Fwd: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19
Dear Leon Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed). One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. Regards Maureen Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------ From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Dear At-Large Community In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration. *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter. Regards Maureen ALAC Chair ---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million) I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process. In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . ----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been: 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers. 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!! *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. ---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings. Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez ---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Dear Glenn and Maureen These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work. Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families. Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community. We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families. Kisses and take care *Vanda Scartezini* *Polo Consultores Associados* *Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004* *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * *Sorry for any typos. * ---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Greetings Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation Link to document https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... Facts - All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 Reality - The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year Item One: Remote Participation ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative Comment This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months. Comments It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs. General View In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process. Recommendations - Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members - Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. - ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. - Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc Conclusion Under development Footnotes 1. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html 2. 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3. Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4. Poor and Digital Divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5. Broadband Infographic Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow Best, Judith Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: ---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié ---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Hi Maureen, My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. Best Regards -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A ---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
Dear Maureen, I regret to hear what Daniel is suffering. Hopefully soon there may be a solution for his case. There is not much I can do from Chile, except sending to him my best wishes so that he can soon find a solution to his case. On the other hand, there are many volunteers who have lost their jobs, not only in developing countries. I understand that it is not ICANN's duty to save the world, but I think at least ICANN could contribute with some subsidy for volunteers' internet connection, since ICANN is not spending money on face-to-face meetings. Today we are facing difficult times and the conditions of participation in ICANN meetings are also difficult. There are volunteers who fortunately keep their jobs or have the resources to face this pandemic in better conditions. I believe we should even suspend the requirement for metrics during this pandemic. I understand that we must continue working, but we also must show solidarity with our colleagues who are suffering the consequences of the COVID19 pandemic. Regards Humberto Carrasco Blanc Abogado Profesor Derecho Económico - Comercial UCN LLM Queen Mary University of London PhD University of Edinburgh
El 08-05-2020, a las 13:49, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> escribió:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that he is worried that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
Please respond only to this thread before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ <http://toronto.ieee.ca/> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
---------- From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com <mailto:remmyn@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [Multiple-award winning medium] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng/>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng/>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms>Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/> JOIN us!!
*Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution.
---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se <mailto:carlosraul@gutierrez.se>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org <mailto:vanda@scartezini.org>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>>, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
Vanda Scartezini
Polo Consultores Associados
Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004
01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253
Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464
Sorry for any typos.
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from NARALO . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...>
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... <https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...>
Facts All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html <https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... <https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white...> Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... <https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi...> Poor and Digital Divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... <https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en...> Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ <http://toronto.ieee.ca/> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com <mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com <mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com <mailto:olivierkouami@gmail.com>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>, At Large <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com <mailto:otieno.barrack@gmail.com>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com <mailto:wanjalaluke1@gmail.com>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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+1 Totally agree with Humberto is saying Sylvia Herlein De: At-Large <at-large-bounces@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Em nome de Humberto Carrasco Enviada em: sexta-feira, 8 de maio de 2020 15:46 Para: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Assunto: Re: [At-Large] Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 Dear Maureen, I regret to hear what Daniel is suffering. Hopefully soon there may be a solution for his case. There is not much I can do from Chile, except sending to him my best wishes so that he can soon find a solution to his case. On the other hand, there are many volunteers who have lost their jobs, not only in developing countries. I understand that it is not ICANN's duty to save the world, but I think at least ICANN could contribute with some subsidy for volunteers' internet connection, since ICANN is not spending money on face-to-face meetings. Today we are facing difficult times and the conditions of participation in ICANN meetings are also difficult. There are volunteers who fortunately keep their jobs or have the resources to face this pandemic in better conditions. I believe we should even suspend the requirement for metrics during this pandemic. I understand that we must continue working, but we also must show solidarity with our colleagues who are suffering the consequences of the COVID19 pandemic. Regards Humberto Carrasco Blanc Abogado Profesor Derecho Económico - Comercial UCN LLM Queen Mary University of London PhD University of Edinburgh El 08-05-2020, a las 13:49, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > escribió: Dear Leon Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed). One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that he is worried that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. Regards Maureen Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------ From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > Dear At-Large Community In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration. Please respond only to this thread before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter. Regards Maureen ALAC Chair ---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million) I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process. In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . ---------- From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com <mailto:remmyn@gmail.com> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been: 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers. 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [Multiple-award winning medium] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews> ; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng/> , NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng/> ) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> 2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/> & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable JOIN us!! *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/> ) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. ---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se <mailto:carlosraul@gutierrez.se> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > Thank you Maureen and Léon ! 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings. Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez ---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org <mailto:vanda@scartezini.org> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Dear Glenn and Maureen These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work. Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families. Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community. We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families. Kisses and take care Vanda Scartezini Polo Consultores Associados Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004 01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253 Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 Sorry for any typos. ---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > Greetings Here is the draft response from NARALO . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation Link to document <https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... Facts * All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 Reality * The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year Item One: Remote Participation ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative Comment This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months. Comments It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs. General View In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process. Recommendations * Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members * Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. * ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. * Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc Conclusion Under development Footnotes 1. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html 2. 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... <https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white...> &utm_campaign=Newsletters&utm_source=sendgrid 3. Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4. Poor and Digital Divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5. Broadband Infographic Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > wrote: ---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com <mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com> > Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow Best, Judith Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com <mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > wrote: ---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com <mailto:olivierkouami@gmail.com> > Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >, At Large <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié ---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com <mailto:otieno.barrack@gmail.com> > Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > Hi Maureen, My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. Best Regards -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A ---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com <mailto:wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> > Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome. _______________________________________________ At-Large mailing list At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org _______________________________________________ By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy (https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on.
+1 Humberto we have to get better prepared for more time online. In my case and for my work the wired cable connection works about half of the time ok, and the rest I have to backup with the LTE from my cell which is much higher cost.Of course Icann calls are not that long and you can switch video out, but keeping track of call, recordings, documents over the long term is also complex. The cost benefit of a broadband support as compared to face 2 face is obvious on the ICANN balance sheet. --- Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez carlosraul@gutierrez.se +506 8837 7176 Aparatado 1571-1000 COSTA RICA On 2020-05-08 12:45, Humberto Carrasco wrote:
Dear Maureen,
I regret to hear what Daniel is suffering. Hopefully soon there may be a solution for his case. There is not much I can do from Chile, except sending to him my best wishes so that he can soon find a solution to his case. On the other hand, there are many volunteers who have lost their jobs, not only in developing countries. I understand that it is not ICANN's duty to save the world, but I think at least ICANN could contribute with some subsidy for volunteers' internet connection, since ICANN is not spending money on face-to-face meetings. Today we are facing difficult times and the conditions of participation in ICANN meetings are also difficult. There are volunteers who fortunately keep their jobs or have the resources to face this pandemic in better conditions. I believe we should even suspend the requirement for metrics during this pandemic. I understand that we must continue working, but we also must show solidarity with our colleagues who are suffering the consequences of the COVID19 pandemic.
Regards
Humberto Carrasco Blanc Abogado Profesor Derecho Económico - Comercial UCN LLM Queen Mary University of London PhD University of Edinburgh
El 08-05-2020, a las 13:49, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> escribió:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that he is worried that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------ From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
Please respond only to this thread before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight
ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog [1] http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . ---------- From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps.
____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [_Multiple-award winning medium_] (DigitalSENSE Business News [2]; ITREALMS [3], NaijaAgroNet [4]) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms
Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria [5]
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*Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS [7]) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution.
---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 - 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN's finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
_Vanda Scartezini_
_Polo Consultores Associados_
_Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004_
_01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil_
_Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253_
_Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 _
_Sorry for any typos. _
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from NARALO . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
SUPPORTING THE WORK OF OUR GLOBAL COMMUNITY OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS: LEVERAGING REMOTE PARTICIPATION
Link to document https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... [8]
Facts
* All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
* The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don't want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
* Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members * Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. * ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. * Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
* https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html [9] * 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... [10] * Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... [11]
* Poor and Digital Divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... [12] * Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog [1] http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
_______________________________________________ At-Large mailing list At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large
At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org _______________________________________________ By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy (https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on.
_______________________________________________ At-Large mailing list At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org _______________________________________________ By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy (https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. Links: ------ [1] http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/ [2] http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews [3] http://www.itrealms.com.ng/ [4] http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng/ [5] https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E [6] http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/ [7] http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/ [8] https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... [9] https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html [10] https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-whitepages-final.pdf?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Newsletters&utm_source=sendgrid [11] https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... [12] https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en...
As stated before and worth repeating, many of our members are not prepared to cry the blues whilst they are suffering and will continue to suffer. If we have any compassion of the community members we need to make efforts to help those in need and perhaps on the QT the chairs of the RALO's can reach out privately and determine who is in need of a hand up. I don't think anyone in NARALO is in this situation but I would leave it to Eduardo to comment. My guess is that 10 or so members may need the helping hand and a couple of hundred dollars would go along way to assist them in participating in our calls. Glenn Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 1:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
*2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!!
*Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution.
---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
*Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004*
*01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil*
*Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253*
*Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 *
*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Yes, Maureen looks awful situation. Special for Daniel and how hard worker he is… suggestion on payment of internet connection for some relevant members in need – or even as an alternative anticipating the help we think will be necessary for ICANN 68 members to attend, for me looks like a clear movements ICANN could have right now for Daniel case. We can also send justification – as recorder of so many participation of Daniel for instance. At the same time we, as At Large, could be focusing on 2-3 really relevant cases ( IN this region we certainly have one for a hard worker and leadership person from LACRALO that we can state, that ALAC could select under this extraordinary circumstances. This is not a precedent and shall not be considered as such, but deserves our full attention to at least be fair with these volunteers in this pandemic times. Kisses to all and stay safe Vanda Scartezini Polo Consultores Associados Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004 01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253 Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 Sorry for any typos. From: At-Large <at-large-bounces@atlarge-lists.icann.org> on behalf of Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Friday, May 8, 2020 at 15:51 To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: 'At-Large Worldwide' <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Subject: Re: [At-Large] Fwd: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 As stated before and worth repeating, many of our members are not prepared to cry the blues whilst they are suffering and will continue to suffer. If we have any compassion of the community members we need to make efforts to help those in need and perhaps on the QT the chairs of the RALO's can reach out privately and determine who is in need of a hand up. I don't think anyone in NARALO is in this situation but I would leave it to Eduardo to comment. My guess is that 10 or so members may need the helping hand and a couple of hundred dollars would go along way to assist them in participating in our calls. Glenn Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com<mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org<mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 1:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> wrote: Dear Leon Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed). One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that he is worried that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. Regards Maureen Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------ From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org<mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>> Dear At-Large Community In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration. Please respond only to this thread before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter. Regards Maureen ALAC Chair ---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com<mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org<mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>> Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million) I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process. In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com<mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org<mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . ---------- From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com<mailto:remmyn@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org<mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>> Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been: 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers. 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [Multiple-award winning medium] (DigitalSENSE Business News<http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS<http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet<http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria<https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> 2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable<http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng> JOIN us!! *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS<http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. ---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se<mailto:carlosraul@gutierrez.se>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org<mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings. Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez ---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org<mailto:vanda@scartezini.org>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com<mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>>, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Dear Glenn and Maureen These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work. Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families. Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community. We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families. Kisses and take care Vanda Scartezini Polo Consultores Associados Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004 01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253 Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 Sorry for any typos. ---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com<mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org<mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>> Greetings Here is the draft response from NARALO . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation Link to document https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... Facts · All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 Reality · The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year Item One: Remote Participation ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative Comment This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months. Comments It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs. General View In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process. Recommendations · Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members · Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. · ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. · Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc Conclusion Under development Footnotes 1. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html 2. 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3. Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4. Poor and Digital Divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5. Broadband Infographic [https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ImlIjTBwn096hysXTdNMuwP3P1f3LDdQIgX4DHb18Q...] Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com<mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org<mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> wrote: ---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com<mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com<mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow Best, Judith Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com<mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com<mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> wrote: ---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com<mailto:olivierkouami@gmail.com>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com<mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>, At Large <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org<mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>> Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié ---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com<mailto:otieno.barrack@gmail.com>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org<mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>> Hi Maureen, My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. Best Regards -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A ---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com<mailto:wanjalaluke1@gmail.com>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com<mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome. _______________________________________________ At-Large mailing list At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org<mailto:At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org _______________________________________________ By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy (https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on.
Thanks Gleen for the consistency on this appeal, I expect RALO leaders, especially in Africa to take ownership of this, considering that most people,in the region may not be too ready to assert their situation, by making a case for members. I would also request @Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> even though she may have sent in the feedback to @León Felipe Sánchez Ambía <leonfelipe@sanchez.mx> to specifically request RALO to provide situation reports aside individual contributions to this trend. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!! *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 7:51 PM Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
As stated before and worth repeating, many of our members are not prepared to cry the blues whilst they are suffering and will continue to suffer. If we have any compassion of the community members we need to make efforts to help those in need and perhaps on the QT the chairs of the RALO's can reach out privately and determine who is in need of a hand up. I don't think anyone in NARALO is in this situation but I would leave it to Eduardo to comment. My guess is that 10 or so members may need the helping hand and a couple of hundred dollars would go along way to assist them in participating in our calls. Glenn Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 1:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
*2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!!
*Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution.
---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
*Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004*
*01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil*
*Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253*
*Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 *
*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club. I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously. AK On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
*2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!!
*Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution.
---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
*Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004*
*01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil*
*Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253*
*Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 *
*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Dear Abdulkarim While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them. It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe. It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit. We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people. If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN. Regards and keep well Maureen On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
*2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!!
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---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
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*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Dear Maureen, Thank you for starting up this initiative of helping one of our community members. I know many of us are facing similar challenges or know people who may be in much worse situation than Daniel’s but I see this as an initiative to support one of our very own although he was caught up doing work not in the capacity of ICANN. I know Daniel as a young man hustling through life doing his best to do the work he is deeply passionate about despite his limited resources. Am inspired by his passion and commitment to volunteering in the community. Even if he was held up in a non ICANN related activity, we can still extend support to him as a colleague or atleast wish him well. A call for support should never take away anybody’s peace unless if you are being forced to contribute. If it does take away anybody’s peace simply ignore , let those who wish to support do so. Things that affect us personally also affect our participation. Therefore this kind of support may not be extended to Daniel only but to also other active members as need arises. Regards Esther Patricia Akello On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 08:13, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
*2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!!
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---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
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*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities (4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Dear Maureen, Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue. Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat. I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection. It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us. AK On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
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*Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution.
---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
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*Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 *
*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities (4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Hi Abdulkarim, Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest. On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
*2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!!
*Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution.
