The ALAC leadership proposed withholding travel support from five named members, including direct representatives of end users, for the upcoming ICANN meeting in Kigali. This decision allegedly is a preview of considerations for determining who receives travel support to ICANN meetings forward and is grounded on attendance history at ALAC meetings and online policy discussions as well as subject matter expertise in current policy matters. Additionally, the draft communique from the ALAC leadership mentions the basis for this posture as "*a more flexible and utilitarian travel policy*" requested by the previous Ombudsman. I believe the At-Large membership is entitled to know the basis of the complaint and who was the complainant in this situation. *For the record, travel support is not and may not be construed as a benefit**. It is a means to enable volunteers to participate fully in ICANN meetings**. It is egregiously misbegotten to conflate travel support as a benefit of participation to an At-Large ICANN volunteer.* Excluding or disadvantaging any internet user from participating in ICANN At-Large events is contrary to the multistakeholder principles upheld by ICANN, the organisation. It may be a peculiar view. But those of you around since 2006 know this is my position. I dissented when the messaging used to recruit volunteers advertised travel support as such and will not retreat from this position. The odd volunteer as a tourist is an existential risk. Personally, I have travelled on aeroplanes enough times to have accumulated almost 3 million air miles in reward. I have personally co-invested - yes, co-invested! - in travel support using air miles and actual dollars to upgrade steerage class travel. I have worked for organizations where any travel over 4 hours merits a business class seat. It is insulting for anyone to suggest that I slave 13 hours nonstop in steerage on an aeroplane and mark it a benefit! The notion of selecting "*African VIPs...*" for travel support is an example of convergence of policy with politics and raises more questions than answers on the criteria for selection and what other external entities might be required to make those selections. A diverse group of individuals from various backgrounds and experiences peoples the ALAC, as a *Committee of the Whole*. The practical meaning is discernible from the fact that policy advice to the ICANN Board from ALAC does not begin with “*Herewith, the advice of these eight halfwits who voted…!*” While not every member may actively contribute to a specific policy advice, each member plays a role in transmitting the At-Large position to the ICANN Board. Therefore, any action that suggests exclusivity within the ALAC undermines its purpose as a representative body. The ALAC we have, transformed from the interim ALAC, was always intended to be ecumenical. To paraphrase the mother of that great American philosopher Forrest Gump, “*the ALAC is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.*” ALAC members will come with different sets of skills, experiences, interests, attention span and deficits, English language proficiency, analytic capacities, value systems, writing skills. Some may turn up for every meeting and not offer a word, remaining mute as if with malice. Some may even troll recordings of meetings and discussions to inform themselves before they speak with colleagues. Not every member may vote or ever vote in favour of an advice. Some may very well be considered dead weight on certain policy matters and could be jettisoned for cause without a loss of buoyancy; either because they are disengaged, simply because they may judge an issue not to be of interest in the constituency they represent, or is deemed by peers as unlikely subject matter experts. Regardless, their names are mentioned in rooms they may never enter and collectively transmit the At-Large position to the ICANN Board. I have had the privilege to volunteer and work with persons who, in my opinion and for the skillsets I witnessed in action, eminently qualified to be ALAC members in every season. Alan Greenberg for sure. Ditto Lance Hinds and Dev Anand Teelucksingh. Because of the many skills - writing and listening being among the top ones - experiences and forthrightness he brings to bear in context of the role of the ALAC to ICANN, perhaps the most engaging of all to my mind is Evan Leibovich. Interestingly, persons deemed subject matter experts actually exemplify the situational and existential threats for the At-Large enterprise. There was a time At-Large membership was predicated on an ever-increasing supply of volunteers. We would serve for a few rounds and cede the field to new others who would come and join the fray. That was wishful thinking. I have been a participant in At-Large activities since 2006. I can name and count on one hand the number of active At-Large [end user] volunteers I have witnessed from the United States (population approx. 333M); Canada (population approx. 38M), Brazil (population approx. 215M); the United Kingdom (population approx. 67M), France (population approx. 68M); Russia (population approx. 148M), Mexico (population approx. 127M), China (population approx. 1.42B) and India (population approx 1.41B). The Caribbean with the relatively minuscule counts of likely recruits have not done so badly in comparison. The bottomline is those labeled as ‘*lifers*’ are here for cause. The longer you stay the greater the investment in learning and the deeper the impact of knowledge acquisition. The fig leaf of multistakeholder engagement offered the ICANN enterprise by the At-Large lifers – even the retreads! - has become that much more threatened by a blowing breeze of change….or burnout. It is imperative for the ALAC to uphold principles of transparency, inclusivity, and accountability in its decision-making processes. Excluding individuals from participation based on arbitrary criteria - and I count attendance as useless in determining participation if quality is contemplated! - whether at the regional level or at ALAC level, is antithetical to the multistakeholder model championed by ICANN, the organisation. I am unanimous. Carlton Samuels ============================== *Carlton A Samuels* *Mobile: 876-818-1799Strategy, Process, Governance, Assessment & Turnaround* =============================