Hello and good day APRALO Community! My sincere thanks to Shita and Aftab for the nomination. I truly appreciate the confidence, and I am honored to accept the nomination for APRALO Chair. If entrusted with this role, I hope to contribute in ways that are practical and meaningful by keeping APRALO’s voice present in policy discussions, strengthening how we work together across the region and with other RALOs, and creating more space for emerging voices, especially among our youth and newer members. These are areas I care deeply about, and I am committed to supporting them alongside our ongoing community efforts. I also believe that whatever we achieve as APRALO is always a shared effort. The support, ideas, and active participation of everyone in the community will make all the difference. I’ve shared a more detailed version of my Statement of Interest in the attached document, should you wish to read further. I also have emailed staff of the SOI separately earlier. Thank you, and I look forward to continuing the work with all of you. Yours truly,Aris Ignacio