---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
*Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004*
*01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil*
*Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253*
*Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 *
*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear 1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point. AK On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
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---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
*Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004*
*01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil*
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---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
---------- > From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
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---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
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*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
>
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
>
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Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are. It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother. Regards Esther Patricia Akello On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
> Dear Leon > > Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC > meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to > those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while > also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our > volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I > had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, > the sender asked for it to be removed). > > One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel > Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in > Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not > return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but > living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, > his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been > responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real > assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible > return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. > Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how > long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? > Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being > there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried > *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because > internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources > he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme > case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. > > The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in > developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially > when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families > in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished > areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the > world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers > are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is > still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with > an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to > resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the > greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to > encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder > model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as > volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep > ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. > > Regards > Maureen > > > Forwarded Conversation > Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 > ------------------------ > > From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM > To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Dear At-Large Community > > In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff > have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by > the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on > their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. > > During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the > At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns > and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to > help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of > At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. > > Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions > about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to > those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and > engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to > pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board > for their consideration. > > *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full > account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful > contributions to this matter. > > Regards > Maureen > ALAC Chair > > > ---------- > From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Thanks Maureen > As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a > week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced > with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this > pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and > publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" > > We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a > depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may > see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and > economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 > million) > > I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many > folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously > compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and > help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest > ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come > up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the > support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid > to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs > as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where > people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply > for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be > confidential and an optional application process. > > In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of > African and small island states with very poor internet access and very > high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital > divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more > members from the community. As recommendations to join more online > meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have > fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance > on remote participation > > Glenn McKnight > ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 > mcknight.glenn@gmail.com > Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog > www.internetgovernancehub.blog > <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> > http://toronto.ieee.ca/ > IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair > glenn.mcknight@ieee.org > skype gmcknight > twitter @Inkmedia > 289-830 6259 > . > > ---------- >> > From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Thanks Maureen, > This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. > > For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have > been: > > 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end > down to the local service providers. > > 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 > months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect > paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off > at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to > their most essential needs including more data, because some may have > purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. > > I hope this helps. > ____ > REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, > Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, > DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] > (DigitalSENSE Business News > <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS > <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet > <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) > Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, > Oshodi-Lagos > M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms > <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> > Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria > <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> > > *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable > <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* > JOIN us!! > > *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society > (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) > _________________________________________________________________ > *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and > attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is > intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not > accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not > the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this > document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other > person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. > > > ---------- > From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Thank you Maureen and Léon ! > > 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid > conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian > and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in > Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. > REQUEST; > 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so > that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? > 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP > 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting > instead of the local time there? > 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala > Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? > > Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual > meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks > of Face to Face meetings. > > > Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez > > > ---------- > From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM > To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < > maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > > > Dear Glenn and Maureen > > > > These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing > region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families > without work. > > Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite > complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) > correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and > had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one > in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even > longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount > represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic > items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and > energy are sponsored for those families. > > Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they > need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a > volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and > certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. > > Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the > engagement of our community. > > We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of > help. Some even to feed their families. > > Kisses and take care > > > > *Vanda Scartezini* > > *Polo Consultores Associados* > > *Av. Paulista 1159 > <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, > cj 1004* > > *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* > > *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* > > *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * > > *Sorry for any typos. * > > > > > > > > > ---------- > From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Greetings > > Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still > working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing > it for inspiration purpose. > The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments > direct from the ICANN page > > > https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... > > Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few > Months: Leveraging Remote Participation > > Link to document > > > https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... > > > Facts > > - > > All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 > > > Reality > > - > > The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the > CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting > in no Face to Face meetings during that year > > > Item One: Remote Participation > > ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our > work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done > between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, > and a very real and practical alternative > > Comment > > This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the > devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts > the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its > DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly > engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, > as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban > communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next > to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are > few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to > participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet > accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible > for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and > perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support > groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with > national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. > > > Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools > > It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote > participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our > community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the > next four months. > > Comments > > It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean > etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all > of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and > others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow > speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants > due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed > to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. > > Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars > > We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority > topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new > opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to > participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and > adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new > participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These > activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, > lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. > > However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where > high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to > pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any > surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of > end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty > responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited > bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states > combined with high Internet costs. > > General View > > In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting > (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a > novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in > future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. > Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed > to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of > losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike > other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a > vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. > > Our community unlike the other the government or business community > do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our > community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If > the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants > from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize > the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The > process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and > approval process. > > > > Recommendations > > - > > Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members > - > > Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet > Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can > participate. > - > > ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all > users. > - > > Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public > webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. > latency, quality etc > > > > Conclusion > Under development > > Footnotes > > 1. > > > https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html > > 2. > > 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds > https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... > 3. > > Students and digital divide > https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... > 4. > > Poor and Digital Divide > > https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... > 5. > > Broadband Infographic > > > > Glenn McKnight > ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 > mcknight.glenn@gmail.com > Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog > www.internetgovernancehub.blog > <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> > http://toronto.ieee.ca/ > IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair > glenn.mcknight@ieee.org > skype gmcknight > twitter @Inkmedia > 289-830 6259 > . > > > On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < > maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: > >> > > ---------- > From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> > Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM > To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > > > Hi Glenn, > I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but > will do so tomorrow > > Best, > Judith > > Sent from my iPad > judith@jhellerstein.com > Skype ID:JudithHellerstein > > On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < > mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > ---------- > From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> > Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM > To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < > at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Hi all. > Greetings everyone from Sénégal. > +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad > pandemic moment. > I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. > Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. > Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. > Warm regards > Olévié > > > ---------- > From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> > Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Hi Maureen, > > My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the > fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who > dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing > to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and > the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs > valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS > ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have > the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution > to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs > incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a > suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. > > Best Regards > > > > -- > Barrack O. Otieno > +254721325277 > +254733206359 > Skype: barrack.otieno > PGP ID: 0x2611D86A > > > > ---------- > From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> > Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > > > Thanks Maureen , > Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based > in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on > cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID > 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing > countries is welcome. > >> > > _______________________________________________ > At-Large mailing list > At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org > https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large > > At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org > _______________________________________________ > By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of > your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list > accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( > https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of > Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). 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-- Regards Esther Patricia
+1 Patricia and Barak! Alberto Obtener Outlook para iOS On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 11:49 AM -0300, "Patricia Akello" <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote: Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are. It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother. Regards Esther Patricia Akello On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnightICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.comCurator for Internet Governance Hub Blogwww.internetgovernancehub.blog http://toronto.ieee.ca/IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia289-830 6259 . On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: Dear Barrack,Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear 1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit.3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level.I hope you understand my point. AK On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote: Hi Abdulkarim, Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest. On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: Dear Maureen, Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue. Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat. I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection. It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us. AK On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: Dear Abdulkarim While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them. It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe. It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit. We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people. If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN. Regards and keep wellMaureen On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club. I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously. AK On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: Dear Leon Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed). One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that he is worried that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. RegardsMaureen Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------ From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Dear At-Large Community In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration. Please respond only to this thread before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter. Regards MaureenALAC Chair ---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million) I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process. In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.comCurator for Internet Governance Hub Blogwww.internetgovernancehub.blog http://toronto.ieee.ca/IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia289-830 6259 . ---------- From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Thanks Maureen,This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been: 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers. 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. I hope this helps. ____REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [Multiple-award winning medium] (DigitalSENSE Business News; ITREALMS, NaijaAgroNet)Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria 2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable JOIN us!! *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS)_________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. ---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST;1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours?2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there?4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings. Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez ---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Dear Glenn and Maureen These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work. Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families. Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community. We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families. Kisses and take care Vanda Scartezini Polo Consultores Associados Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004 01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253 Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 Sorry for any typos. ---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Greetings Here is the draft response from NARALO . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation Link to document https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... Facts All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 Reality The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year Item One: Remote Participation ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative Comment This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months. Comments It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs. General View In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process. Recommendations Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc Conclusion Under development Footnotes https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... Poor and Digital Divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... Broadband Infographic Glenn McKnightICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.comCurator for Internet Governance Hub Blogwww.internetgovernancehub.blog http://toronto.ieee.ca/IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia289-830 6259 . On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: ---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Hi Glenn,I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow Best,Judith Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: ---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Hi all.Greetings everyone from Sénégal.+1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment.I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy.Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too.Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed.Warm regardsOlévié ---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Hi Maureen, My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. Best Regards -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A ---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome. _______________________________________________ At-Large mailing list At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org _______________________________________________ By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy (https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. Website, Weekly Bulletin UGPortal PGPortal Website, Weekly Bulletin UGPortal PGPortal _______________________________________________ At-Large mailing list At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org _______________________________________________ By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy (https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. _______________________________________________ At-Large mailing list At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org _______________________________________________ By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy (https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on.-- Regards Esther Patricia
Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
> Dear Maureen, > I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I > totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the > Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in > your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges > being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a > face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a > message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is > clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly > overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most > significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the > mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise > with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly > discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people > around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't > clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it > is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even > family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all > faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut > down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN > is now a social club. > > I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take > up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to > having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community > and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue > for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been > raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take > it seriously. > > AK > > On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < > maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: > >> Dear Leon >> >> Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC >> meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to >> those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while >> also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our >> volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I >> had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, >> the sender asked for it to be removed). >> >> One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel >> Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in >> Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not >> return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but >> living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, >> his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been >> responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real >> assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible >> return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. >> Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how >> long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? >> Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being >> there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is >> worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings >> because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little >> resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is >> an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. >> >> The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in >> developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially >> when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families >> in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished >> areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the >> world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers >> are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is >> still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with >> an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to >> resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the >> greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to >> encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder >> model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as >> volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep >> ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. >> >> Regards >> Maureen >> >> >> Forwarded Conversation >> Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during >> COVID-19 >> ------------------------ >> >> From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM >> To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Dear At-Large Community >> >> In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff >> have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by >> the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on >> their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. >> >> During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the >> At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns >> and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to >> help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of >> At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. >> >> Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions >> about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to >> those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and >> engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to >> pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board >> for their consideration. >> >> *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the >> full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful >> contributions to this matter. >> >> Regards >> Maureen >> ALAC Chair >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Thanks Maureen >> As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a >> week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced >> with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this >> pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and >> publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" >> >> We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a >> depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may >> see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and >> economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 >> million) >> >> I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many >> folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously >> compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and >> help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest >> ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come >> up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the >> support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid >> to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs >> as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where >> people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply >> for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be >> confidential and an optional application process. >> >> In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of >> African and small island states with very poor internet access and very >> high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital >> divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more >> members from the community. As recommendations to join more online >> meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have >> fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance >> on remote participation >> >> Glenn McKnight >> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >> skype gmcknight >> twitter @Inkmedia >> 289-830 6259 >> . >> >> ---------- >>> >> From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Thanks Maureen, >> This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. >> >> For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should >> have been: >> >> 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end >> down to the local service providers. >> >> 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 >> months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect >> paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off >> at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to >> their most essential needs including more data, because some may have >> purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. >> >> I hope this helps. >> ____ >> REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, >> Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, >> DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] >> (DigitalSENSE Business News >> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS >> <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet >> <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) >> Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, >> Oshodi-Lagos >> M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms >> <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> >> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria >> <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> >> >> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable >> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* >> JOIN us!! >> >> *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society >> (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) >> _________________________________________________________________ >> *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and >> attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is >> intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not >> accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not >> the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this >> document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other >> person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. >> >> >> ---------- >> From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! >> >> 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid >> conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian >> and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in >> Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. >> REQUEST; >> 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so >> that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? >> 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP >> 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting >> instead of the local time there? >> 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala >> Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? >> >> Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual >> meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks >> of Face to Face meetings. >> >> >> Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM >> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> >> >> Dear Glenn and Maureen >> >> >> >> These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing >> region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families >> without work. >> >> Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite >> complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) >> correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and >> had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one >> in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even >> longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount >> represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic >> items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and >> energy are sponsored for those families. >> >> Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they >> need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a >> volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and >> certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. >> >> Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help >> the engagement of our community. >> >> We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need >> of help. Some even to feed their families. >> >> Kisses and take care >> >> >> >> *Vanda Scartezini* >> >> *Polo Consultores Associados* >> >> *Av. Paulista 1159 >> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, >> cj 1004* >> >> *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* >> >> *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* >> >> *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * >> >> *Sorry for any typos. * >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Greetings >> >> Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still >> working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing >> it for inspiration purpose. >> The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments >> direct from the ICANN page >> >> >> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... >> >> Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few >> Months: Leveraging Remote Participation >> >> Link to document >> >> >> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... >> >> >> Facts >> >> - >> >> All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 >> >> >> Reality >> >> - >> >> The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the >> CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and >> resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year >> >> >> Item One: Remote Participation >> >> ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes >> our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work >> done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more >> crucial, and a very real and practical alternative >> >> Comment >> >> This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the >> devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts >> the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its >> DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly >> engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, >> as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban >> communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it >> next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there >> are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to >> participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet >> accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible >> for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and >> perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support >> groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with >> national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. >> >> >> Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools >> >> It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote >> participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our >> community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the >> next four months. >> >> Comments >> >> It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean >> etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all >> of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and >> others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow >> speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants >> due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed >> to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. >> >> Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars >> >> We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority >> topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new >> opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to >> participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and >> adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new >> participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These >> activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, >> lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. >> >> However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where >> high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to >> pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any >> surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of >> end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty >> responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited >> bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states >> combined with high Internet costs. >> >> General View >> >> In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting >> (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a >> novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in >> future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. >> Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed >> to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of >> losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike >> other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a >> vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. >> >> Our community unlike the other the government or business >> community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their >> volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay >> to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial >> loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose >> that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special >> connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a >> simple application and approval process. >> >> >> >> Recommendations >> >> - >> >> Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members >> - >> >> Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet >> Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can >> participate. >> - >> >> ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all >> users. >> - >> >> Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public >> webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. >> latency, quality etc >> >> >> >> Conclusion >> Under development >> >> Footnotes >> >> 1. >> >> >> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html >> >> 2. >> >> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds >> https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... >> 3. >> >> Students and digital divide >> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... >> 4. >> >> Poor and Digital Divide >> >> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... >> 5. >> >> Broadband Infographic >> >> >> >> Glenn McKnight >> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >> skype gmcknight >> twitter @Inkmedia >> 289-830 6259 >> . >> >> >> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> >> >> ---------- >> From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> >> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM >> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> >> >> Hi Glenn, >> I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but >> will do so tomorrow >> >> Best, >> Judith >> >> Sent from my iPad >> judith@jhellerstein.com >> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein >> >> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < >> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >> >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> >> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM >> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < >> at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Hi all. >> Greetings everyone from Sénégal. >> +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad >> pandemic moment. >> I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. >> Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. >> Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. >> Warm regards >> Olévié >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> >> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Hi Maureen, >> >> My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the >> fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who >> dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing >> to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and >> the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs >> valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS >> ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have >> the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution >> to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs >> incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a >> suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. >> >> Best Regards >> >> >> >> -- >> Barrack O. Otieno >> +254721325277 >> +254733206359 >> Skype: barrack.otieno >> PGP ID: 0x2611D86A >> >> >> >> ---------- >> From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> >> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> >> >> Thanks Maureen , >> Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am >> based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at >> times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The >> COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from >> developing countries is welcome. >> >>> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> At-Large mailing list >> At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org >> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large >> >> At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org >> _______________________________________________ >> By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of >> your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list >> accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( >> https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of >> Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the >> Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, >> including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling >> delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. > > > > > > > > Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin > <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal > <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal > <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> > >
Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/>
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-- Regards Esther Patricia
Sharing document [image: image.png] Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 12:06 PM Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
