SEVEN seats on the NomCom. Regarding Board Liaison, assuming the ALAC has reasonable ability to influence the selection of the At-Large Board seat(s), I would expect that we no longer have a Liaison. If the Board members are selected by a process removed from the ALAC, then a Liaison would still be required. I personally support keeping the Board at a size comparable to the current one with two voting seats per SO/AC (for those that have voting seats). Although I appreciate the potential benefits of a smaller Board, I find it difficult to reconcile how the varying needs of the many ICANN stakeholders can be well represented with a significantly smaller Board. I do not believe that the ALAC has taken a formal position on this. Regardless, if the ultimate decision is that those who currently have two seats be reduced to one (ASO, ccNSO, GNSO), I would presume that the ALAC would similarly have one seat. In terms of exactly how the seat(s) are to be filled, that is clearly the subject for discussion if we are at a position that the seat(s) will become a reality.
--Wendy
Wendy Seltzer wrote:
Alan Greenberg wrote:
Wendy, the following item is on the Board meeting scheduled for next week (http://www.icann.org/en/minutes/agenda-21may09.htm). Can you comment on exactly what it is. I didn't think that the review report advocating such a seat(s) had been published or approved.
Agenda - For Action And/Or Discussion
6. Structural Improvements Committee Recommendations from Retreat - for discussion and possible action
b. At Large Seat
I believe the Structural Improvements Committee will be recommending in principle that At-Large be given the right to select one or more voting directors. The Board as a whole has not yet discussed the subject. If members have points you'd like me to raise (as well as those already in ALAC statements), please let me know.
--Wendy
-- Wendy Seltzer -- wendy@seltzer.org Visiting Professor, American University Washington College of Law Fellow, Berkman Center for Internet & Society http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/seltzer.html http://www.chillingeffects.org/ https://www.torproject.org/
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