ICANN 43· COSTA RICA   BC CHAIR OPENS PUBLIC FORUM

>>MARILYN CADE: MY NAME IS MARILYN CADE AND I AM CHAIR OF THE BUSINESS CONSTITUENCY.

I WOULD LIKE TO ISSUE THE INVITATION AND TO HAVE MADE OUR WELCOME HERE SO WARM AND TO HAVE PROVIDED SUCH A DEEP PARTICIPATION ON THEIR OWN PART IN OUR WORK AT ICANN AND I'M COUNTING ON CONTINUING TO RELY ON OUR NETWORK AS WE GO FORWARD. I SAY THAT BECAUSE I'M NOW GOING TO MAKE A COMMENT IN MY INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS PARTICULAR TOPIC.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR ICANN TO ACT IN THE GLOBAL PUBLIC INTEREST? WHEN WE DRAFTED THE INITIAL THOUGHTS OF WHAT WE THOUGHT ICANN MIGHT BE, ITS NAME WAS NUCO. IT WASN'T EVEN CALLED ICANN. AND IT WAS ESTABLISHED AS A PUBLIC BENEFIT, NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION AND THAT MEANT A LOT TO THOSE OF US WHO WORKED ON IT BECAUSE WE REALLY THOUGHT THAT THE ORGANIZATION MUST INCORPORATE ACTING IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST, AND I WILL SAY, THE GLOBAL WAS SILENT AT THAT TIME AND I APOLOGIZE FOR THAT. IT SHOULD BE THERE.

IN OUR THINKING, I HOPE WE WILL -- I SAW IT RE-EMERGE IN THE AFFIRMATION OF COMMITMENTS AS A TOPIC, AND I HOPE WE WILL TAKE THIS VERY SERIOUSLY.

THAT MEANS TO ME THAT ICANN AT ALL LEVELS, THE STAFF, THE BOARD, THE COMMUNITY, HAS TO WORK TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS GOING ON GLOBALLY. THEY HAVE TO WORK -- WE HAVE TO WORK TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS GOING ON TECHNOLOGICALLY. AND WE HAVE TO WORK TO UNDERSTAND HOW DIFFICULT IT MAY BE FOR SOME PARTICIPANTS TO FULLY PARTICIPATE AND TO FIND A WAY TO ENABLE THAT.

BUT I AM GOING TO ADD A WORD. I THINK WE MUST STRIVE FOR "INFORMED PARTICIPATION," WHICH MEANS WE NEED TO STRENGTHEN THE INFORMATION THAT WE PROVIDE TO ALL INTERESTED PARTIES TO HELP THEM UNDERSTAND ICANN, TO UNDERSTAND WHAT ICANN DOES AND HOW TO BE EFFECTIVE PARTICIPANTS. NOT EVERYONE BELONGS IN A DECISION-MAKING ROLE ON TECHNICAL POLICY. FOR INSTANCE, I DON'T. BUT LOTS OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE TECHNICAL BACKGROUNDS DO, AND I THINK WE MUST BETTER UNDERSTAND THAT THE BLOWBALL PUBLIC INTEREST NEEDS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION, AWARENESS AND INFORMATION THAT PARTIES WHO WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN ICANN CAN USE SO THAT THEY CAN REFLECT THEIR VOICE IN AN EFFECTIVE AND INFORMED WAY, WHICH MEANS A LOT MORE WORK IS AHEAD OF US.

>>STEVE CROCKER: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. VERY MUCH APPRECIATED AND I LOOK FORWARD TO LEARNING THE NEXT LEVEL OF DETAIL.