> Dear Abdulkarim > > While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to > that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of > responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership > team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came > upon them. > > It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his > leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only > found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he > should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might > not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown > timeframe. > > It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at > the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I > believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with > anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is > any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his > country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my > bit. > > We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has > volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as > in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support > even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other > like-minded people. > > If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is > fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as > we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN. > > Regards and keep well > Maureen > > > On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < > oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: > >> Dear Maureen, >> I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I >> totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the >> Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in >> your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges >> being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a >> face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a >> message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is >> clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly >> overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most >> significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the >> mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise >> with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly >> discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people >> around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't >> clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it >> is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even >> family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all >> faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut >> down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN >> is now a social club. >> >> I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take >> up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to >> having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community >> and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue >> for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been >> raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take >> it seriously. >> >> AK >> >> On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> Dear Leon >>> >>> Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC >>> meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to >>> those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while >>> also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our >>> volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I >>> had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, >>> the sender asked for it to be removed). >>> >>> One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel >>> Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in >>> Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not >>> return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but >>> living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, >>> his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been >>> responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real >>> assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible >>> return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. >>> Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how >>> long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? >>> Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being >>> there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is >>> worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings >>> because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little >>> resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is >>> an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. >>> >>> The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in >>> developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially >>> when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families >>> in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished >>> areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the >>> world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers >>> are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is >>> still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with >>> an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to >>> resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the >>> greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to >>> encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder >>> model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as >>> volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep >>> ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. >>> >>> Regards >>> Maureen >>> >>> >>> Forwarded Conversation >>> Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during >>> COVID-19 >>> ------------------------ >>> >>> From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM >>> To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Dear At-Large Community >>> >>> In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff >>> have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by >>> the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on >>> their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. >>> >>> During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the >>> At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns >>> and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to >>> help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of >>> At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. >>> >>> Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions >>> about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to >>> those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and >>> engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to >>> pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board >>> for their consideration. >>> >>> *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the >>> full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful >>> contributions to this matter. >>> >>> Regards >>> Maureen >>> ALAC Chair >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen >>> As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a >>> week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced >>> with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this >>> pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and >>> publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" >>> >>> We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a >>> depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may >>> see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and >>> economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 >>> million) >>> >>> I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many >>> folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously >>> compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and >>> help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest >>> ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come >>> up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the >>> support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid >>> to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs >>> as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where >>> people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply >>> for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be >>> confidential and an optional application process. >>> >>> In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of >>> African and small island states with very poor internet access and very >>> high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital >>> divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more >>> members from the community. As recommendations to join more online >>> meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have >>> fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance >>> on remote participation >>> >>> Glenn McKnight >>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>> skype gmcknight >>> twitter @Inkmedia >>> 289-830 6259 >>> . >>> >>> ---------- >>>> >>> From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen, >>> This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. >>> >>> For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should >>> have been: >>> >>> 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end >>> down to the local service providers. >>> >>> 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 >>> months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect >>> paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off >>> at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to >>> their most essential needs including more data, because some may have >>> purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. >>> >>> I hope this helps. >>> ____ >>> REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, >>> Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, >>> DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] >>> (DigitalSENSE Business News >>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS >>> <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet >>> <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) >>> Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, >>> Oshodi-Lagos >>> M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms >>> <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> >>> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria >>> <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> >>> >>> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable >>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* >>> JOIN us!! >>> >>> *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society >>> (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) >>> _________________________________________________________________ >>> *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and >>> attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is >>> intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not >>> accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not >>> the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this >>> document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other >>> person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! >>> >>> 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid >>> conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian >>> and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in >>> Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. >>> REQUEST; >>> 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day >>> so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? >>> 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP >>> 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting >>> instead of the local time there? >>> 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala >>> Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? >>> >>> Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual >>> meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks >>> of Face to Face meetings. >>> >>> >>> Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < >>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Dear Glenn and Maureen >>> >>> >>> >>> These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing >>> region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families >>> without work. >>> >>> Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite >>> complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) >>> correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and >>> had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one >>> in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even >>> longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount >>> represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic >>> items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and >>> energy are sponsored for those families. >>> >>> Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they >>> need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a >>> volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and >>> certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. >>> >>> Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help >>> the engagement of our community. >>> >>> We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need >>> of help. Some even to feed their families. >>> >>> Kisses and take care >>> >>> >>> >>> *Vanda Scartezini* >>> >>> *Polo Consultores Associados* >>> >>> *Av. Paulista 1159 >>> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, >>> cj 1004* >>> >>> *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* >>> >>> *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* >>> >>> *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * >>> >>> *Sorry for any typos. * >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Greetings >>> >>> Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still >>> working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing >>> it for inspiration purpose. >>> The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments >>> direct from the ICANN page >>> >>> >>> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... >>> >>> Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few >>> Months: Leveraging Remote Participation >>> >>> Link to document >>> >>> >>> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... >>> >>> >>> Facts >>> >>> - >>> >>> All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 >>> >>> >>> Reality >>> >>> - >>> >>> The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the >>> CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and >>> resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year >>> >>> >>> Item One: Remote Participation >>> >>> ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes >>> our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work >>> done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more >>> crucial, and a very real and practical alternative >>> >>> Comment >>> >>> This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the >>> devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts >>> the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its >>> DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly >>> engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, >>> as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor >>> urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes >>> it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if >>> there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want >>> to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet >>> accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible >>> for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and >>> perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support >>> groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with >>> national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. >>> >>> >>> Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools >>> >>> It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote >>> participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our >>> community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the >>> next four months. >>> >>> Comments >>> >>> It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean >>> etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all >>> of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and >>> others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow >>> speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants >>> due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed >>> to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. >>> >>> Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars >>> >>> We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority >>> topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new >>> opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to >>> participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and >>> adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new >>> participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These >>> activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, >>> lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. >>> >>> However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where >>> high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to >>> pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any >>> surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of >>> end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty >>> responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited >>> bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states >>> combined with high Internet costs. >>> >>> General View >>> >>> In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting >>> (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a >>> novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in >>> future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. >>> Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed >>> to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of >>> losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike >>> other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a >>> vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. >>> >>> Our community unlike the other the government or business >>> community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their >>> volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay >>> to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial >>> loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose >>> that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special >>> connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a >>> simple application and approval process. >>> >>> >>> >>> Recommendations >>> >>> - >>> >>> Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members >>> - >>> >>> Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet >>> Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can >>> participate. >>> - >>> >>> ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all >>> users. >>> - >>> >>> Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN >>> Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity >>> experiences ie. latency, quality etc >>> >>> >>> >>> Conclusion >>> Under development >>> >>> Footnotes >>> >>> 1. >>> >>> >>> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html >>> >>> 2. >>> >>> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds >>> https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... >>> 3. >>> >>> Students and digital divide >>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... >>> 4. >>> >>> Poor and Digital Divide >>> >>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... >>> 5. >>> >>> Broadband Infographic >>> >>> >>> >>> Glenn McKnight >>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>> skype gmcknight >>> twitter @Inkmedia >>> 289-830 6259 >>> . >>> >>> >>> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> >>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Hi Glenn, >>> I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in >>> but will do so tomorrow >>> >>> Best, >>> Judith >>> >>> Sent from my iPad >>> judith@jhellerstein.com >>> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein >>> >>> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> >>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < >>> at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Hi all. >>> Greetings everyone from Sénégal. >>> +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad >>> pandemic moment. >>> I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. >>> Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. >>> Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. >>> Warm regards >>> Olévié >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> >>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Hi Maureen, >>> >>> My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the >>> fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who >>> dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing >>> to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and >>> the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs >>> valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS >>> ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have >>> the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution >>> to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs >>> incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a >>> suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. >>> >>> Best Regards >>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> Barrack O. Otieno >>> +254721325277 >>> +254733206359 >>> Skype: barrack.otieno >>> PGP ID: 0x2611D86A >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> >>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen , >>> Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am >>> based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at >>> times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The >>> COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from >>> developing countries is welcome. >>> >>>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> At-Large mailing list >>> At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org >>> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large >>> >>> At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org >>> _______________________________________________ >>> By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of >>> your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list >>> accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( >>> https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of >>> Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the >>> Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, >>> including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling >>> delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin >> <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal >> <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal >> <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> >> >>
Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/>
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-- Regards Esther Patricia
+1 Glenn Best Le sam. 9 mai 2020 à 18:06, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> a écrit :
Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
> Dear Abdulkarim > > While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to > that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of > responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership > team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came > upon them. > > It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his > leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only > found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he > should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might > not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown > timeframe. > > It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at > the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I > believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with > anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is > any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his > country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my > bit. > > We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has > volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as > in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support > even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other > like-minded people. > > If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is > fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as > we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN. > > Regards and keep well > Maureen > > > On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < > oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: > >> Dear Maureen, >> I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I >> totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the >> Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in >> your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges >> being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a >> face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a >> message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is >> clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly >> overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most >> significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the >> mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise >> with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly >> discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people >> around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't >> clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it >> is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even >> family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all >> faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut >> down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN >> is now a social club. >> >> I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take >> up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to >> having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community >> and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue >> for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been >> raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take >> it seriously. >> >> AK >> >> On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> Dear Leon >>> >>> Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC >>> meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to >>> those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while >>> also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our >>> volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I >>> had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, >>> the sender asked for it to be removed). >>> >>> One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel >>> Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in >>> Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not >>> return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but >>> living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, >>> his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been >>> responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real >>> assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible >>> return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. >>> Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how >>> long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? >>> Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being >>> there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is >>> worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings >>> because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little >>> resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is >>> an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. >>> >>> The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in >>> developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially >>> when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families >>> in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished >>> areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the >>> world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers >>> are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is >>> still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with >>> an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to >>> resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the >>> greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to >>> encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder >>> model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as >>> volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep >>> ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. >>> >>> Regards >>> Maureen >>> >>> >>> Forwarded Conversation >>> Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during >>> COVID-19 >>> ------------------------ >>> >>> From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM >>> To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Dear At-Large Community >>> >>> In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff >>> have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by >>> the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on >>> their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. >>> >>> During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the >>> At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns >>> and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to >>> help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of >>> At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. >>> >>> Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions >>> about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to >>> those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and >>> engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to >>> pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board >>> for their consideration. >>> >>> *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the >>> full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful >>> contributions to this matter. >>> >>> Regards >>> Maureen >>> ALAC Chair >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen >>> As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a >>> week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced >>> with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this >>> pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and >>> publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" >>> >>> We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a >>> depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may >>> see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and >>> economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 >>> million) >>> >>> I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many >>> folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously >>> compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and >>> help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest >>> ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come >>> up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the >>> support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid >>> to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs >>> as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where >>> people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply >>> for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be >>> confidential and an optional application process. >>> >>> In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of >>> African and small island states with very poor internet access and very >>> high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital >>> divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more >>> members from the community. As recommendations to join more online >>> meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have >>> fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance >>> on remote participation >>> >>> Glenn McKnight >>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>> skype gmcknight >>> twitter @Inkmedia >>> 289-830 6259 >>> . >>> >>> ---------- >>>> >>> From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen, >>> This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. >>> >>> For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should >>> have been: >>> >>> 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end >>> down to the local service providers. >>> >>> 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 >>> months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect >>> paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off >>> at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to >>> their most essential needs including more data, because some may have >>> purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. >>> >>> I hope this helps. >>> ____ >>> REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, >>> Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, >>> DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] >>> (DigitalSENSE Business News >>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS >>> <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet >>> <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) >>> Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, >>> Oshodi-Lagos >>> M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms >>> <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> >>> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria >>> <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> >>> >>> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable >>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* >>> JOIN us!! >>> >>> *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society >>> (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) >>> _________________________________________________________________ >>> *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and >>> attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is >>> intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not >>> accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not >>> the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this >>> document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other >>> person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! >>> >>> 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid >>> conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian >>> and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in >>> Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. >>> REQUEST; >>> 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day >>> so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? >>> 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP >>> 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting >>> instead of the local time there? >>> 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala >>> Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? >>> >>> Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual >>> meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks >>> of Face to Face meetings. >>> >>> >>> Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < >>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Dear Glenn and Maureen >>> >>> >>> >>> These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing >>> region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families >>> without work. >>> >>> Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite >>> complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) >>> correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and >>> had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one >>> in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even >>> longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount >>> represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic >>> items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and >>> energy are sponsored for those families. >>> >>> Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they >>> need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a >>> volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and >>> certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. >>> >>> Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help >>> the engagement of our community. >>> >>> We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need >>> of help. Some even to feed their families. >>> >>> Kisses and take care >>> >>> >>> >>> *Vanda Scartezini* >>> >>> *Polo Consultores Associados* >>> >>> *Av. Paulista 1159 >>> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, >>> cj 1004* >>> >>> *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* >>> >>> *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* >>> >>> *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * >>> >>> *Sorry for any typos. * >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Greetings >>> >>> Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still >>> working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing >>> it for inspiration purpose. >>> The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments >>> direct from the ICANN page >>> >>> >>> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... >>> >>> Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few >>> Months: Leveraging Remote Participation >>> >>> Link to document >>> >>> >>> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... >>> >>> >>> Facts >>> >>> - >>> >>> All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 >>> >>> >>> Reality >>> >>> - >>> >>> The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the >>> CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and >>> resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year >>> >>> >>> Item One: Remote Participation >>> >>> ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes >>> our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work >>> done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more >>> crucial, and a very real and practical alternative >>> >>> Comment >>> >>> This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the >>> devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts >>> the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its >>> DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly >>> engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, >>> as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor >>> urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes >>> it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if >>> there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want >>> to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet >>> accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible >>> for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and >>> perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support >>> groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with >>> national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. >>> >>> >>> Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools >>> >>> It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote >>> participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our >>> community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the >>> next four months. >>> >>> Comments >>> >>> It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean >>> etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all >>> of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and >>> others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow >>> speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants >>> due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed >>> to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. >>> >>> Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars >>> >>> We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority >>> topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new >>> opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to >>> participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and >>> adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new >>> participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These >>> activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, >>> lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. >>> >>> However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where >>> high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to >>> pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any >>> surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of >>> end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty >>> responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited >>> bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states >>> combined with high Internet costs. >>> >>> General View >>> >>> In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting >>> (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a >>> novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in >>> future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. >>> Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed >>> to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of >>> losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike >>> other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a >>> vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. >>> >>> Our community unlike the other the government or business >>> community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their >>> volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay >>> to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial >>> loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose >>> that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special >>> connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a >>> simple application and approval process. >>> >>> >>> >>> Recommendations >>> >>> - >>> >>> Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members >>> - >>> >>> Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet >>> Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can >>> participate. >>> - >>> >>> ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all >>> users. >>> - >>> >>> Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN >>> Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity >>> experiences ie. latency, quality etc >>> >>> >>> >>> Conclusion >>> Under development >>> >>> Footnotes >>> >>> 1. >>> >>> >>> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html >>> >>> 2. >>> >>> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds >>> https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... >>> 3. >>> >>> Students and digital divide >>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... >>> 4. >>> >>> Poor and Digital Divide >>> >>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... >>> 5. >>> >>> Broadband Infographic >>> >>> >>> >>> Glenn McKnight >>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>> skype gmcknight >>> twitter @Inkmedia >>> 289-830 6259 >>> . >>> >>> >>> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> >>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Hi Glenn, >>> I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in >>> but will do so tomorrow >>> >>> Best, >>> Judith >>> >>> Sent from my iPad >>> judith@jhellerstein.com >>> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein >>> >>> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> >>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < >>> at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Hi all. >>> Greetings everyone from Sénégal. >>> +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad >>> pandemic moment. >>> I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. >>> Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. >>> Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. >>> Warm regards >>> Olévié >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> >>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Hi Maureen, >>> >>> My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the >>> fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who >>> dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing >>> to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and >>> the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs >>> valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS >>> ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have >>> the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution >>> to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs >>> incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a >>> suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. >>> >>> Best Regards >>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> Barrack O. Otieno >>> +254721325277 >>> +254733206359 >>> Skype: barrack.otieno >>> PGP ID: 0x2611D86A >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> >>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen , >>> Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am >>> based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at >>> times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The >>> COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from >>> developing countries is welcome. >>> >>>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> At-Large mailing list >>> At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org >>> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large >>> >>> At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org >>> _______________________________________________ >>> By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of >>> your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list >>> accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( >>> https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of >>> Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the >>> Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, >>> including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling >>> delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin >> <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal >> <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal >> <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> >> >>
Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/>
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-- Regards Esther Patricia
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Hi Glenn, I appreciate all your efforts and understand the concerns you have raised regarding connectivity which is indeed a big challenge in Africa. Now that the issue has been raised, our hope is that a solution will be found real soon. Regards Esther Patricia Akello On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:06, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
> Dear Abdulkarim > > While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to > that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of > responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership > team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came > upon them. > > It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his > leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only > found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he > should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might > not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown > timeframe. > > It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at > the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I > believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with > anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is > any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his > country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my > bit. > > We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has > volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as > in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support > even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other > like-minded people. > > If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is > fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as > we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN. > > Regards and keep well > Maureen > > > On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < > oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: > >> Dear Maureen, >> I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I >> totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the >> Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in >> your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges >> being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a >> face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a >> message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is >> clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly >> overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most >> significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the >> mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise >> with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly >> discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people >> around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't >> clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it >> is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even >> family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all >> faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut >> down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN >> is now a social club. >> >> I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take >> up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to >> having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community >> and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue >> for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been >> raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take >> it seriously. >> >> AK >> >> On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> Dear Leon >>> >>> Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC >>> meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to >>> those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while >>> also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our >>> volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I >>> had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, >>> the sender asked for it to be removed). >>> >>> One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel >>> Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in >>> Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not >>> return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but >>> living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, >>> his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been >>> responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real >>> assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible >>> return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. >>> Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how >>> long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? >>> Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being >>> there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is >>> worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings >>> because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little >>> resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is >>> an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. >>> >>> The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in >>> developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially >>> when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families >>> in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished >>> areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the >>> world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers >>> are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is >>> still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with >>> an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to >>> resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the >>> greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to >>> encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder >>> model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as >>> volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep >>> ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. >>> >>> Regards >>> Maureen >>> >>> >>> Forwarded Conversation >>> Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during >>> COVID-19 >>> ------------------------ >>> >>> From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM >>> To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Dear At-Large Community >>> >>> In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff >>> have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by >>> the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on >>> their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. >>> >>> During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the >>> At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns >>> and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to >>> help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of >>> At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. >>> >>> Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions >>> about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to >>> those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and >>> engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to >>> pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board >>> for their consideration. >>> >>> *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the >>> full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful >>> contributions to this matter. >>> >>> Regards >>> Maureen >>> ALAC Chair >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen >>> As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a >>> week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced >>> with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this >>> pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and >>> publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" >>> >>> We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a >>> depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may >>> see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and >>> economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 >>> million) >>> >>> I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many >>> folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously >>> compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and >>> help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest >>> ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come >>> up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the >>> support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid >>> to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs >>> as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where >>> people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply >>> for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be >>> confidential and an optional application process. >>> >>> In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of >>> African and small island states with very poor internet access and very >>> high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital >>> divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more >>> members from the community. As recommendations to join more online >>> meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have >>> fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance >>> on remote participation >>> >>> Glenn McKnight >>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>> skype gmcknight >>> twitter @Inkmedia >>> 289-830 6259 >>> . >>> >>> ---------- >>>> >>> From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen, >>> This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. >>> >>> For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should >>> have been: >>> >>> 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end >>> down to the local service providers. >>> >>> 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 >>> months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect >>> paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off >>> at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to >>> their most essential needs including more data, because some may have >>> purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. >>> >>> I hope this helps. >>> ____ >>> REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, >>> Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, >>> DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] >>> (DigitalSENSE Business News >>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS >>> <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet >>> <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) >>> Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, >>> Oshodi-Lagos >>> M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms >>> <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> >>> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria >>> <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> >>> >>> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable >>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* >>> JOIN us!! >>> >>> *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society >>> (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) >>> _________________________________________________________________ >>> *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and >>> attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is >>> intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not >>> accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not >>> the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this >>> document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other >>> person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! >>> >>> 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid >>> conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian >>> and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in >>> Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. >>> REQUEST; >>> 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day >>> so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? >>> 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP >>> 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting >>> instead of the local time there? >>> 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala >>> Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? >>> >>> Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual >>> meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks >>> of Face to Face meetings. >>> >>> >>> Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < >>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Dear Glenn and Maureen >>> >>> >>> >>> These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing >>> region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families >>> without work. >>> >>> Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite >>> complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) >>> correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and >>> had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one >>> in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even >>> longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount >>> represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic >>> items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and >>> energy are sponsored for those families. >>> >>> Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they >>> need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a >>> volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and >>> certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. >>> >>> Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help >>> the engagement of our community. >>> >>> We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need >>> of help. Some even to feed their families. >>> >>> Kisses and take care >>> >>> >>> >>> *Vanda Scartezini* >>> >>> *Polo Consultores Associados* >>> >>> *Av. Paulista 1159 >>> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, >>> cj 1004* >>> >>> *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* >>> >>> *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* >>> >>> *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * >>> >>> *Sorry for any typos. * >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Greetings >>> >>> Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still >>> working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing >>> it for inspiration purpose. >>> The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments >>> direct from the ICANN page >>> >>> >>> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... >>> >>> Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few >>> Months: Leveraging Remote Participation >>> >>> Link to document >>> >>> >>> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... >>> >>> >>> Facts >>> >>> - >>> >>> All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 >>> >>> >>> Reality >>> >>> - >>> >>> The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the >>> CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and >>> resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year >>> >>> >>> Item One: Remote Participation >>> >>> ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes >>> our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work >>> done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more >>> crucial, and a very real and practical alternative >>> >>> Comment >>> >>> This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the >>> devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts >>> the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its >>> DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly >>> engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, >>> as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor >>> urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes >>> it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if >>> there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want >>> to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet >>> accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible >>> for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and >>> perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support >>> groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with >>> national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. >>> >>> >>> Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools >>> >>> It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote >>> participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our >>> community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the >>> next four months. >>> >>> Comments >>> >>> It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean >>> etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all >>> of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and >>> others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow >>> speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants >>> due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed >>> to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. >>> >>> Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars >>> >>> We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority >>> topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new >>> opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to >>> participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and >>> adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new >>> participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These >>> activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, >>> lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. >>> >>> However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where >>> high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to >>> pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any >>> surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of >>> end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty >>> responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited >>> bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states >>> combined with high Internet costs. >>> >>> General View >>> >>> In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting >>> (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a >>> novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in >>> future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. >>> Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed >>> to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of >>> losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike >>> other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a >>> vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. >>> >>> Our community unlike the other the government or business >>> community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their >>> volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay >>> to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial >>> loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose >>> that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special >>> connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a >>> simple application and approval process. >>> >>> >>> >>> Recommendations >>> >>> - >>> >>> Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members >>> - >>> >>> Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet >>> Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can >>> participate. >>> - >>> >>> ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all >>> users. >>> - >>> >>> Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN >>> Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity >>> experiences ie. latency, quality etc >>> >>> >>> >>> Conclusion >>> Under development >>> >>> Footnotes >>> >>> 1. >>> >>> >>> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html >>> >>> 2. >>> >>> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds >>> https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... >>> 3. >>> >>> Students and digital divide >>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... >>> 4. >>> >>> Poor and Digital Divide >>> >>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... >>> 5. >>> >>> Broadband Infographic >>> >>> >>> >>> Glenn McKnight >>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>> skype gmcknight >>> twitter @Inkmedia >>> 289-830 6259 >>> . >>> >>> >>> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> >>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Hi Glenn, >>> I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in >>> but will do so tomorrow >>> >>> Best, >>> Judith >>> >>> Sent from my iPad >>> judith@jhellerstein.com >>> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein >>> >>> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> >>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < >>> at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Hi all. >>> Greetings everyone from Sénégal. >>> +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad >>> pandemic moment. >>> I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. >>> Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. >>> Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. >>> Warm regards >>> Olévié >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> >>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Hi Maureen, >>> >>> My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the >>> fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who >>> dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing >>> to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and >>> the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs >>> valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS >>> ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have >>> the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution >>> to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs >>> incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a >>> suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. >>> >>> Best Regards >>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> Barrack O. Otieno >>> +254721325277 >>> +254733206359 >>> Skype: barrack.otieno >>> PGP ID: 0x2611D86A >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> >>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen , >>> Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am >>> based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at >>> times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The >>> COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from >>> developing countries is welcome. >>> >>>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> At-Large mailing list >>> At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org >>> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large >>> >>> At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org >>> _______________________________________________ >>> By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of >>> your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list >>> accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( >>> https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of >>> Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the >>> Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, >>> including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling >>> delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin >> <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal >> <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal >> <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> >> >>
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-- Regards Esther Patricia
-- Regards Esther Patricia
+1 Patricia Thank you, Sarah On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:07, Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Glenn,
I appreciate all your efforts and understand the concerns you have raised regarding connectivity which is indeed a big challenge in Africa. Now that the issue has been raised, our hope is that a solution will be found real soon.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:06, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno < otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
> Dear Maureen, > > Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that > I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be > supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the > expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the > community is not there?. > I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the > need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different > people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next > level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a > non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy > decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and > private issue. > > Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if > you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should > not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need > to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case > yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been > attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT > 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to > respond because I smell a rat. > > I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because > we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand > why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected > by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far > better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some > don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection. > > It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is > voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, > listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to > us. > > AK > > > > > On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < > maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: > >> Dear Abdulkarim >> >> While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to >> that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of >> responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership >> team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came >> upon them. >> >> It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his >> leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only >> found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he >> should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might >> not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown >> timeframe. >> >> It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country >> at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I >> believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with >> anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is >> any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his >> country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my >> bit. >> >> We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has >> volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as >> in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support >> even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other >> like-minded people. >> >> If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is >> fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as >> we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN. >> >> Regards and keep well >> Maureen >> >> >> On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < >> oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: >> >>> Dear Maureen, >>> I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I >>> totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the >>> Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in >>> your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges >>> being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a >>> face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a >>> message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is >>> clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly >>> overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most >>> significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the >>> mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise >>> with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly >>> discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people >>> around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't >>> clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it >>> is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even >>> family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all >>> faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut >>> down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN >>> is now a social club. >>> >>> I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take >>> up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to >>> having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community >>> and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue >>> for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been >>> raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take >>> it seriously. >>> >>> AK >>> >>> On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>>> Dear Leon >>>> >>>> Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the >>>> ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments >>>> to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation >>>> while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by >>>> our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the >>>> topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once >>>> revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed). >>>> >>>> One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel >>>> Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in >>>> Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not >>>> return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but >>>> living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, >>>> his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been >>>> responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real >>>> assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible >>>> return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. >>>> Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how >>>> long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? >>>> Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being >>>> there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is >>>> worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings >>>> because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little >>>> resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is >>>> an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. >>>> >>>> The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in >>>> developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially >>>> when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families >>>> in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished >>>> areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the >>>> world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers >>>> are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is >>>> still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with >>>> an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to >>>> resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the >>>> greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to >>>> encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder >>>> model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as >>>> volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep >>>> ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. >>>> >>>> Regards >>>> Maureen >>>> >>>> >>>> Forwarded Conversation >>>> Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during >>>> COVID-19 >>>> ------------------------ >>>> >>>> From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM >>>> To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>> >>>> >>>> Dear At-Large Community >>>> >>>> In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff >>>> have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by >>>> the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on >>>> their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. >>>> >>>> During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the >>>> At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns >>>> and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to >>>> help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of >>>> At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. >>>> >>>> Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions >>>> about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to >>>> those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and >>>> engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to >>>> pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board >>>> for their consideration. >>>> >>>> *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the >>>> full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful >>>> contributions to this matter. >>>> >>>> Regards >>>> Maureen >>>> ALAC Chair >>>> >>>> >>>> ---------- >>>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM >>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>> >>>> >>>> Thanks Maureen >>>> As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a >>>> week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced >>>> with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this >>>> pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and >>>> publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" >>>> >>>> We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a >>>> depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may >>>> see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and >>>> economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 >>>> million) >>>> >>>> I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many >>>> folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously >>>> compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and >>>> help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest >>>> ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come >>>> up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the >>>> support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid >>>> to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs >>>> as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where >>>> people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply >>>> for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be >>>> confidential and an optional application process. >>>> >>>> In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of >>>> African and small island states with very poor internet access and very >>>> high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital >>>> divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more >>>> members from the community. As recommendations to join more online >>>> meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have >>>> fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance >>>> on remote participation >>>> >>>> Glenn McKnight >>>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>>> skype gmcknight >>>> twitter @Inkmedia >>>> 289-830 6259 >>>> . >>>> >>>> ---------- >>>>> >>>> From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> >>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM >>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>> >>>> >>>> Thanks Maureen, >>>> This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. >>>> >>>> For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should >>>> have been: >>>> >>>> 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN >>>> end down to the local service providers. >>>> >>>> 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. >>>> 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect >>>> paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off >>>> at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to >>>> their most essential needs including more data, because some may have >>>> purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. >>>> >>>> I hope this helps. >>>> ____ >>>> REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, >>>> Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, >>>> DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] >>>> (DigitalSENSE Business News >>>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS >>>> <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet >>>> <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) >>>> Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, >>>> Oshodi-Lagos >>>> M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms >>>> <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> >>>> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria >>>> <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> >>>> >>>> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 >>>> Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* >>>> JOIN us!! >>>> >>>> *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information >>>> Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) >>>> _________________________________________________________________ >>>> *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and >>>> attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is >>>> intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not >>>> accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not >>>> the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this >>>> document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other >>>> person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. >>>> >>>> >>>> ---------- >>>> From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> >>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM >>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>> >>>> >>>> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! >>>> >>>> 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid >>>> conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian >>>> and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in >>>> Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. >>>> REQUEST; >>>> 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day >>>> so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? >>>> 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP >>>> 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting >>>> instead of the local time there? >>>> 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala >>>> Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? >>>> >>>> Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on >>>> virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time >>>> blocks of Face to Face meetings. >>>> >>>> >>>> Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez >>>> >>>> >>>> ---------- >>>> From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> >>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM >>>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < >>>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>> >>>> >>>> Dear Glenn and Maureen >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing >>>> region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families >>>> without work. >>>> >>>> Here, as developing country, the government is performing a >>>> quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) >>>> correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and >>>> had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one >>>> in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even >>>> longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount >>>> represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic >>>> items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and >>>> energy are sponsored for those families. >>>> >>>> Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where >>>> they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G >>>> for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and >>>> certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. >>>> >>>> Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help >>>> the engagement of our community. >>>> >>>> We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need >>>> of help. Some even to feed their families. >>>> >>>> Kisses and take care >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> *Vanda Scartezini* >>>> >>>> *Polo Consultores Associados* >>>> >>>> *Av. Paulista 1159 >>>> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, >>>> cj 1004* >>>> >>>> *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* >>>> >>>> *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* >>>> >>>> *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * >>>> >>>> *Sorry for any typos. * >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> ---------- >>>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM >>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>> >>>> >>>> Greetings >>>> >>>> Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still >>>> working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing >>>> it for inspiration purpose. >>>> The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments >>>> direct from the ICANN page >>>> >>>> >>>> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... >>>> >>>> Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few >>>> Months: Leveraging Remote Participation >>>> >>>> Link to document >>>> >>>> >>>> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... >>>> >>>> >>>> Facts >>>> >>>> - >>>> >>>> All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 >>>> >>>> >>>> Reality >>>> >>>> - >>>> >>>> The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to >>>> the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and >>>> resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year >>>> >>>> >>>> Item One: Remote Participation >>>> >>>> ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes >>>> our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work >>>> done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more >>>> crucial, and a very real and practical alternative >>>> >>>> Comment >>>> >>>> This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but >>>> the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which >>>> impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked >>>> into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to >>>> properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US >>>> tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and >>>> in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide >>>> that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In >>>> fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they >>>> don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their >>>> internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be >>>> responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these >>>> exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create >>>> support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships >>>> with national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. >>>> >>>> >>>> Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools >>>> >>>> It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote >>>> participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our >>>> community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the >>>> next four months. >>>> >>>> Comments >>>> >>>> It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, >>>> Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by >>>> any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity >>>> speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely >>>> slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the >>>> participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the >>>> extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related >>>> calls. >>>> >>>> Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars >>>> >>>> We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority >>>> topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new >>>> opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to >>>> participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and >>>> adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new >>>> participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These >>>> activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, >>>> lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. >>>> >>>> However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where >>>> high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to >>>> pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any >>>> surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of >>>> end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty >>>> responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited >>>> bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states >>>> combined with high Internet costs. >>>> >>>> General View >>>> >>>> In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting >>>> (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a >>>> novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in >>>> future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. >>>> Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed >>>> to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of >>>> losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike >>>> other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a >>>> vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. >>>> >>>> Our community unlike the other the government or business >>>> community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their >>>> volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay >>>> to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial >>>> loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose >>>> that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special >>>> connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a >>>> simple application and approval process. >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> Recommendations >>>> >>>> - >>>> >>>> Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members >>>> - >>>> >>>> Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet >>>> Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can >>>> participate. >>>> - >>>> >>>> ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all >>>> users. >>>> - >>>> >>>> Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN >>>> Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity >>>> experiences ie. latency, quality etc >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> Conclusion >>>> Under development >>>> >>>> Footnotes >>>> >>>> 1. >>>> >>>> >>>> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html >>>> >>>> 2. >>>> >>>> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds >>>> https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... >>>> 3. >>>> >>>> Students and digital divide >>>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... >>>> 4. >>>> >>>> Poor and Digital Divide >>>> >>>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... >>>> 5. >>>> >>>> Broadband Infographic >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> Glenn McKnight >>>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>>> skype gmcknight >>>> twitter @Inkmedia >>>> 289-830 6259 >>>> . >>>> >>>> >>>> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>>> >>>>> >>>> >>>> ---------- >>>> From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> >>>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM >>>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>> >>>> >>>> Hi Glenn, >>>> I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in >>>> but will do so tomorrow >>>> >>>> Best, >>>> Judith >>>> >>>> Sent from my iPad >>>> judith@jhellerstein.com >>>> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein >>>> >>>> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < >>>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> ---------- >>>> From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> >>>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM >>>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < >>>> at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>> >>>> >>>> Hi all. >>>> Greetings everyone from Sénégal. >>>> +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad >>>> pandemic moment. >>>> I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. >>>> Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. >>>> Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. >>>> Warm regards >>>> Olévié >>>> >>>> >>>> ---------- >>>> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> >>>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM >>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>> >>>> >>>> Hi Maureen, >>>> >>>> My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the >>>> fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who >>>> dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing >>>> to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and >>>> the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs >>>> valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS >>>> ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have >>>> the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution >>>> to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs >>>> incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a >>>> suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. >>>> >>>> Best Regards >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> -- >>>> Barrack O. Otieno >>>> +254721325277 >>>> +254733206359 >>>> Skype: barrack.otieno >>>> PGP ID: 0x2611D86A >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> ---------- >>>> From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> >>>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM >>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>> >>>> >>>> Thanks Maureen , >>>> Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am >>>> based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at >>>> times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The >>>> COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from >>>> developing countries is welcome. >>>> >>>>> >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> At-Large mailing list >>>> At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org >>>> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large >>>> >>>> At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing >>>> of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list >>>> accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( >>>> https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of >>>> Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the >>>> Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, >>>> including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling >>>> delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin >>> <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal >>> <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal >>> <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> >>> >>> > > Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/>
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-- Regards Esther Patricia
-- Regards Esther Patricia
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+1 @Glen Le sam. 9 mai 2020 à 18:15, Sarah Kiden <skiden@gmail.com> a écrit :
+1 Patricia
Thank you,
Sarah
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:07, Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Glenn,
I appreciate all your efforts and understand the concerns you have raised regarding connectivity which is indeed a big challenge in Africa. Now that the issue has been raised, our hope is that a solution will be found real soon.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:06, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno < otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi Abdulkarim, > > Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN > for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of > relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what > has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i > beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i > am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the > relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i > would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all > have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever > school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your > team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been > raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen > is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her > leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might > just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest. > > On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < > oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: > >> Dear Maureen, >> >> Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that >> I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be >> supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the >> expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the >> community is not there?. >> I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the >> need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different >> people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next >> level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a >> non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy >> decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and >> private issue. >> >> Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and >> if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That >> should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. >> We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his >> case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been >> attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT >> 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to >> respond because I smell a rat. >> >> I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because >> we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand >> why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected >> by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far >> better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some >> don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection. >> >> It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is >> voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, >> listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to >> us. >> >> AK >> >> >> >> >> On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> Dear Abdulkarim >>> >>> While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to >>> that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of >>> responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership >>> team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came >>> upon them. >>> >>> It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his >>> leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only >>> found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he >>> should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might >>> not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown >>> timeframe. >>> >>> It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country >>> at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I >>> believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with >>> anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is >>> any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his >>> country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my >>> bit. >>> >>> We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has >>> volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as >>> in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support >>> even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other >>> like-minded people. >>> >>> If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is >>> fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as >>> we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN. >>> >>> Regards and keep well >>> Maureen >>> >>> >>> On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < >>> oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: >>> >>>> Dear Maureen, >>>> I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I >>>> totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the >>>> Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in >>>> your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges >>>> being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a >>>> face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a >>>> message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is >>>> clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly >>>> overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most >>>> significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the >>>> mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise >>>> with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly >>>> discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people >>>> around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't >>>> clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it >>>> is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even >>>> family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all >>>> faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut >>>> down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN >>>> is now a social club. >>>> >>>> I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take >>>> up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to >>>> having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community >>>> and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue >>>> for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been >>>> raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take >>>> it seriously. >>>> >>>> AK >>>> >>>> On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>>> >>>>> Dear Leon >>>>> >>>>> Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the >>>>> ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments >>>>> to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation >>>>> while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by >>>>> our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the >>>>> topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once >>>>> revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed). >>>>> >>>>> One case which only very recently came to my attention was >>>>> Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in >>>>> Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not >>>>> return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but >>>>> living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, >>>>> his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been >>>>> responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real >>>>> assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible >>>>> return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. >>>>> Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how >>>>> long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? >>>>> Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being >>>>> there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is >>>>> worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings >>>>> because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little >>>>> resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is >>>>> an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. >>>>> >>>>> The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those >>>>> in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially >>>>> when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families >>>>> in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished >>>>> areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the >>>>> world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers >>>>> are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is >>>>> still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with >>>>> an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to >>>>> resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the >>>>> greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to >>>>> encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder >>>>> model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as >>>>> volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep >>>>> ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. >>>>> >>>>> Regards >>>>> Maureen >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Forwarded Conversation >>>>> Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during >>>>> COVID-19 >>>>> ------------------------ >>>>> >>>>> From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM >>>>> To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Dear At-Large Community >>>>> >>>>> In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff >>>>> have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by >>>>> the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on >>>>> their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. >>>>> >>>>> During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the >>>>> At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns >>>>> and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to >>>>> help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of >>>>> At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. >>>>> >>>>> Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions >>>>> about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to >>>>> those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and >>>>> engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to >>>>> pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board >>>>> for their consideration. >>>>> >>>>> *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the >>>>> full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful >>>>> contributions to this matter. >>>>> >>>>> Regards >>>>> Maureen >>>>> ALAC Chair >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thanks Maureen >>>>> As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call >>>>> a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced >>>>> with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this >>>>> pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and >>>>> publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" >>>>> >>>>> We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a >>>>> depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may >>>>> see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and >>>>> economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 >>>>> million) >>>>> >>>>> I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many >>>>> folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously >>>>> compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and >>>>> help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest >>>>> ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come >>>>> up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the >>>>> support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid >>>>> to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs >>>>> as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where >>>>> people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply >>>>> for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be >>>>> confidential and an optional application process. >>>>> >>>>> In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of >>>>> African and small island states with very poor internet access and very >>>>> high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital >>>>> divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more >>>>> members from the community. As recommendations to join more online >>>>> meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have >>>>> fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance >>>>> on remote participation >>>>> >>>>> Glenn McKnight >>>>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>>>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>>>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>>>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>>>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>>>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>>>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>>>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>>>> skype gmcknight >>>>> twitter @Inkmedia >>>>> 289-830 6259 >>>>> . >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>>> >>>>> From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thanks Maureen, >>>>> This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. >>>>> >>>>> For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should >>>>> have been: >>>>> >>>>> 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN >>>>> end down to the local service providers. >>>>> >>>>> 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. >>>>> 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect >>>>> paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off >>>>> at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to >>>>> their most essential needs including more data, because some may have >>>>> purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. >>>>> >>>>> I hope this helps. >>>>> ____ >>>>> REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, >>>>> Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, >>>>> DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] >>>>> (DigitalSENSE Business News >>>>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS >>>>> <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet >>>>> <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) >>>>> Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, >>>>> Oshodi-Lagos >>>>> M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms >>>>> <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> >>>>> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria >>>>> <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> >>>>> >>>>> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 >>>>> Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* >>>>> JOIN us!! >>>>> >>>>> *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information >>>>> Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) >>>>> _________________________________________________________________ >>>>> *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and >>>>> attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is >>>>> intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not >>>>> accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not >>>>> the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this >>>>> document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other >>>>> person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! >>>>> >>>>> 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid >>>>> conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian >>>>> and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in >>>>> Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. >>>>> REQUEST; >>>>> 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day >>>>> so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? >>>>> 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP >>>>> 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting >>>>> instead of the local time there? >>>>> 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala >>>>> Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? >>>>> >>>>> Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on >>>>> virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time >>>>> blocks of Face to Face meetings. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM >>>>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < >>>>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Dear Glenn and Maureen >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing >>>>> region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families >>>>> without work. >>>>> >>>>> Here, as developing country, the government is performing a >>>>> quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) >>>>> correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and >>>>> had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one >>>>> in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even >>>>> longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount >>>>> represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic >>>>> items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and >>>>> energy are sponsored for those families. >>>>> >>>>> Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where >>>>> they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G >>>>> for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and >>>>> certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. >>>>> >>>>> Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help >>>>> the engagement of our community. >>>>> >>>>> We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in >>>>> need of help. Some even to feed their families. >>>>> >>>>> Kisses and take care >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> *Vanda Scartezini* >>>>> >>>>> *Polo Consultores Associados* >>>>> >>>>> *Av. Paulista 1159 >>>>> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, >>>>> cj 1004* >>>>> >>>>> *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* >>>>> >>>>> *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* >>>>> >>>>> *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * >>>>> >>>>> *Sorry for any typos. * >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Greetings >>>>> >>>>> Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still >>>>> working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing >>>>> it for inspiration purpose. >>>>> The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments >>>>> direct from the ICANN page >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... >>>>> >>>>> Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few >>>>> Months: Leveraging Remote Participation >>>>> >>>>> Link to document >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Facts >>>>> >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Reality >>>>> >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to >>>>> the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and >>>>> resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Item One: Remote Participation >>>>> >>>>> ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes >>>>> our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work >>>>> done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more >>>>> crucial, and a very real and practical alternative >>>>> >>>>> Comment >>>>> >>>>> This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but >>>>> the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which >>>>> impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked >>>>> into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to >>>>> properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US >>>>> tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and >>>>> in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide >>>>> that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In >>>>> fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they >>>>> don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their >>>>> internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be >>>>> responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these >>>>> exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create >>>>> support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships >>>>> with national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools >>>>> >>>>> It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote >>>>> participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our >>>>> community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the >>>>> next four months. >>>>> >>>>> Comments >>>>> >>>>> It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, >>>>> Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by >>>>> any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity >>>>> speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely >>>>> slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the >>>>> participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the >>>>> extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related >>>>> calls. >>>>> >>>>> Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars >>>>> >>>>> We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority >>>>> topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new >>>>> opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to >>>>> participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and >>>>> adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new >>>>> participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These >>>>> activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, >>>>> lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. >>>>> >>>>> However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where >>>>> high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to >>>>> pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any >>>>> surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of >>>>> end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty >>>>> responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited >>>>> bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states >>>>> combined with high Internet costs. >>>>> >>>>> General View >>>>> >>>>> In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting >>>>> (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a >>>>> novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in >>>>> future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. >>>>> Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed >>>>> to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of >>>>> losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike >>>>> other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a >>>>> vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. >>>>> >>>>> Our community unlike the other the government or business >>>>> community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their >>>>> volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay >>>>> to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial >>>>> loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose >>>>> that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special >>>>> connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a >>>>> simple application and approval process. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Recommendations >>>>> >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet >>>>> Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can >>>>> participate. >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all >>>>> users. >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN >>>>> Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity >>>>> experiences ie. latency, quality etc >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Conclusion >>>>> Under development >>>>> >>>>> Footnotes >>>>> >>>>> 1. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html >>>>> >>>>> 2. >>>>> >>>>> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds >>>>> https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... >>>>> 3. >>>>> >>>>> Students and digital divide >>>>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... >>>>> 4. >>>>> >>>>> Poor and Digital Divide >>>>> >>>>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... >>>>> 5. >>>>> >>>>> Broadband Infographic >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Glenn McKnight >>>>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>>>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>>>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>>>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>>>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>>>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>>>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>>>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>>>> skype gmcknight >>>>> twitter @Inkmedia >>>>> 289-830 6259 >>>>> . >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>>>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> >>>>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM >>>>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Hi Glenn, >>>>> I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in >>>>> but will do so tomorrow >>>>> >>>>> Best, >>>>> Judith >>>>> >>>>> Sent from my iPad >>>>> judith@jhellerstein.com >>>>> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein >>>>> >>>>> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < >>>>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM >>>>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < >>>>> at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Hi all. >>>>> Greetings everyone from Sénégal. >>>>> +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad >>>>> pandemic moment. >>>>> I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. >>>>> Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. >>>>> Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. >>>>> Warm regards >>>>> Olévié >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Hi Maureen, >>>>> >>>>> My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the >>>>> fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who >>>>> dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing >>>>> to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and >>>>> the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs >>>>> valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS >>>>> ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have >>>>> the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution >>>>> to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs >>>>> incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a >>>>> suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. >>>>> >>>>> Best Regards >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> -- >>>>> Barrack O. Otieno >>>>> +254721325277 >>>>> +254733206359 >>>>> Skype: barrack.otieno >>>>> PGP ID: 0x2611D86A >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thanks Maureen , >>>>> Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am >>>>> based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at >>>>> times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The >>>>> COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from >>>>> developing countries is welcome. >>>>> >>>>>> >>>>> >>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>> At-Large mailing list >>>>> At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org >>>>> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large >>>>> >>>>> At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org >>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>> By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing >>>>> of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list >>>>> accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( >>>>> https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of >>>>> Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the >>>>> Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, >>>>> including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling >>>>> delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin >>>> <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal >>>> <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal >>>> <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> >>>> >>>> >> >> Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/>
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-- Regards Esther Patricia
-- Regards Esther Patricia
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*Emergency Aid Request* During this awful Covid-19 disaster some of our ICANN ATLARGE community members are trapped out of country, low on financial resources and facing a dire situation that require our immediate help. You can help with a small donation to make it possible that these individuals are provided with financial assistance in their moments of need. The funds will forward 100%( less the GoFund Me fees) to those individuals that are in ,most need. The ICANN ATLARGE Caring Community Committee is a group of volunteers will be determine which individuals are most deserving and arrange as quickly and privately transfer the emergency funds. We respect the privacy of the recipients. If they opt to acknowledge the community it's their option. Please give what you can afford and your help is appreciated. ICANN ATLARGE Caring Committee Members Maureen Hilyard, Sebastien Bachollet , Eduardo Diaz and Glenn McKnight *Solicitud de ayuda de emergencia* Durante este terrible desastre de Covid-19, algunos de nuestros miembros de la comunidad de AT-LARGE en ICANN están atrapados fuera del país, con pocos recursos financieros o enfrentando una situación grave que requiere nuestra ayuda inmediata. Puede ayudar con una pequeña donación para hacer posible que estas personas reciban asistencia financiera en sus momentos de necesidad. El 100% de los fondos se reenviarán (menos las tarifas de GoFund Me) a las personas que más lo necesitan. El Comité de Atención a la Comunidad de AT-LARGE en ICANN es un grupo de voluntarios que determinará qué individuos son más merecedores y organizará la transferencia rápida y privada de los fondos de emergencia. Respetamos la privacidad de los destinatarios. Si optan por reconocer a la comunidad, es su opción. Por favor, contribuya con lo que pueda. Su ayuda es apreciada. Miembros del Comité de Cuidado de AT-LARGE en ICANN Maureen Hilyard, Sebastien Bachollet, Eduardo Diaz y Glenn McKnight ICANN ATLARGE - Covid 19 Fond d’aide de la communauté *Demande d'aide d'urgence* Au cours de cette terrible catastrophe du Covid-19, certains des membres de notre communauté ICANN ATLARGE sont pris au piège hors de leur pays, manquent de ressources financières et font face à une situation désastreuse qui nécessite notre aide immédiate. Vous pouvez aider avec un petit don pour permettre à ces personnes de recevoir une aide financière maintenant qu’ils en ont besoin. Les fonds seront à 100%, moins les frais de gestion de GoFund Me, distribués aux personnes qui en ont besoin. Le comité de la communauté de soutien de l'ICANN ATLARGE est un groupe de bénévoles qui déterminera les personnes les plus méritantes et organisera le transfert rapide et privé des fonds d'urgence. Nous respectons la vie privée des destinataires. S'ils choisissent de reconnaître la communauté, c'est leur option. Veuillez donner ce que vous pouvez vous permettre et votre aide est appréciée. Membres du comité de suivi de l'ICANN ATLARGE Maureen Hilyard, Sebastien Bachollet, Eduardo Diaz et Glenn McKnight https://www.gofundme.com/f/atlarge-caring-community-covid-19-fund?utm_source... Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:14 PM Sarah Kiden <skiden@gmail.com> wrote:
+1 Patricia
Thank you,
Sarah
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:07, Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Glenn,
I appreciate all your efforts and understand the concerns you have raised regarding connectivity which is indeed a big challenge in Africa. Now that the issue has been raised, our hope is that a solution will be found real soon.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:06, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno < otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi Abdulkarim, > > Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN > for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of > relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what > has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i > beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i > am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the > relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i > would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all > have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever > school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your > team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been > raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen > is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her > leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might > just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest. > > On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < > oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: > >> Dear Maureen, >> >> Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that >> I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be >> supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the >> expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the >> community is not there?. >> I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the >> need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different >> people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next >> level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a >> non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy >> decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and >> private issue. >> >> Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and >> if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That >> should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. >> We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his >> case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been >> attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT >> 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to >> respond because I smell a rat. >> >> I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because >> we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand >> why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected >> by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far >> better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some >> don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection. >> >> It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is >> voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, >> listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to >> us. >> >> AK >> >> >> >> >> On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> Dear Abdulkarim >>> >>> While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to >>> that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of >>> responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership >>> team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came >>> upon them. >>> >>> It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his >>> leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only >>> found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he >>> should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might >>> not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown >>> timeframe. >>> >>> It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country >>> at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I >>> believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with >>> anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is >>> any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his >>> country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my >>> bit. >>> >>> We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has >>> volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as >>> in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support >>> even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other >>> like-minded people. >>> >>> If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is >>> fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as >>> we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN. >>> >>> Regards and keep well >>> Maureen >>> >>> >>> On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < >>> oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: >>> >>>> Dear Maureen, >>>> I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I >>>> totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the >>>> Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in >>>> your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges >>>> being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a >>>> face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a >>>> message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is >>>> clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly >>>> overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most >>>> significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the >>>> mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise >>>> with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly >>>> discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people >>>> around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't >>>> clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it >>>> is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even >>>> family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all >>>> faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut >>>> down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN >>>> is now a social club. >>>> >>>> I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take >>>> up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to >>>> having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community >>>> and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue >>>> for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been >>>> raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take >>>> it seriously. >>>> >>>> AK >>>> >>>> On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>>> >>>>> Dear Leon >>>>> >>>>> Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the >>>>> ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments >>>>> to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation >>>>> while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by >>>>> our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the >>>>> topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once >>>>> revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed). >>>>> >>>>> One case which only very recently came to my attention was >>>>> Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in >>>>> Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not >>>>> return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but >>>>> living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, >>>>> his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been >>>>> responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real >>>>> assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible >>>>> return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. >>>>> Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how >>>>> long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? >>>>> Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being >>>>> there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is >>>>> worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings >>>>> because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little >>>>> resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is >>>>> an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. >>>>> >>>>> The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those >>>>> in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially >>>>> when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families >>>>> in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished >>>>> areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the >>>>> world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers >>>>> are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is >>>>> still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with >>>>> an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to >>>>> resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the >>>>> greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to >>>>> encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder >>>>> model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as >>>>> volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep >>>>> ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. >>>>> >>>>> Regards >>>>> Maureen >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Forwarded Conversation >>>>> Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during >>>>> COVID-19 >>>>> ------------------------ >>>>> >>>>> From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM >>>>> To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Dear At-Large Community >>>>> >>>>> In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff >>>>> have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by >>>>> the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on >>>>> their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. >>>>> >>>>> During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the >>>>> At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns >>>>> and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to >>>>> help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of >>>>> At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. >>>>> >>>>> Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions >>>>> about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to >>>>> those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and >>>>> engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to >>>>> pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board >>>>> for their consideration. >>>>> >>>>> *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the >>>>> full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful >>>>> contributions to this matter. >>>>> >>>>> Regards >>>>> Maureen >>>>> ALAC Chair >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thanks Maureen >>>>> As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call >>>>> a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced >>>>> with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this >>>>> pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and >>>>> publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" >>>>> >>>>> We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a >>>>> depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may >>>>> see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and >>>>> economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 >>>>> million) >>>>> >>>>> I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many >>>>> folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously >>>>> compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and >>>>> help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest >>>>> ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come >>>>> up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the >>>>> support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid >>>>> to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs >>>>> as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where >>>>> people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply >>>>> for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be >>>>> confidential and an optional application process. >>>>> >>>>> In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of >>>>> African and small island states with very poor internet access and very >>>>> high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital >>>>> divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more >>>>> members from the community. As recommendations to join more online >>>>> meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have >>>>> fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance >>>>> on remote participation >>>>> >>>>> Glenn McKnight >>>>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>>>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>>>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>>>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>>>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>>>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>>>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>>>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>>>> skype gmcknight >>>>> twitter @Inkmedia >>>>> 289-830 6259 >>>>> . >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>>> >>>>> From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thanks Maureen, >>>>> This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. >>>>> >>>>> For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should >>>>> have been: >>>>> >>>>> 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN >>>>> end down to the local service providers. >>>>> >>>>> 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. >>>>> 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect >>>>> paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off >>>>> at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to >>>>> their most essential needs including more data, because some may have >>>>> purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. >>>>> >>>>> I hope this helps. >>>>> ____ >>>>> REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, >>>>> Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, >>>>> DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] >>>>> (DigitalSENSE Business News >>>>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS >>>>> <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet >>>>> <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) >>>>> Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, >>>>> Oshodi-Lagos >>>>> M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms >>>>> <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> >>>>> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria >>>>> <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> >>>>> >>>>> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 >>>>> Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* >>>>> JOIN us!! >>>>> >>>>> *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information >>>>> Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) >>>>> _________________________________________________________________ >>>>> *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and >>>>> attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is >>>>> intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not >>>>> accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not >>>>> the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this >>>>> document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other >>>>> person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! >>>>> >>>>> 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid >>>>> conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian >>>>> and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in >>>>> Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. >>>>> REQUEST; >>>>> 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day >>>>> so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? >>>>> 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP >>>>> 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting >>>>> instead of the local time there? >>>>> 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala >>>>> Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? >>>>> >>>>> Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on >>>>> virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time >>>>> blocks of Face to Face meetings. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> >>>>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM >>>>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < >>>>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Dear Glenn and Maureen >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing >>>>> region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families >>>>> without work. >>>>> >>>>> Here, as developing country, the government is performing a >>>>> quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) >>>>> correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and >>>>> had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one >>>>> in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even >>>>> longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount >>>>> represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic >>>>> items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and >>>>> energy are sponsored for those families. >>>>> >>>>> Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where >>>>> they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G >>>>> for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and >>>>> certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. >>>>> >>>>> Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help >>>>> the engagement of our community. >>>>> >>>>> We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in >>>>> need of help. Some even to feed their families. >>>>> >>>>> Kisses and take care >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> *Vanda Scartezini* >>>>> >>>>> *Polo Consultores Associados* >>>>> >>>>> *Av. Paulista 1159 >>>>> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, >>>>> cj 1004* >>>>> >>>>> *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* >>>>> >>>>> *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* >>>>> >>>>> *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * >>>>> >>>>> *Sorry for any typos. * >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Greetings >>>>> >>>>> Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still >>>>> working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing >>>>> it for inspiration purpose. >>>>> The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments >>>>> direct from the ICANN page >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... >>>>> >>>>> Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few >>>>> Months: Leveraging Remote Participation >>>>> >>>>> Link to document >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Facts >>>>> >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Reality >>>>> >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to >>>>> the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and >>>>> resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Item One: Remote Participation >>>>> >>>>> ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes >>>>> our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work >>>>> done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more >>>>> crucial, and a very real and practical alternative >>>>> >>>>> Comment >>>>> >>>>> This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but >>>>> the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which >>>>> impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked >>>>> into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to >>>>> properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US >>>>> tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and >>>>> in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide >>>>> that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In >>>>> fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they >>>>> don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their >>>>> internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be >>>>> responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these >>>>> exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create >>>>> support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships >>>>> with national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools >>>>> >>>>> It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote >>>>> participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our >>>>> community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the >>>>> next four months. >>>>> >>>>> Comments >>>>> >>>>> It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, >>>>> Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by >>>>> any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity >>>>> speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely >>>>> slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the >>>>> participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the >>>>> extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related >>>>> calls. >>>>> >>>>> Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars >>>>> >>>>> We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority >>>>> topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new >>>>> opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to >>>>> participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and >>>>> adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new >>>>> participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These >>>>> activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, >>>>> lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. >>>>> >>>>> However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where >>>>> high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to >>>>> pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any >>>>> surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of >>>>> end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty >>>>> responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited >>>>> bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states >>>>> combined with high Internet costs. >>>>> >>>>> General View >>>>> >>>>> In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting >>>>> (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a >>>>> novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in >>>>> future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. >>>>> Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed >>>>> to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of >>>>> losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike >>>>> other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a >>>>> vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. >>>>> >>>>> Our community unlike the other the government or business >>>>> community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their >>>>> volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay >>>>> to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial >>>>> loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose >>>>> that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special >>>>> connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a >>>>> simple application and approval process. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Recommendations >>>>> >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet >>>>> Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can >>>>> participate. >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all >>>>> users. >>>>> - >>>>> >>>>> Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN >>>>> Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity >>>>> experiences ie. latency, quality etc >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Conclusion >>>>> Under development >>>>> >>>>> Footnotes >>>>> >>>>> 1. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html >>>>> >>>>> 2. >>>>> >>>>> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds >>>>> https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... >>>>> 3. >>>>> >>>>> Students and digital divide >>>>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... >>>>> 4. >>>>> >>>>> Poor and Digital Divide >>>>> >>>>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... >>>>> 5. >>>>> >>>>> Broadband Infographic >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Glenn McKnight >>>>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>>>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>>>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>>>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>>>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>>>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>>>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>>>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>>>> skype gmcknight >>>>> twitter @Inkmedia >>>>> 289-830 6259 >>>>> . >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>>>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> >>>>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM >>>>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Hi Glenn, >>>>> I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in >>>>> but will do so tomorrow >>>>> >>>>> Best, >>>>> Judith >>>>> >>>>> Sent from my iPad >>>>> judith@jhellerstein.com >>>>> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein >>>>> >>>>> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < >>>>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM >>>>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < >>>>> at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Hi all. >>>>> Greetings everyone from Sénégal. >>>>> +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad >>>>> pandemic moment. >>>>> I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. >>>>> Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. >>>>> Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. >>>>> Warm regards >>>>> Olévié >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Hi Maureen, >>>>> >>>>> My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the >>>>> fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who >>>>> dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing >>>>> to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and >>>>> the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs >>>>> valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS >>>>> ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have >>>>> the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution >>>>> to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs >>>>> incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a >>>>> suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. >>>>> >>>>> Best Regards >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> -- >>>>> Barrack O. Otieno >>>>> +254721325277 >>>>> +254733206359 >>>>> Skype: barrack.otieno >>>>> PGP ID: 0x2611D86A >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ---------- >>>>> From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> >>>>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM >>>>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Thanks Maureen , >>>>> Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am >>>>> based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at >>>>> times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The >>>>> COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from >>>>> developing countries is welcome. >>>>> >>>>>> >>>>> >>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>> At-Large mailing list >>>>> At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org >>>>> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large >>>>> >>>>> At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org >>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>> By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing >>>>> of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list >>>>> accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( >>>>> https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of >>>>> Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the >>>>> Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, >>>>> including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling >>>>> delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin >>>> <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal >>>> <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal >>>> <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> >>>> >>>> >> >> Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/>
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-- Regards Esther Patricia
-- Regards Esther Patricia
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-- Sent from Gmail Mobile
Maureen. Glenn, Eduardo, and Sebastien: What great and necessary outreach. We’ve been busy on the ground ourselves seeking help for families isolated from immediate help on tribal homelands. Compassion comes from many fronts. Thank you. Best, Loris Taylor President & CEO Native Public Media www.nativepublicmedia.org
On May 9, 2020, at 12:15 PM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
Emergency Aid Request During this awful Covid-19 disaster some of our ICANN ATLARGE community members are trapped out of country, low on financial resources and facing a dire situation that require our immediate help.
You can help with a small donation to make it possible that these individuals are provided with financial assistance in their moments of need. The funds will forward 100%( less the GoFund Me fees) to those individuals that are in ,most need. The ICANN ATLARGE Caring Community Committee is a group of volunteers will be determine which individuals are most deserving and arrange as quickly and privately transfer the emergency funds.
We respect the privacy of the recipients. If they opt to acknowledge the community it's their option.
Please give what you can afford and your help is appreciated.
ICANN ATLARGE Caring Committee Members Maureen Hilyard, Sebastien Bachollet , Eduardo Diaz and Glenn McKnight
Solicitud de ayuda de emergencia
Durante este terrible desastre de Covid-19, algunos de nuestros miembros de la comunidad de AT-LARGE en ICANN están atrapados fuera del país, con pocos recursos financieros o enfrentando una situación grave que requiere nuestra ayuda inmediata.
Puede ayudar con una pequeña donación para hacer posible que estas personas reciban asistencia financiera en sus momentos de necesidad. El 100% de los fondos se reenviarán (menos las tarifas de GoFund Me) a las personas que más lo necesitan. El Comité de Atención a la Comunidad de AT-LARGE en ICANN es un grupo de voluntarios que determinará qué individuos son más merecedores y organizará la transferencia rápida y privada de los fondos de emergencia.
Respetamos la privacidad de los destinatarios. Si optan por reconocer a la comunidad, es su opción.
Por favor, contribuya con lo que pueda. Su ayuda es apreciada.
Miembros del Comité de Cuidado de AT-LARGE en ICANN Maureen Hilyard, Sebastien Bachollet, Eduardo Diaz y Glenn McKnight
ICANN ATLARGE - Covid 19 Fond d’aide de la communauté
Demande d'aide d'urgence Au cours de cette terrible catastrophe du Covid-19, certains des membres de notre communauté ICANN ATLARGE sont pris au piège hors de leur pays, manquent de ressources financières et font face à une situation désastreuse qui nécessite notre aide immédiate.
Vous pouvez aider avec un petit don pour permettre à ces personnes de recevoir une aide financière maintenant qu’ils en ont besoin. Les fonds seront à 100%, moins les frais de gestion de GoFund Me, distribués aux personnes qui en ont besoin. Le comité de la communauté de soutien de l'ICANN ATLARGE est un groupe de bénévoles qui déterminera les personnes les plus méritantes et organisera le transfert rapide et privé des fonds d'urgence.
Nous respectons la vie privée des destinataires. S'ils choisissent de reconnaître la communauté, c'est leur option.
Veuillez donner ce que vous pouvez vous permettre et votre aide est appréciée.
Membres du comité de suivi de l'ICANN ATLARGE Maureen Hilyard, Sebastien Bachollet, Eduardo Diaz et Glenn McKnight
https://www.gofundme.com/f/atlarge-caring-community-covid-19-fund?utm_source... <https://www.gofundme.com/f/atlarge-caring-community-covid-19-fund?utm_source...>
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ <http://toronto.ieee.ca/> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:14 PM Sarah Kiden <skiden@gmail.com <mailto:skiden@gmail.com>> wrote: +1 Patricia
Thank you,
Sarah
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:07, Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com <mailto:ekisesta@gmail.com>> wrote: Hi Glenn,
I appreciate all your efforts and understand the concerns you have raised regarding connectivity which is indeed a big challenge in Africa. Now that the issue has been raised, our hope is that a solution will be found real soon.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:06, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> wrote: Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ <http://toronto.ieee.ca/> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com <mailto:ekisesta@gmail.com>> wrote: Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> wrote: For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ <http://toronto.ieee.ca/> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng <mailto:oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng>> wrote: Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com <mailto:otieno.barrack@gmail.com>> wrote: Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng <mailto:oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng>> wrote: Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> wrote: Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng <mailto:oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng>> wrote: Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> wrote: Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that he is worried that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
Please respond only to this thread before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ <http://toronto.ieee.ca/> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
---------- From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com <mailto:remmyn@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [Multiple-award winning medium] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng/>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng/>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms>Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/> JOIN us!!
*Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution.
---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se <mailto:carlosraul@gutierrez.se>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org <mailto:vanda@scartezini.org>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>>, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
Vanda Scartezini
Polo Consultores Associados
Av. Paulista 1159 <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, cj 1004
01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253
Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464
Sorry for any typos.
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from NARALO . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...>
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... <https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...>
Facts All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html <https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... <https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white...> Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... <https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi...> Poor and Digital Divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... <https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en...> Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog/> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ <http://toronto.ieee.ca/> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com <mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com <mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com <mailto:olivierkouami@gmail.com>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>, At Large <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com <mailto:otieno.barrack@gmail.com>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com <mailto:wanjalaluke1@gmail.com>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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+1 -- Best Regards, Ephraim Percy Kenyanito Legal Researcher International Trade, Technology, Media & Telecommunications Law Website: https://ekenyanito.com/ <https://ephraimkenyanito.com/> Twitter: @ekenyanito <https://twitter.com/ekenyanito> PGP Fingerprint: B0FA394AF73DEB7AA1FDC7360CFED26DE6BA8DC1 On 5/9/20 9:14 PM, Sarah Kiden wrote:
+1 Patricia
Thank you,
Sarah
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:07, Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com <mailto:ekisesta@gmail.com>> wrote:
Hi Glenn,
I appreciate all your efforts and understand the concerns you have raised regarding connectivity which is indeed a big challenge in Africa. Now that the issue has been raised, our hope is that a solution will be found real soon.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 19:06, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> wrote:
Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com <mailto:ekisesta@gmail.com>> wrote:
Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng <mailto:oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng>> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com <mailto:otieno.barrack@gmail.com>> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng <mailto:oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng>> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng <mailto:oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng>> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that _he is worried _that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: *Maureen Hilyard* <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
_Please respond only to this thread_ before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: *Glenn McKnight* <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: *Remmy Nweke* <remmyn@gmail.com <mailto:remmyn@gmail.com>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [/Multiple-award winning medium/] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
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---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se <mailto:carlosraul@gutierrez.se>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: *Vanda Scartezini* <vanda@scartezini.org <mailto:vanda@scartezini.org>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>>, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*/Vanda Scartezini/*
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---------- From: *Glenn McKnight* <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from*NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
*
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
*
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021.(1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4)there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
*
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members
*
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate.
*
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users.
*
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion
Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white...
3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi...
4.
Poor and Digital Dividehttps://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en...
5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org <mailto:glenn.mcknight@ieee.org> skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> wrote:
---------- From: *Judith Hellerstein* <judith@jhellerstein.com <mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com <mailto:judith@jhellerstein.com> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> wrote:
---------- From: *Olivier Kouami* <olivierkouami@gmail.com <mailto:olivierkouami@gmail.com>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com <mailto:mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>, At Large <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: *Barrack Otieno* <otieno.barrack@gmail.com <mailto:otieno.barrack@gmail.com>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org <mailto:at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: *LUKE KAPCHANGA* <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com <mailto:wanjalaluke1@gmail.com>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com <mailto:maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Hi, I would also suggest that apart from writing to or through Leon. ALAC should write a piece of strong advice to the board using the statistics gathered by Glenn as the basis on the need to support the communities as a result of the face to face meetings going online. My suggestion would be such a letter should not be about individuals but about communities. For example, what a community is paying for internet connectivity and how much time would be spent online to attend the either ICANN 68 or other meetings that would have been a face to face meetings but now going online. AK On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 5:06 PM Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Patricia Lets make sure that we understand that this is difficult times and this special Emergency Fund is a band-aid and not a solution . My major concern as I ranted about a few weeks ago is the help to those ATLARGE community members who need assistance for Internet connectivity so they can be connected during the ICANN multiple meetings. In my survey we found significant high prices and low bandwidth in Africa parts of the far East. Maybe many more locations. ICANN has saved alot of money not paying stipend, airfare, hotels and all the associated costs of CANCUN, KL and probably Hamburg and perhaps 2021 and we are naive to think that we will not lose folks. Our multistakeholderism is at risk. We need to be proactive. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 10:23 AM Patricia Akello <ekisesta@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks Glenn, Barack - Say no more! Am in total agreement With you. It’s a demonstration of good leadership and acts like this are a demonstration of the “Ubuntu” spirit - I am because we are.
It’s a tough situation but many thanks to all who have contributed and supported a brother.
Regards Esther Patricia Akello
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 16:49, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
For the record the funds are not from ICANN G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 9:46 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
> Dear Abdulkarim > > While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to > that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of > responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership > team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came > upon them. > > It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his > leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only > found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he > should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might > not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown > timeframe. > > It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at > the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I > believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with > anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is > any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his > country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my > bit. > > We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has > volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as > in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support > even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other > like-minded people. > > If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is > fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as > we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN. > > Regards and keep well > Maureen > > > On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < > oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: > >> Dear Maureen, >> I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I >> totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the >> Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in >> your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges >> being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a >> face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a >> message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is >> clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly >> overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most >> significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the >> mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise >> with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly >> discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people >> around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't >> clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it >> is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even >> family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all >> faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut >> down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN >> is now a social club. >> >> I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take >> up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to >> having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community >> and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue >> for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been >> raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take >> it seriously. >> >> AK >> >> On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> Dear Leon >>> >>> Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC >>> meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to >>> those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while >>> also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our >>> volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I >>> had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, >>> the sender asked for it to be removed). >>> >>> One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel >>> Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in >>> Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not >>> return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but >>> living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, >>> his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been >>> responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real >>> assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible >>> return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. >>> Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how >>> long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? >>> Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being >>> there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is >>> worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings >>> because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little >>> resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is >>> an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. >>> >>> The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in >>> developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially >>> when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families >>> in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished >>> areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the >>> world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers >>> are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is >>> still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with >>> an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to >>> resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the >>> greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to >>> encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder >>> model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as >>> volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep >>> ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. >>> >>> Regards >>> Maureen >>> >>> >>> Forwarded Conversation >>> Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during >>> COVID-19 >>> ------------------------ >>> >>> From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM >>> To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Dear At-Large Community >>> >>> In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff >>> have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by >>> the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on >>> their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. >>> >>> During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the >>> At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns >>> and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to >>> help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of >>> At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. >>> >>> Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions >>> about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to >>> those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and >>> engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to >>> pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board >>> for their consideration. >>> >>> *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the >>> full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful >>> contributions to this matter. >>> >>> Regards >>> Maureen >>> ALAC Chair >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen >>> As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a >>> week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced >>> with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this >>> pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and >>> publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" >>> >>> We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a >>> depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may >>> see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and >>> economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 >>> million) >>> >>> I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many >>> folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously >>> compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and >>> help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest >>> ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come >>> up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the >>> support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid >>> to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs >>> as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where >>> people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply >>> for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be >>> confidential and an optional application process. >>> >>> In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of >>> African and small island states with very poor internet access and very >>> high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital >>> divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more >>> members from the community. As recommendations to join more online >>> meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have >>> fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance >>> on remote participation >>> >>> Glenn McKnight >>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>> skype gmcknight >>> twitter @Inkmedia >>> 289-830 6259 >>> . >>> >>> ---------- >>>> >>> From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen, >>> This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. >>> >>> For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should >>> have been: >>> >>> 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end >>> down to the local service providers. >>> >>> 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 >>> months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect >>> paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off >>> at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to >>> their most essential needs including more data, because some may have >>> purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. >>> >>> I hope this helps. >>> ____ >>> REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, >>> Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, >>> DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] >>> (DigitalSENSE Business News >>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS >>> <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet >>> <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) >>> Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, >>> Oshodi-Lagos >>> M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms >>> <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> >>> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria >>> <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> >>> >>> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable >>> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* >>> JOIN us!! >>> >>> *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society >>> (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) >>> _________________________________________________________________ >>> *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and >>> attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is >>> intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not >>> accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not >>> the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this >>> document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other >>> person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! >>> >>> 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid >>> conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian >>> and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in >>> Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. >>> REQUEST; >>> 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day >>> so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? >>> 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP >>> 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting >>> instead of the local time there? >>> 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala >>> Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? >>> >>> Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual >>> meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks >>> of Face to Face meetings. >>> >>> >>> Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> >>> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < >>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Dear Glenn and Maureen >>> >>> >>> >>> These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing >>> region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families >>> without work. >>> >>> Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite >>> complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) >>> correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and >>> had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one >>> in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even >>> longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount >>> represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic >>> items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and >>> energy are sponsored for those families. >>> >>> Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they >>> need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a >>> volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and >>> certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. >>> >>> Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help >>> the engagement of our community. >>> >>> We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need >>> of help. Some even to feed their families. >>> >>> Kisses and take care >>> >>> >>> >>> *Vanda Scartezini* >>> >>> *Polo Consultores Associados* >>> >>> *Av. Paulista 1159 >>> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Av.+Paulista+1159?entry=gmail&source=g>, >>> cj 1004* >>> >>> *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* >>> >>> *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* >>> >>> *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * >>> >>> *Sorry for any typos. * >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Greetings >>> >>> Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still >>> working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing >>> it for inspiration purpose. >>> The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments >>> direct from the ICANN page >>> >>> >>> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... >>> >>> Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few >>> Months: Leveraging Remote Participation >>> >>> Link to document >>> >>> >>> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... >>> >>> >>> Facts >>> >>> - >>> >>> All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 >>> >>> >>> Reality >>> >>> - >>> >>> The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the >>> CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and >>> resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year >>> >>> >>> Item One: Remote Participation >>> >>> ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes >>> our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work >>> done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more >>> crucial, and a very real and practical alternative >>> >>> Comment >>> >>> This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the >>> devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts >>> the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its >>> DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly >>> engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, >>> as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor >>> urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes >>> it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if >>> there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want >>> to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet >>> accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible >>> for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and >>> perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support >>> groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with >>> national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. >>> >>> >>> Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools >>> >>> It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote >>> participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our >>> community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the >>> next four months. >>> >>> Comments >>> >>> It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean >>> etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all >>> of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and >>> others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow >>> speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants >>> due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed >>> to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. >>> >>> Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars >>> >>> We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority >>> topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new >>> opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to >>> participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and >>> adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new >>> participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These >>> activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, >>> lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. >>> >>> However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where >>> high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to >>> pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any >>> surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of >>> end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty >>> responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited >>> bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states >>> combined with high Internet costs. >>> >>> General View >>> >>> In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting >>> (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a >>> novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in >>> future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. >>> Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed >>> to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of >>> losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike >>> other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a >>> vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. >>> >>> Our community unlike the other the government or business >>> community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their >>> volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay >>> to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial >>> loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose >>> that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special >>> connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a >>> simple application and approval process. >>> >>> >>> >>> Recommendations >>> >>> - >>> >>> Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members >>> - >>> >>> Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet >>> Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can >>> participate. >>> - >>> >>> ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all >>> users. >>> - >>> >>> Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN >>> Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity >>> experiences ie. latency, quality etc >>> >>> >>> >>> Conclusion >>> Under development >>> >>> Footnotes >>> >>> 1. >>> >>> >>> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html >>> >>> 2. >>> >>> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds >>> https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... >>> 3. >>> >>> Students and digital divide >>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... >>> 4. >>> >>> Poor and Digital Divide >>> >>> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... >>> 5. >>> >>> Broadband Infographic >>> >>> >>> >>> Glenn McKnight >>> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >>> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >>> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >>> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >>> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >>> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >>> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >>> skype gmcknight >>> twitter @Inkmedia >>> 289-830 6259 >>> . >>> >>> >>> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < >>> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> >>> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Hi Glenn, >>> I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in >>> but will do so tomorrow >>> >>> Best, >>> Judith >>> >>> Sent from my iPad >>> judith@jhellerstein.com >>> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein >>> >>> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < >>> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> >>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM >>> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >>> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < >>> at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Hi all. >>> Greetings everyone from Sénégal. >>> +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad >>> pandemic moment. >>> I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. >>> Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. >>> Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. >>> Warm regards >>> Olévié >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> >>> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >>> >>> >>> Hi Maureen, >>> >>> My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the >>> fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who >>> dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing >>> to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and >>> the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs >>> valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS >>> ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have >>> the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution >>> to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs >>> incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a >>> suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. >>> >>> Best Regards >>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> Barrack O. Otieno >>> +254721325277 >>> +254733206359 >>> Skype: barrack.otieno >>> PGP ID: 0x2611D86A >>> >>> >>> >>> ---------- >>> From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> >>> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM >>> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >>> >>> >>> Thanks Maureen , >>> Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am >>> based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at >>> times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The >>> COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from >>> developing countries is welcome. >>> >>>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> At-Large mailing list >>> At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org >>> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large >>> >>> At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org >>> _______________________________________________ >>> By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of >>> your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list >>> accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( >>> https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of >>> Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the >>> Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, >>> including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling >>> delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin >> <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal >> <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal >> <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> >> >>
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-- Regards Esther Patricia
-- *Dr. Abdulkarim A.Oloyede*. *-Senior Lecturer, **Department of Telecommunications Science, University of Ilorin, Nigeria* *-Post Doctoral Researcher** (Rutherford Commonwealth Fellow)**, The University of York, York UK* *-Vice-Chairman, ITU-D Telecommunications Development Advisory Group (TDAG), **International Telecommunication Union (ITU)(2017-2021).* *-Vice Rappattour, ITU-D Study group 2 /Question 5 (2018-2022)* *-Co-Chair, **AFRINIC Policy Development Working Group (PDWG)(2019-2020)* *-Member, At Large Advisory Council (ALAC ) to *Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers.* (ICANN )Board **(2019-2021)* *-Co-Founder, GreenICT initiative, A Nigerian based NGO * *Alternative Emails: olouss@yahoo.com <olouss@yahoo.com> OR aao500@york.ac.uk <aao500@york.ac.uk>* -- Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/>
Dear Abdulkarim, I am sorry to say that it is not worth bringing an issue here as we have to look for the ultimate aim of any action. I have retained that you have no issue that help is provided to Daniel who is an active member of both the AFRALO and ALAC. I would like to commend the initiative taken by Glen and team and want to thank them whole heartedly. More so, if I were in the shoes of Maureen, I would have taken the same stand as herself. Let us hope that our Daniel is able to come out from this stressful situation Kind regards Dave Sent from my iPhone
On May 9, 2020, at 5:46 PM, ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Barrack, Just so that I am clear. I TOTALLY agree with the point you made about relationships and having concern for others. I have NO problem with this at all. Relationships should transcend borders as you mentioned. I totally agree with where she is coming from and share that view too. Please don't get me wrong. I agree with helping. I would also do there same however if I head a company/government and in the name of helping a friend I give out money from the public purse to help a friend in distress then no one should pity me when it is time to go to jail. Do you think anyone in charge of ICANN's finances would at any point in time be able to justify helping someone stranded in another country on a non-ICANN business?. I am not saying don't help am saying you can't push it to ICANN
Let me list where I disagree so that I am very clear
1. Daniel's Name should not have been mentioned in the email to Leon. Iit could have been a generic thing just as Glenn did in his mail. I believe his privacy has been compromised. We all now know who is stranded and where. 2. It shouldn't have been used as an example to convince the board cos clearly it would make them take an easy decision because I can't see how you can convince your company to pay the hotel bills for a friend who came on a private visit when you are not running a charity. The main issue should be about the general challenges, not individual challenges that way an individual can benefit. 3. It should not appear as the new priority. The priority should be the concerns the community has been rasing that never got to the next level. I hope you understand my point.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 2:02 PM Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote: Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, <oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote: Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that he is worried that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
Please respond only to this thread before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
> ----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [Multiple-award winning medium] (DigitalSENSE Business News; ITREALMS, NaijaAgroNet) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria
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*Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society (ACSIS) _________________________________________________________________ *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution.
---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
Vanda Scartezini
Polo Consultores Associados
Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004
01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253
Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464
Sorry for any typos.
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from NARALO . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... Poor and Digital Divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
>> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >> >
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Good morning all. I have deliberately stayed away from this discourse on the need for ICANN palliative because it is being taken up at the 'highest level' aka-alac. But having said that, I hate when people try to play to the gallery or try to gloss over issues when process and procedures are being abused. Or rather playing the 'good boy' to please certain 'masters' The position of AK is for due process to be followed and respected. No member within ICANN is heartless. You cannot use an individual circumstance to overshadow that of the collective. Maureen is at liberty to provide her personal assistance to Daniel, even Barrack and others who do not see the error in the actions of Maureen can equally provide their personal assistance. Mark my concerns, no one is opposed to Maureen for her concerns-BUT she is wrong to have made it an issue within an official discourse of the entire community. If I recollect vividly, Daniel was the same Youngman that was also mugged in Montreal and his personal effects including his travel documents stolen from him. ICANN took it up and that is understandable because it was an ICANN related event. Not this very one. Having said that, may I request that we drop further discussion on Daniel on this matter and refocus our attention to the issues at stake before we lose track on what we are really about. A mistake accepted is an honour redeemed. Maureen made a mistake so let her own up and stop the over-characterization. Best. *Pastor Peters Osawaru OMORAGBON* *-Financial Secretary, Central Association of Nigerians in the United Kingdom-CANUK* *-Executive President/CEO-Nurses Across the Borders-An NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations-ECOSOC* *-Designated Contact Person-United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change-UNFCCC* *-International Liaison Officer-Nigerian Nurses Charitable Association-NNCA-UK* *-Board Member-Conference of NGOS in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations-CONGO* *-Member Steering Committee Regional Committee for Africa-CONGO* *-General Secretary, Civil Society Network of NGOs on Climate Change* *-Fellow Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers-ICANN* *-Fellow Open Society Institute-Budapest* On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 14:03, Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
*2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!!
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---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
*Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004*
*01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil*
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*Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 *
*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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Dear Peters and At-Large Thank you everyone for your contributions and in typical At-Large fashion, we are never always going to agree on the actual outcomes.. but the diversity of views is invited and encouraged. It was interesting that the only requests for financial support from ICANN were actually made by the community in the body of emails that were forwarded to Leon on the 8th May. There was no mention of a request for funding for Daniel in my explanation of his situation. It was merely highlighting a very unusual and quite unique situation relating to one of our At-Large leaders - as a result of COVID-19. And as a close friend of At-Large, and of Daniel, Leon would also have appreciated being informed of Daniel's situation. In response to the funding requests that had already been made by the community, my comment that ICANN could not be expected to solve the problems of the world, was related to legal restrictions that I know do not allow ICANN to reimburse anything that hasn't been planned in advance, which has caused a few complaints from the ICANN community as you can imagine. Leon and Ron could probably explain it more. But, once other members of our community had been appraised of Daniels plight, a fund-raising initiative of our own was immediately established, and we are gratefully appreciative of the community donations that have been made to date. Daniel will benefit from the first tranche from this fund. Any further funds collected will be distributed after similar discussion by the organising committee. Of course I take ownership of my actions, Peters. Daniel's is quite a unique situation that would be a traumatic experience for anyone. That he has lasted so long on his own resources in a foreign country with no support from close family or friends is a credit to his own tenacity, but now with perhaps some hindsight about more careful planning. In order to get home at the earliest opportunity, he really has to start knocking on doors, but he will need funds to get to knock on the right doors. This is where we are trying to help one of our own, one of our community, one of our family, and because, in the circumstances, we can have no expectation of funds from ICANN, we must do this for ourselves. We would appreciate your support. Regards Maureen On Sat, 9 May 2020, 10:32 pm Peters Omoragbon, <petersomoragbon@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning all. I have deliberately stayed away from this discourse on the need for ICANN palliative because it is being taken up at the 'highest level' aka-alac. But having said that, I hate when people try to play to the gallery or try to gloss over issues when process and procedures are being abused. Or rather playing the 'good boy' to please certain 'masters' The position of AK is for due process to be followed and respected. No member within ICANN is heartless. You cannot use an individual circumstance to overshadow that of the collective. Maureen is at liberty to provide her personal assistance to Daniel, even Barrack and others who do not see the error in the actions of Maureen can equally provide their personal assistance. Mark my concerns, no one is opposed to Maureen for her concerns-BUT she is wrong to have made it an issue within an official discourse of the entire community. If I recollect vividly, Daniel was the same Youngman that was also mugged in Montreal and his personal effects including his travel documents stolen from him. ICANN took it up and that is understandable because it was an ICANN related event. Not this very one. Having said that, may I request that we drop further discussion on Daniel on this matter and refocus our attention to the issues at stake before we lose track on what we are really about. A mistake accepted is an honour redeemed. Maureen made a mistake so let her own up and stop the over-characterization. Best.
*Pastor Peters Osawaru OMORAGBON*
*-Financial Secretary, Central Association of Nigerians in the United Kingdom-CANUK*
*-Executive President/CEO-Nurses Across the Borders-An NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations-ECOSOC*
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*-General Secretary, Civil Society Network of NGOs on Climate Change*
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On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 14:03, Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
---------- > From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
I hope this helps. ____ REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] (DigitalSENSE Business News <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, Oshodi-Lagos M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E>
*2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* JOIN us!!
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---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
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*01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil*
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*Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 *
*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
>
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
>
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Dear Maureen, I will be too glad to offer my own little support if I have the information as to how to proceed. We all appreciate his plight and grateful to any individual support so far. Now, we all are on the same page as to our areas of differences on due diligence and process. My regards as always *Pastor Peters Osawaru OMORAGBON* *-Financial Secretary, Central Association of Nigerians in the United Kingdom-CANUK* *-Executive President/CEO-Nurses Across the Borders-An NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations-ECOSOC* *-Designated Contact Person-United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change-UNFCCC* *-International Liaison Officer-Nigerian Nurses Charitable Association-NNCA-UK* *-Board Member-Conference of NGOS in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations-CONGO* *-Member Steering Committee Regional Committee for Africa-CONGO* *-General Secretary, Civil Society Network of NGOs on Climate Change* *-Fellow Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers-ICANN* *-Fellow Open Society Institute-Budapest* On Sun, 10 May 2020 at 12:05, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Peters and At-Large
Thank you everyone for your contributions and in typical At-Large fashion, we are never always going to agree on the actual outcomes.. but the diversity of views is invited and encouraged.
It was interesting that the only requests for financial support from ICANN were actually made by the community in the body of emails that were forwarded to Leon on the 8th May. There was no mention of a request for funding for Daniel in my explanation of his situation. It was merely highlighting a very unusual and quite unique situation relating to one of our At-Large leaders - as a result of COVID-19. And as a close friend of At-Large, and of Daniel, Leon would also have appreciated being informed of Daniel's situation.
In response to the funding requests that had already been made by the community, my comment that ICANN could not be expected to solve the problems of the world, was related to legal restrictions that I know do not allow ICANN to reimburse anything that hasn't been planned in advance, which has caused a few complaints from the ICANN community as you can imagine. Leon and Ron could probably explain it more. But, once other members of our community had been appraised of Daniels plight, a fund-raising initiative of our own was immediately established, and we are gratefully appreciative of the community donations that have been made to date. Daniel will benefit from the first tranche from this fund. Any further funds collected will be distributed after similar discussion by the organising committee.
Of course I take ownership of my actions, Peters. Daniel's is quite a unique situation that would be a traumatic experience for anyone. That he has lasted so long on his own resources in a foreign country with no support from close family or friends is a credit to his own tenacity, but now with perhaps some hindsight about more careful planning. In order to get home at the earliest opportunity, he really has to start knocking on doors, but he will need funds to get to knock on the right doors.
This is where we are trying to help one of our own, one of our community, one of our family, and because, in the circumstances, we can have no expectation of funds from ICANN, we must do this for ourselves. We would appreciate your support.
Regards Maureen
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 10:32 pm Peters Omoragbon, <petersomoragbon@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning all. I have deliberately stayed away from this discourse on the need for ICANN palliative because it is being taken up at the 'highest level' aka-alac. But having said that, I hate when people try to play to the gallery or try to gloss over issues when process and procedures are being abused. Or rather playing the 'good boy' to please certain 'masters' The position of AK is for due process to be followed and respected. No member within ICANN is heartless. You cannot use an individual circumstance to overshadow that of the collective. Maureen is at liberty to provide her personal assistance to Daniel, even Barrack and others who do not see the error in the actions of Maureen can equally provide their personal assistance. Mark my concerns, no one is opposed to Maureen for her concerns-BUT she is wrong to have made it an issue within an official discourse of the entire community. If I recollect vividly, Daniel was the same Youngman that was also mugged in Montreal and his personal effects including his travel documents stolen from him. ICANN took it up and that is understandable because it was an ICANN related event. Not this very one. Having said that, may I request that we drop further discussion on Daniel on this matter and refocus our attention to the issues at stake before we lose track on what we are really about. A mistake accepted is an honour redeemed. Maureen made a mistake so let her own up and stop the over-characterization. Best.
*Pastor Peters Osawaru OMORAGBON*
*-Financial Secretary, Central Association of Nigerians in the United Kingdom-CANUK*
*-Executive President/CEO-Nurses Across the Borders-An NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations-ECOSOC*
*-Designated Contact Person-United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change-UNFCCC*
*-International Liaison Officer-Nigerian Nurses Charitable Association-NNCA-UK*
*-Board Member-Conference of NGOS in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations-CONGO*
*-Member Steering Committee Regional Committee for Africa-CONGO*
*-General Secretary, Civil Society Network of NGOs on Climate Change*
*-Fellow Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers-ICANN* *-Fellow Open Society Institute-Budapest*
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 14:03, Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
> Dear Leon > > Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC > meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to > those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while > also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our > volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I > had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, > the sender asked for it to be removed). > > One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel > Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in > Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not > return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but > living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, > his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been > responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real > assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible > return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. > Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how > long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? > Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being > there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried > *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because > internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources > he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme > case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. > > The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in > developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially > when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families > in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished > areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the > world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers > are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is > still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with > an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to > resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the > greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to > encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder > model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as > volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep > ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. > > Regards > Maureen > > > Forwarded Conversation > Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 > ------------------------ > > From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM > To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Dear At-Large Community > > In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff > have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by > the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on > their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. > > During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the > At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns > and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to > help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of > At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. > > Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions > about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to > those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and > engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to > pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board > for their consideration. > > *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full > account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful > contributions to this matter. > > Regards > Maureen > ALAC Chair > > > ---------- > From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Thanks Maureen > As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a > week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced > with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this > pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and > publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" > > We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a > depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may > see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and > economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 > million) > > I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many > folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously > compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and > help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest > ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come > up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the > support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid > to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs > as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where > people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply > for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be > confidential and an optional application process. > > In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of > African and small island states with very poor internet access and very > high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital > divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more > members from the community. As recommendations to join more online > meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have > fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance > on remote participation > > Glenn McKnight > ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 > mcknight.glenn@gmail.com > Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog > www.internetgovernancehub.blog > <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> > http://toronto.ieee.ca/ > IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair > glenn.mcknight@ieee.org > skype gmcknight > twitter @Inkmedia > 289-830 6259 > . > > ---------- >> > From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Thanks Maureen, > This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. > > For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have > been: > > 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end > down to the local service providers. > > 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 > months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect > paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off > at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to > their most essential needs including more data, because some may have > purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. > > I hope this helps. > ____ > REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, > Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, > DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] > (DigitalSENSE Business News > <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS > <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet > <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) > Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, > Oshodi-Lagos > M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms > <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> > Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria > <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> > > *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable > <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* > JOIN us!! > > *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society > (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) > _________________________________________________________________ > *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and > attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is > intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not > accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not > the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this > document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other > person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. > > > ---------- > From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Thank you Maureen and Léon ! > > 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid > conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian > and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in > Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. > REQUEST; > 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so > that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? > 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP > 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting > instead of the local time there? > 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala > Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? > > Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual > meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks > of Face to Face meetings. > > > Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez > > > ---------- > From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> > Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM > To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < > maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > > > Dear Glenn and Maureen > > > > These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing > region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families > without work. > > Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite > complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) > correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and > had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one > in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even > longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount > represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic > items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and > energy are sponsored for those families. > > Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they > need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a > volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and > certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. > > Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the > engagement of our community. > > We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of > help. Some even to feed their families. > > Kisses and take care > > > > *Vanda Scartezini* > > *Polo Consultores Associados* > > *Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004* > > *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* > > *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* > > *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * > > *Sorry for any typos. * > > > > > > > > > ---------- > From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Greetings > > Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still > working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing > it for inspiration purpose. > The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments > direct from the ICANN page > > > https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... > > Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few > Months: Leveraging Remote Participation > > Link to document > > > https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... > > > Facts > > - > > All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 > > > Reality > > - > > The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the > CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting > in no Face to Face meetings during that year > > > Item One: Remote Participation > > ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our > work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done > between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, > and a very real and practical alternative > > Comment > > This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the > devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts > the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its > DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly > engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, > as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban > communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next > to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are > few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to > participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet > accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible > for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and > perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support > groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with > national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. > > > Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools > > It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote > participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our > community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the > next four months. > > Comments > > It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean > etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all > of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and > others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow > speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants > due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed > to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. > > Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars > > We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority > topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new > opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to > participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and > adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new > participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These > activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, > lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. > > However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where > high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to > pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any > surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of > end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty > responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited > bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states > combined with high Internet costs. > > General View > > In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting > (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a > novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in > future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. > Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed > to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of > losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike > other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a > vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. > > Our community unlike the other the government or business community > do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our > community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If > the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants > from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize > the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The > process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and > approval process. > > > > Recommendations > > - > > Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members > - > > Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet > Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can > participate. > - > > ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all > users. > - > > Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public > webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. > latency, quality etc > > > > Conclusion > Under development > > Footnotes > > 1. > > > https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html > > 2. > > 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds > https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... > 3. > > Students and digital divide > https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... > 4. > > Poor and Digital Divide > > https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... > 5. > > Broadband Infographic > > > > Glenn McKnight > ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 > mcknight.glenn@gmail.com > Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog > www.internetgovernancehub.blog > <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> > http://toronto.ieee.ca/ > IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair > glenn.mcknight@ieee.org > skype gmcknight > twitter @Inkmedia > 289-830 6259 > . > > > On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < > maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: > >> > > ---------- > From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> > Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM > To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > > > Hi Glenn, > I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but > will do so tomorrow > > Best, > Judith > > Sent from my iPad > judith@jhellerstein.com > Skype ID:JudithHellerstein > > On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < > mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > ---------- > From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> > Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM > To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> > Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < > at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Hi all. > Greetings everyone from Sénégal. > +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad > pandemic moment. > I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. > Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. > Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. > Warm regards > Olévié > > > ---------- > From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> > Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> > > > Hi Maureen, > > My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the > fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who > dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing > to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and > the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs > valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS > ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have > the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution > to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs > incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a > suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. > > Best Regards > > > > -- > Barrack O. Otieno > +254721325277 > +254733206359 > Skype: barrack.otieno > PGP ID: 0x2611D86A > > > > ---------- > From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> > Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM > To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> > > > Thanks Maureen , > Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based > in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on > cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID > 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing > countries is welcome. > >> > > _______________________________________________ > At-Large mailing list > At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org > https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large > > At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org > _______________________________________________ > By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of > your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list > accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( > https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of > Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the > Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, > including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling > delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on.
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-- *Dr. Abdulkarim A.Oloyede*.
*-Senior Lecturer, **Department of Telecommunications Science, University of Ilorin, Nigeria* *-Post Doctoral Researcher** (Rutherford Commonwealth Fellow)**, The University of York, York UK* *-Vice-Chairman, ITU-D Telecommunications Development Advisory Group (TDAG), **International Telecommunication Union (ITU)(2017-2021).* *-Vice Rappattour, ITU-D Study group 2 /Question 5 (2018-2022)* *-Co-Chair, **AFRINIC Policy Development Working Group (PDWG)(2019-2020)* *-Member, At Large Advisory Council (ALAC ) to *Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers.* (ICANN )Board **(2019-2021)*
*-Co-Founder, GreenICT initiative, A Nigerian based NGO * *Alternative Emails: olouss@yahoo.com <olouss@yahoo.com> OR aao500@york.ac.uk <aao500@york.ac.uk>*
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Thank you Peters. The link to the Fundraiser is: https://www.gofundme.com/f/atlarge-caring-community-covid-19-fund?utm_source... Maureen On Sun, May 10, 2020 at 1:17 AM Peters Omoragbon <petersomoragbon@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I will be too glad to offer my own little support if I have the information as to how to proceed. We all appreciate his plight and grateful to any individual support so far. Now, we all are on the same page as to our areas of differences on due diligence and process. My regards as always
*Pastor Peters Osawaru OMORAGBON*
*-Financial Secretary, Central Association of Nigerians in the United Kingdom-CANUK*
*-Executive President/CEO-Nurses Across the Borders-An NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations-ECOSOC*
*-Designated Contact Person-United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change-UNFCCC*
*-International Liaison Officer-Nigerian Nurses Charitable Association-NNCA-UK*
*-Board Member-Conference of NGOS in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations-CONGO*
*-Member Steering Committee Regional Committee for Africa-CONGO*
*-General Secretary, Civil Society Network of NGOs on Climate Change*
*-Fellow Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers-ICANN* *-Fellow Open Society Institute-Budapest*
On Sun, 10 May 2020 at 12:05, Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Peters and At-Large
Thank you everyone for your contributions and in typical At-Large fashion, we are never always going to agree on the actual outcomes.. but the diversity of views is invited and encouraged.
It was interesting that the only requests for financial support from ICANN were actually made by the community in the body of emails that were forwarded to Leon on the 8th May. There was no mention of a request for funding for Daniel in my explanation of his situation. It was merely highlighting a very unusual and quite unique situation relating to one of our At-Large leaders - as a result of COVID-19. And as a close friend of At-Large, and of Daniel, Leon would also have appreciated being informed of Daniel's situation.
In response to the funding requests that had already been made by the community, my comment that ICANN could not be expected to solve the problems of the world, was related to legal restrictions that I know do not allow ICANN to reimburse anything that hasn't been planned in advance, which has caused a few complaints from the ICANN community as you can imagine. Leon and Ron could probably explain it more. But, once other members of our community had been appraised of Daniels plight, a fund-raising initiative of our own was immediately established, and we are gratefully appreciative of the community donations that have been made to date. Daniel will benefit from the first tranche from this fund. Any further funds collected will be distributed after similar discussion by the organising committee.
Of course I take ownership of my actions, Peters. Daniel's is quite a unique situation that would be a traumatic experience for anyone. That he has lasted so long on his own resources in a foreign country with no support from close family or friends is a credit to his own tenacity, but now with perhaps some hindsight about more careful planning. In order to get home at the earliest opportunity, he really has to start knocking on doors, but he will need funds to get to knock on the right doors.
This is where we are trying to help one of our own, one of our community, one of our family, and because, in the circumstances, we can have no expectation of funds from ICANN, we must do this for ourselves. We would appreciate your support.
Regards Maureen
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 10:32 pm Peters Omoragbon, <petersomoragbon@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning all. I have deliberately stayed away from this discourse on the need for ICANN palliative because it is being taken up at the 'highest level' aka-alac. But having said that, I hate when people try to play to the gallery or try to gloss over issues when process and procedures are being abused. Or rather playing the 'good boy' to please certain 'masters' The position of AK is for due process to be followed and respected. No member within ICANN is heartless. You cannot use an individual circumstance to overshadow that of the collective. Maureen is at liberty to provide her personal assistance to Daniel, even Barrack and others who do not see the error in the actions of Maureen can equally provide their personal assistance. Mark my concerns, no one is opposed to Maureen for her concerns-BUT she is wrong to have made it an issue within an official discourse of the entire community. If I recollect vividly, Daniel was the same Youngman that was also mugged in Montreal and his personal effects including his travel documents stolen from him. ICANN took it up and that is understandable because it was an ICANN related event. Not this very one. Having said that, may I request that we drop further discussion on Daniel on this matter and refocus our attention to the issues at stake before we lose track on what we are really about. A mistake accepted is an honour redeemed. Maureen made a mistake so let her own up and stop the over-characterization. Best.
*Pastor Peters Osawaru OMORAGBON*
*-Financial Secretary, Central Association of Nigerians in the United Kingdom-CANUK*
*-Executive President/CEO-Nurses Across the Borders-An NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations-ECOSOC*
*-Designated Contact Person-United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change-UNFCCC*
*-International Liaison Officer-Nigerian Nurses Charitable Association-NNCA-UK*
*-Board Member-Conference of NGOS in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations-CONGO*
*-Member Steering Committee Regional Committee for Africa-CONGO*
*-General Secretary, Civil Society Network of NGOs on Climate Change*
*-Fellow Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers-ICANN* *-Fellow Open Society Institute-Budapest*
On Sat, 9 May 2020 at 14:03, Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Abdulkarim,
Permit me to weigh in on this matter. Having been involved in ICANN for a little over 10 years now i have come to appreciate the role of relationships and genuine concern for each others well being. This is what has kept me and many others going in this ecosystem for many years and i beleive this is where Maureen is coming from. I literaly drop everything i am doing whenever a member of this community is in town due to the relationships we have established which transcend borders. As a leader, i would do the same when one of my team members is in dire straits. We all have an idea of the letter and the spirit of the law or by laws. Whichever school of thought you align yourself with has impacts on the output of your team or any organization you may be leading. The issues that have been raised are suggestions and should be treated as such. In my opinion Maureen is right as a leader to bring to the fore an issue a member of her leadership team is facing. Being a diverse community, Daniels help might just be an email away. If we can't help him then let the matter rest.
On Sat, 9 May 2020, 3:39 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
> Dear Maureen, > I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I > totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the > Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in > your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges > being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a > face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a > message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is > clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly > overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most > significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the > mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise > with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly > discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people > around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't > clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it > is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even > family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all > faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut > down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN > is now a social club. > > I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take > up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to > having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community > and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue > for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been > raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take > it seriously. > > AK > > On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < > maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: > >> Dear Leon >> >> Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC >> meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to >> those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while >> also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our >> volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I >> had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, >> the sender asked for it to be removed). >> >> One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel >> Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in >> Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not >> return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but >> living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, >> his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been >> responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real >> assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible >> return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. >> Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how >> long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? >> Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being >> there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is >> worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings >> because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little >> resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is >> an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team. >> >> The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in >> developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially >> when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families >> in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished >> areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the >> world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers >> are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is >> still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with >> an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to >> resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the >> greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to >> encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder >> model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as >> volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep >> ourselves safe? This is our dilemma. >> >> Regards >> Maureen >> >> >> Forwarded Conversation >> Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during >> COVID-19 >> ------------------------ >> >> From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM >> To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Dear At-Large Community >> >> In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff >> have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by >> the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on >> their ability to participate as regularly as they used to. >> >> During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the >> At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns >> and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to >> help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of >> At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN. >> >> Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions >> about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to >> those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and >> engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to >> pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board >> for their consideration. >> >> *Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the >> full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful >> contributions to this matter. >> >> Regards >> Maureen >> ALAC Chair >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Thanks Maureen >> As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a >> week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced >> with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this >> pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and >> publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands" >> >> We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a >> depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may >> see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and >> economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 >> million) >> >> I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many >> folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously >> compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and >> help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest >> ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come >> up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the >> support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid >> to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs >> as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where >> people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply >> for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be >> confidential and an optional application process. >> >> In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of >> African and small island states with very poor internet access and very >> high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital >> divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more >> members from the community. As recommendations to join more online >> meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have >> fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance >> on remote participation >> >> Glenn McKnight >> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >> skype gmcknight >> twitter @Inkmedia >> 289-830 6259 >> . >> >> ---------- >>> >> From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Thanks Maureen, >> This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon. >> >> For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should >> have been: >> >> 1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end >> down to the local service providers. >> >> 2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 >> months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect >> paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off >> at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to >> their most essential needs including more data, because some may have >> purchased data ahead, say two months in a row. >> >> I hope this helps. >> ____ >> REMMY NWEKE, mNGE, >> Lead Consulting Strategist/Group Executive Editor, >> DigitalSENSE Africa Media [*Multiple-award winning medium*] >> (DigitalSENSE Business News >> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng/businessnews>; ITREALMS >> <http://www.itrealms.com.ng>, NaijaAgroNet >> <http://www.naijaagronet.com.ng>) >> Block F1, Shop 133 Moyosore Aboderin Plaza, Bolade Junction, >> Oshodi-Lagos >> M: 234-8033592762, 8023122558, 8051000475, T: @ITRealms >> <http://www.twitter.com/ITRealms> >> Author: A Decade of ICT Reportage in Nigeria >> <https://www.facebook.com/adecadeofictreportageinnigeria%E2%80%8E> >> >> *2020 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on IG4D & Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable >> <http://www.digitalsenseafrica.com.ng>* >> JOIN us!! >> >> *Vice President, African Civil Society on the Information Society >> (ACSIS <http://www.acsis-scasi.org/en/>) >> _________________________________________________________________ >> *Confidentiality Notice:* The information in this document and >> attachments are confidential and may also be privileged information. It is >> intended only for the use of the named recipient. Remmy Nweke does not >> accept legal responsibility for the contents of this e-mail. If you are not >> the intended recipient, please notify me immediately, then delete this >> document and do not disclose the contents of this document to any other >> person, nor make any copies. Violators may face court persecution. >> >> >> ---------- >> From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Thank you Maureen and Léon ! >> >> 1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid >> conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian >> and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in >> Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. >> REQUEST; >> 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so >> that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? >> 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP >> 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting >> instead of the local time there? >> 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala >> Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online? >> >> Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual >> meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks >> of Face to Face meetings. >> >> >> Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> >> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM >> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> >> >> Dear Glenn and Maureen >> >> >> >> These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing >> region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families >> without work. >> >> Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite >> complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) >> correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and >> had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one >> in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even >> longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount >> represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic >> items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and >> energy are sponsored for those families. >> >> Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they >> need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a >> volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and >> certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us. >> >> Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help >> the engagement of our community. >> >> We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need >> of help. Some even to feed their families. >> >> Kisses and take care >> >> >> >> *Vanda Scartezini* >> >> *Polo Consultores Associados* >> >> *Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004* >> >> *01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil* >> >> *Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253* >> >> *Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 * >> >> *Sorry for any typos. * >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Greetings >> >> Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still >> working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing >> it for inspiration purpose. >> The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments >> direct from the ICANN page >> >> >> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1... >> >> Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few >> Months: Leveraging Remote Participation >> >> Link to document >> >> >> https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-... >> >> >> Facts >> >> - >> >> All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020 >> >> >> Reality >> >> - >> >> The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the >> CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and >> resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year >> >> >> Item One: Remote Participation >> >> ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes >> our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work >> done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more >> crucial, and a very real and practical alternative >> >> Comment >> >> This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the >> devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts >> the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its >> DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly >> engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, >> as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban >> communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it >> next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there >> are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to >> participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet >> accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible >> for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and >> perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support >> groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with >> national, regional, and local organizations, etc.. >> >> >> Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools >> >> It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote >> participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our >> community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the >> next four months. >> >> Comments >> >> It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean >> etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all >> of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and >> others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow >> speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants >> due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed >> to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls. >> >> Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars >> >> We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority >> topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new >> opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to >> participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and >> adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new >> participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These >> activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, >> lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts. >> >> However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where >> high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to >> pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any >> surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of >> end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty >> responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited >> bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states >> combined with high Internet costs. >> >> General View >> >> In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting >> (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a >> novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in >> future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. >> Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed >> to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of >> losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike >> other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a >> vacation to attend ICANN Meetings. >> >> Our community unlike the other the government or business >> community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their >> volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay >> to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial >> loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose >> that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special >> connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a >> simple application and approval process. >> >> >> >> Recommendations >> >> - >> >> Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members >> - >> >> Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet >> Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can >> participate. >> - >> >> ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all >> users. >> - >> >> Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public >> webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. >> latency, quality etc >> >> >> >> Conclusion >> Under development >> >> Footnotes >> >> 1. >> >> >> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html >> >> 2. >> >> 60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds >> https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... >> 3. >> >> Students and digital divide >> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... >> 4. >> >> Poor and Digital Divide >> >> https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... >> 5. >> >> Broadband Infographic >> >> >> >> Glenn McKnight >> ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 >> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com >> Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog >> www.internetgovernancehub.blog >> <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> >> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ >> IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair >> glenn.mcknight@ieee.org >> skype gmcknight >> twitter @Inkmedia >> 289-830 6259 >> . >> >> >> On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < >> maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> >> >> ---------- >> From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> >> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM >> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> >> >> Hi Glenn, >> I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but >> will do so tomorrow >> >> Best, >> Judith >> >> Sent from my iPad >> judith@jhellerstein.com >> Skype ID:JudithHellerstein >> >> On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight < >> mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote: >> >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> >> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM >> To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> >> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < >> at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Hi all. >> Greetings everyone from Sénégal. >> +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad >> pandemic moment. >> I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. >> Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. >> Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. >> Warm regards >> Olévié >> >> >> ---------- >> From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> >> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org> >> >> >> Hi Maureen, >> >> My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the >> fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who >> dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing >> to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and >> the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs >> valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS >> ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have >> the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution >> to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs >> incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a >> suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing. >> >> Best Regards >> >> >> >> -- >> Barrack O. Otieno >> +254721325277 >> +254733206359 >> Skype: barrack.otieno >> PGP ID: 0x2611D86A >> >> >> >> ---------- >> From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> >> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM >> To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> >> >> >> Thanks Maureen , >> Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am >> based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at >> times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The >> COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from >> developing countries is welcome. >> >>> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> At-Large mailing list >> At-Large@atlarge-lists.icann.org >> https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large >> >> At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org >> _______________________________________________ >> By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of >> your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list >> accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy ( >> https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of >> Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos). You can visit the >> Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, >> including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling >> delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. > > > > > > > > Website <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng>, Weekly Bulletin > <http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/bulletin> UGPortal > <http://uilugportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> PGPortal > <https://uilpgportal.unilorin.edu.ng/> > >
-- *Dr. Abdulkarim A.Oloyede*.
*-Senior Lecturer, **Department of Telecommunications Science, University of Ilorin, Nigeria* *-Post Doctoral Researcher** (Rutherford Commonwealth Fellow)**, The University of York, York UK* *-Vice-Chairman, ITU-D Telecommunications Development Advisory Group (TDAG), **International Telecommunication Union (ITU)(2017-2021).* *-Vice Rappattour, ITU-D Study group 2 /Question 5 (2018-2022)* *-Co-Chair, **AFRINIC Policy Development Working Group (PDWG)(2019-2020)* *-Member, At Large Advisory Council (ALAC ) to *Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers.* (ICANN )Board **(2019-2021)*
*-Co-Founder, GreenICT initiative, A Nigerian based NGO * *Alternative Emails: olouss@yahoo.com <olouss@yahoo.com> OR aao500@york.ac.uk <aao500@york.ac.uk>*
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Hi Folks I now now understand how ICANN wins based upon the rhetoric that is in this thread. We have a member in our community that needs some help and we can either ignore it or as Maureen has done she stepped up and instead of many in the community did something. Many of us . Jonathan, Judith, Maureen, Sebastien and myself has put our money were our hearts are. I could say that Daniel you made your bed sleep in it, but I am not, we created a Go Fund Me initiative to help and its *not exclusively for him. * It depends how much we raise we encourage the RALO chairs to do some reach out to their membership to determine their situation. This is only an emergency fund funded by some of the ATLARGE Community and it is not addressing the digital divide and the Internet costs for our membership during this year and possible next year. Its also limited by the generosity of the community. *When the funds run out thats it. * It reminds me when i tried to get laptop donations to Puerto Rico we had lots of reasons not to do for endless reasons but it didn't help any of the children in PR which had their schools destroyed. Despite the cynics I worked with the Rotary Club in Virginia and hundreds of computers were delivered. In the case of ISOC I experienced the same inertia . Lets see how this goes. G Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 . On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 8:39 AM ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen,
Your response has clearly brought out one of the three points that I was trying to make. I never asked that the individual should not be supported but I do not think it is right to prioritise one person at the expense of the community. Who would your leadership team serve if the community is not there?. I pointed out in the least paragraph of my email to you that the need to support the community has been mentioned several times by different people at different At-Large meetings but it was not taking to the next level until Leon stepped in only for it now to be overshadowed by a non-ICANN issue is one of my concerns. The board would make an easy decision on this matter as it is clearly dominated by a non-ICANN and private issue.
Leadership role and general work within at-large is voluntary and if you are concern about him "regardless of how he came about it". That should not overshadow what is affecting most people within the community. We need to get our priorities right. I am sure you only found out about his case yesterday because according to the records I just checked he has been attending the meeting he chairs and other meetings including that of ATRT 3. I am not trying to trivialise his issue in any way but I decided to respond because I smell a rat.
I do not understand what you mean by "unusual predicament" because we are all in an "unusual predicament" of COVID 19. I also don't understand why you mean by "extreme bad luck" but a lot of other people are affected by the "extreme bad luck" and USA has handled the COVID situation far better than a lot of other countries. I can give numerous example. some don't even have the test kit to test talk less of detection.
It is not about me helping or not. Like you rightly said it is voluntary. Doing what is important to us as leaders mean we should be fair, listen and look after the community, not just one person we find loyal to us.
AK
On Sat, May 9, 2020 at 6:13 AM Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Abdulkarim
While I agree with you that there are surely situations similar to that of Daniel within At-Large, many do not have the same level of responsibility to the work of At-Large as he does. As one of my leadership team, I am concerned about his circumstances, regardless of how he came upon them.
It was his concern for his ability to meet his obligations to his leadership role which caused me to mention his unusual predicament. I only found out about where he was and his situation yesterday. Even when he should be thinking about himself, he was informing me as to why he might not be able to fulfil his obligations to the O&E team for an unknown timeframe.
It was extreme bad luck that he was not able to leave the country at the conclusion of the leadership event, especially in a country that I believe has very poorly managed its covid situation. I sympathise with anyone who ever finds themselves in a situation such as this. If there is any way that our community can help relieve Daniel's situation until his country's embassy can assist his return to Uganda, then Im happy to do my bit.
We cant do this for everyone, but for someone like Daniel who has volunteered a lot of personal time towards work within At-Large as well as in cross-community activities for several years, he deserves my support even if in this small way, and gratefully with the support of other like-minded people.
If you would like to help too, that is fine. If not, then that is fine as well. We all do what is important to us and as much or as little as we can. The same will have to go for our work within ICANN.
Regards and keep well Maureen
On Fri, 8 May 2020, 1:36 pm ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE, < oloyede.aa@unilorin.edu.ng> wrote:
Dear Maureen, I greatly sympathise with Daniel on this issue you shared and I totally agree with your approach of setting up a welfare team and the Gofundme. However, I do not understand why you decided to include it in your email to Leon. His travel is clearly not related to the challenges being faced by the community as a result of having what should have been a face to face meeting going online. Your email was saying you removed a message cos it is not ICANN related but yet it included an issue which is clearly not ICANN related. The unrelated issue you raised has clearly overshadowed the other critical issue. In fact, it took the most significant part of the mail. What was supposed to be the main point in the mail is now being relegated to paragraph 3. In as much as I sympathise with Daniel, I do not see the reason why a private issue was now explicitly discussed in an email to Leon and the community. There are lots of people around the world in a similar situation and I can't understand and I don't clearly want to guess why you are making Daniel's case look worse than it is or as an example for the mailing list. I have lots of friends and even family members stranded as a result of the unexpected shutdown. We all faced challenges in our private lives or because of the unexpected shut down of the world and I believe this should remain private except if ICANN is now a social club.
I also agree with Remmy Nweke that RALO leaders should also take up the issues relating to challenges the community is facing in regards to having an online meeting. This is because they are closer to the community and It took Leon to raise it specifically before it became a serious issue for the ALAC when clearly we should not have waited this long. It has been raised by several people before now but we didn't seams to listen or take it seriously.
AK
On Fri, May 8, 2020 at 6:49 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Leon
Here is the discussion that arose out of the request from the ALAC meeting. I am so grateful that the community restricted their comments to those that were most thoughtful and considerate of ICANN's situation while also taking into account some of the hardship issues experienced by our volunteers at this time. I forward all the emails received on the topic (I had one instance where the email was on another topic and once revealed, the sender asked for it to be removed).
One case which only very recently came to my attention was Daniel Nanghaka who was in the US attending an AMEX Leadership course in Washington DC when the flights out of US were grounded and he could not return to Uganda. He has been staying with friends in Massachusetts but living very frugally on his limited resources. Even though he has tried, his contacts with the Uganda Embassy in Washington DC have not been responded to (as of yesterday) and neither has AMEX been of any real assistance to his plight. I have suggested that he persist and if possible return to Washington DC to get his government's support directly. Fortunately he is still within scope of his current visa, but who knows how long will he have to remain in a foreign country without any resources? Daniel hadn't raised his situation with us because his reason for being there was not directly related to ICANN, except that *he is worried *that he may not be able to participate in his meetings because internet connection is expensive and it is draining what little resources he has at the moment, even to take his own O&E meetings. This is an extreme case but a real live situation for one of our leadership team.
The cost of internet and the loss of jobs especially for those in developing countries will make ICANN's work of less priority, especially when they have to worry more about how to feed and care for their families in situations where the pandemic is still rabid, and it is the impoverished areas that are being hardest hit. While I know that ICANN cannot save the world, it saddens me to know what some of our hardest-working volunteers are experiencing in their real worlds... and yet at the same time there is still a flow of even more meetings than before, even within At-Large, with an expectation of more volunteer input into issues that ICANN has to resolve. All I can say is that the longer this situation exists, the greater the chance of those voices that we have been working really hard to encourage to join our discussions, will disappear and our multistakeholder model will be truly lost. But what can ICANN do and what more can we do as volunteers who are already stretched within our own bubbles just to keep ourselves safe? This is our dilemma.
Regards Maureen
Forwarded Conversation Subject: Coping with active participation in At-Large during COVID-19 ------------------------
From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 9:58 AM To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Dear At-Large Community
In all our recent ICANN meetings, the Board and the senior staff have been very mindful of the difficulties that are being experienced by the volunteer community of At-Large during this pandemic and its impact on their ability to participate as regularly as they used to.
During his intervention in the ALAC meeting on 28 April, the At-Large appointed Board member, Leon Sanchez, raised his ongoing concerns and asked the 70+ participants at the meeting how ICANN might be able to help volunteers to continue with their active involvement in the work of At-Large and contributing to the bigger picture work of ICANN.
Because he has requested practical and constructive suggestions about how ICANN may be able to assist, I am putting this message out to those who also already attend online meetings and actively participate and engage, even under really trying personal circumstances. I am willing to pass on your suggestions to Leon, who will in turn take these to the Board for their consideration.
*Please respond only to this thread* before 7 May, so that the full account can be passed on to Leon. I look forward to your thoughtful contributions to this matter.
Regards Maureen ALAC Chair
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 10:22 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen As you know this is an issue I brought up in the ALT PLUS call a week before the ZOOM call this week with Leon, at that time I interfaced with Leon on the dire straits that some people are facing during this pandemic situation and that many folks are unwilling to step forward and publicly come to the table with a "cap in their hands"
We are facing a 4% drop in the world economy and this means a depression much worse than the Great Depression. Also this Covid-19 may see a serious second and third wave resulting in many more deaths and economic disruption. ( shades of the 1918 pandemic that killed 100 million)
I would surmise that we have in the ATLARGE community that many folks are unemployed or underemployed and facing tough times and seriously compounded in countries that don't have any safety net to protect them and help them over the difficult times. Since charity starts at home I suggest ICANN dig into its pockets as ISOC and Mozilla and many others and come up with a financial assistance to those that could really appreciate the support. I suggest that the stipend for the ICANN Meetings to be paid to the ATLARGE members which will cover their internet costs and food costs as they fully participate with the remote meetings. In the cases where people don't want or need this financial support they can simple not apply for the stipend and the financial costs would be reduced. It should be confidential and an optional application process.
In a recent survey of Atlarge members we found a large number of African and small island states with very poor internet access and very high costs for their access to the Internet. This produces a digital divide that needs to be recognized and if not addressed we may loose more members from the community. As recommendations to join more online meetings and join ICANN LEARN webinars its an assumption that we all have fair and equal access and this inequality is enhanced with more reliance on remote participation
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
----------
From: Remmy Nweke <remmyn@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:20 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thanks Maureen, This is very thoughtful both of ICANN, ALAC and Leon.
For me, the best possible way to encourage participation should have been:
1. To have data palliative, but it looks cumbersome from ICANN end down to the local service providers.
2. An alternative is to have an aggregated sum approved for e.g. 4 months = USD600; to be given to participants to cushion their data effect paid directly to them (both mobile device and laptop). Thereby easing off at ICANN end and also encouraging participant to optimise the resource to their most essential needs including more data, because some may have purchased data ahead, say two months in a row.
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---------- From: <carlosraul@gutierrez.se> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 11:44 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Thank you Maureen and Léon !
1. We in LACRALO have already adapted our meeting hours to avoid conflicts with working hours as far as possible. Thanks to our Brazilian and Uruguayan friends that's stay up late, the westerners in Mexico in Costa Rica have meeting only after 4pm or so. REQUEST; 1. Can't we do choose two convenient blocks of time over the day so that's global meetings only happen outside of sleeping hours? 2. Can we start using those blocks of time ASAP 3. Can we keep those Blocks for the Kuala Lumpur virtual meeting instead of the local time there? 4. If all of the above is not possible: can we spread the Kuala Lumpur meeting into 2-3 power weekend meetings online?
Seriously, if we are going to spend the next few months on virtual meetings, it makes no sense to use the planning frameworks and time blocks of Face to Face meetings.
Thanks! Carlos Raúl Gutiérrez
---------- From: Vanda Scartezini <vanda@scartezini.org> Date: Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 12:06 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com>, Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Dear Glenn and Maureen
These thoughts are really relevant when we can see in developing region several medium class persons are struggled to feed their families without work.
Here, as developing country, the government is performing a quite complex operation, providing a 120 – 240 ( widows with children) correspondent USD to 56 millions ( ¼ of our population) of persons and had open up a 26 million of a special bank account to those not having one in the public bank, and will pay such amount during 3 months or even longer depend upon the winter ( even mild one here) season. The amount represents what we call basic basket with food and cleaner and hygienic items for one month of a family of 4. The basic mobile are reduced and energy are sponsored for those families.
Helping people to attend our meetings on line in places where they need to spend too much special nowadays paying internet or even 3G for a volunteer activity, does not see will break ICANN’s finances and certainly will help a lot to keep these relevant community with us.
Thanks for these relevant proposal that I do believe really help the engagement of our community.
We can also help to state who, in our regions, is really in need of help. Some even to feed their families.
Kisses and take care
*Vanda Scartezini*
*Polo Consultores Associados*
*Av. Paulista 1159, cj 1004*
*01311-200- Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil*
*Land Line: +55 11 3266.6253*
*Mobile: + 55 11 98181.1464 *
*Sorry for any typos. *
---------- From: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 4:28 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Greetings
Here is the draft response from* NARALO* . Note we are still working out the logistics of the ideas and its not final . I am sharing it for inspiration purpose. The bold and italic comments are excerpts from ICANN's comments direct from the ICANN page
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-_IO9vxnl2AUyrPE2zcL19UjyDPbl5DQHTLvWxX1...
Supporting the Work of Our Global Community over the Next Few Months: Leveraging Remote Participation
Link to document
https://www.icann.org/news/blog/supporting-the-work-of-our-global-community-...
Facts
-
All ICANN Face to Face meetings on hold to Sept 2020
Reality
-
The Pandemic will likely be worse in the fall according to the CDC comments and likely it will be into 2021. (1) and resulting in no Face to Face meetings during that year
Item One: Remote Participation
ICANN has always embraced remote participation. It is what makes our work accessible to a global community and enables us to get the work done between meetings. COVID-19 has made remote engagement even more crucial, and a very real and practical alternative
Comment
This is a practical solution to keep the community engaged but the devil is in the details. We have a serious digital divide which impacts the ATLARGE community. Since ICANN has Multistakeholderism baked into its DNA it is critical to provide communities with the tools to properly engage. In Canada, especially in the far- north, in the US tribal lands, as well as in rural areas(2), among students(3) and in poor urban communities(4) there is a serious digital divide that makes it next to impossible to participate fully in the meetings. In fact, if there are few participants in such areas, it is not because they don’t want to participate. They simply cannot participate unless their internet accessibility issues are addressed. Although ICANN cannot be responsible for all digital divide issues, it must recognize that these exist and perhaps look for alternative ways to deal with these -- create support groups, reach out locally with low tech methods, build partnerships with national, regional, and local organizations, etc..
Item Two; Leverage Participation Tools
It is more important than ever that we leverage our remote participation tools to continue effectively engaging and supporting our community in the work that needs to be done; at the very least, over the next four months.
Comments
It is not just a matter of online tools ie. Zoom, Adobe, Bluejean etc or accessibility issues, but about the bandwidth required by any or all of them. Moreover, many within At Large have uneven connectivity speeds and others are burdened with very high Internet costs and extremely slow speeds. This combined with the loss of income by many of the participants due to COVID-19 making it harder for them to pay for the extra data needed to participate in the At Large or other ICANN related calls.
Item Three Online Courses/ Webinars
We are working with the community to ensure that high-priority topics for this period are being addressed and are creating new opportunities and training for our stakeholders within At Large to participate. As such, we are looking at facilitating these efforts and adding a variety of additional activities to build capacity, to attract new participants, and to educate, and engage these new participants. These activities will include informative webinars, ICANN Learn modules, lectures, and ICANN Public Meeting readouts.
However, this strategy of engagement is only possible where high-speed Internet access is available and the end-user has the funds to pay for the extra service. We would be interested in learning about any surveys that ICANN LEARN staff have done on connectivity challenges of end-users. A recent informal ATLARGE survey, although having only twenty responses, shows that participants in developing countries have limited bandwidth especially in many parts of Africa and small island states combined with high Internet costs.
General View
In the short run, the participation in the first virtual meeting (Cancun) while having very high participation, should be looked at as a novelty, this will not be the new norm. We do expect that participation in future meetings will drop until the economy gets back on track. Participants do not have the available income to spend on the access needed to actively participate in online meetings. We are at a serious risk of losing valuable volunteers. At Large participants are volunteers and unlike other constituencies, they do this outside their paid jobs and often take a vacation to attend ICANN Meetings.
Our community unlike the other the government or business community do not have the luxury of sponsorship to carry on their volunteerism. Our community has had to dig into their own pockets to pay to participate. If the economy does not pick up we can see a substantial loss of participants from locations we cannot afford to lose. We propose that ICANN recognize the value of these participants and create a special connectivity fund. The process and procedure could be worked out in a simple application and approval process.
Recommendations
-
Provide the stipend to all elected ATLARGE community members -
Provide an opportunity to ALS members to receive an Internet Connectivity voucher to offset their high Internet costs so they can participate. -
ICANN LEARN should conduct a true connectivity survey of all users. -
Improve upon the end-user survey at the end of all ICANN Public webinars to get feedback on participation and connectivity experiences ie. latency, quality etc
Conclusion Under development
Footnotes
1.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/forecasting-us.html
2.
60% of farmers in the US report very poor Broadband speeds https://api.unitedsoybean.org/uploads/documents/58546-1-ruralbroadband-white... 3.
Students and digital divide https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/10/when-school-is-online-the-digi... 4.
Poor and Digital Divide
https://internetgovernancehub.blog/2020/04/29/digital-divide-isolates-and-en... 5.
Broadband Infographic
Glenn McKnight ICANN NOMCOM 2019-2021 mcknight.glenn@gmail.com Curator for Internet Governance Hub Blog www.internetgovernancehub.blog <http://www.internetgovernancehub.blog> http://toronto.ieee.ca/ IEEE Toronto SIGHT Chair glenn.mcknight@ieee.org skype gmcknight twitter @Inkmedia 289-830 6259 .
On Thu, Apr 30, 2020 at 3:59 PM Maureen Hilyard < maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Judith Hellerstein <judith@jhellerstein.com> Date: Sat, May 2, 2020 at 3:10 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Hi Glenn, I have more to add but did not get a chance on Friday to put in but will do so tomorrow
Best, Judith
Sent from my iPad judith@jhellerstein.com Skype ID:JudithHellerstein
On May 2, 2020, at 10:29 AM, Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> wrote:
---------- From: Olivier Kouami <olivierkouami@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 12:49 PM To: Glenn McKnight <mcknight.glenn@gmail.com> Cc: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>, At Large < at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi all. Greetings everyone from Sénégal. +1 @Glen who raised issues that i'm personaly facing in this sad pandemic moment. I Also approve the concrete proposals of Remmy. Most ALSes are certainly on these needs too. Much appreciate if ICANN could make as proposed. Warm regards Olévié
---------- From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> Date: Mon, May 4, 2020 at 6:02 PM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com> Cc: At-Large Worldwide <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>
Hi Maureen,
My humble and personal take to this is that similar to the fellowship program, we could consider support to community members who dedicate significant time and resources to ICANN's mission by contributing to the work of various supporting organizations and Advisory Commitees and the overall mission of ICANN. It is true engaging in SO/AC work costs valuable time for those whose day job may not necessarily be around the DNS ecosystem. Significant resources are incurred to get online and to have the right tools that can enable meaningful participation and contribution to ICANN's work. I welcome the idea of reimbursing some of the costs incurred on connectivity or any other aspect as may be determined through a suitable process considering the continuous nature of the work we are doing.
Best Regards
-- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A
---------- From: LUKE KAPCHANGA <wanjalaluke1@gmail.com> Date: Tue, May 5, 2020 at 6:41 AM To: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard@gmail.com>
Thanks Maureen , Glenn has captured what some of go through, if not worse. I am based in rural areas of Kenya. To attend online meetings I depend at times on cyber cafes, which are not very reliable, yet the best option. The COVID 19, has worsened the situation. The proposal to assist us from developing countries is welcome.
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participants (18)
-
ABDULKARIM AYOPO OLOYEDE -
Alberto soto -
Barrack Otieno -
Capda Capda -
Carlos Raul Gutierrez -
Dave Kissoondoyal -
Ephraim Percy Kenyanito -
Glenn McKnight -
Humberto Carrasco -
Loris Taylor -
Maureen Hilyard -
Olivier Kouami -
Patricia Akello -
Peters Omoragbon -
Remmy Nweke -
Sarah Kiden -
sylvia＠prontocl.com.br -
Vanda Scartezini