ICANN 43 COSTA RICA PUBLIC FORUM CONFLICTS OF INTEREST FOUR BC MEMBERS SPEAKING JOHN BERARD ZAHID JAMIL MICHAEL PALAGE MARILYN CADE
JOHN BERARD: MY NAME IS JOHN BERARD, I'M A MEMBER OF THE BUSINESS CONSTITUENCY. I AM GNSO COUNCILLOR FOR THE BUSINESS CONSTITUENCY BUT I'M SPEAKING PERSONALLY. I AM AN INDEPENDENT PUBLIC RELATIONS CONSULTANT BASED IN SAN FRANCISCO AND HAVE PERSONALLY SAT ON FOUR DIFFERENT NON--PROFITS BOARDS. I SIT ON ONE JUST NOW, IN FACT. AND EACH OF THEM IS DULY CONCERNED AS YOU ARE ABOUT MANAGING POTENTIAL AND THE PERCEPTION OF AND THE REAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST THAT CONFRONT A NON--PROFIT BOARD WHICH HAS TO RELY OFTEN ON THE EXPERTISE OF THOSE BOARD MEMBERS WHERE STAFF MIGHT NOT BE AVAILABLE.
BUT HAVING SAID THAT, IT IS IN THE AIR IN THE WEEK THAT I HAVE BEEN HERE, I HAVE HEARD TWO THINGS. ONE, THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE ACTION ON THIS SO AS TO PROTECT THE INTEGRITY OF THE ORGANIZATION. BUT I FEAR OVERREACTION BECAUSE THE LAST THING THAT A BOARD NEEDS IS TO SET POLICIES THAT PREVENT THE SMARTEST AND MOST KNOWLEDGEABLE PEOPLE WHO IN AN HONEST AND FAIR WAY CAN CONTRIBUTE TO THE BEST DECISIONS IN SUPPORT OF THE ORGANIZATION. SO THAT'S MY POINT. ACTION IS FABULOUS. OVERREACTION WILL BE MORE HARMFUL THAN HELPFUL. THANK YOU. HOW'D I DO?
STEVE CROCKER: I'M VERY HAPPY.
JOHN BERARD: GOOD.
ZAHID JAMIL: I'M ZAHID JAMIL I'M A MEMBER OF THE BC. I'M PEEKING ON BEHALF OF THE INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AT THE MOMENT. I WANTED TO SAY IN THIS CONTEXT WE CONSIDER THIS AN IMPORTANT JUNCTURE FOR ICANN AND STRENGTHENING ITS ETHICS AND CONFLICT APPROACHES IS KEY. GLOBAL BUSINESS UNDERSTANDS THE IMPORTANCE OF A STRONG AND EFFECTIVE CONFLICTS OF INTEREST APPROACH THAT RELATE TO ISSUES AND IS APPROPRIATELY APPLIED.
WE ENCOURAGE FOCUS ON THE REAL OBJECTIVES OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICIES SUCH AS ENSURING DECISIONS AND VOTES ARE NOT INFLUENCED BY FINANCIAL OR OTHER SUBSTANTIVE INTERESTS. THAT SAID, WE BELIEVE THE BOARD DOES NOT NEED TO BE COMPRISED -- SORRY, DOESN'T NEED TO BE COMPRISED OF MEMBERS WITH A RANGE OF EXPERIENCE INCLUDING FROM WITHIN THE ICANN COMMUNITY. WE ALSO SUGGEST THAT PARTICULAR CARE BE TAKEN TO ENSURE THAT CONFLICT POLICIES ARE NOT REACTIONARY OR GO TO A NEW EXTREME. WE ALSO SUGGEST THAT A CONFLICT OF INTEREST APPROACH ENSURES THAT THE POLICY IS CLEAR, UNDERS
STEVE CROCKER: THANK YOU.
MICHAEL PALAGE: MIKE PALAGE.
IN 13 YEARS, I'VE KIND OF EARNED A REPUTATION OF BEING A TOUGH-LOVE CRITIC OF ICANN. SO THIS DOESN'T HAPPEN VERY OFTEN, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO APPLAUD THE BOARD FOR THEIR HEIGHTENED SENSITIVITY, THE CONFLICTS. SO AS I SAID, I UNDERSTAND THERE ARE SOME BOARD MEMBERS THAT MAY NOT BE PARTICIPATING IN THE NEW gTLD PROCESS BUT I THINK AT THIS PARTICULAR POINT IN TIME IN THE INSTITUTION, I THINK ERROR ON THE SIDE OF CAUTION IS THE APPROPRIATE COURSE OF ACTION. THE ONE THING I'D LIKE TO SAY THOSE IS AFTER READING THE MINUTES FROM THE EARLIER BOARD MEETING WHERE CERTAIN DIRECTORS RECUSED THEMSELVES, THE FIRST THING I DID WAS GO TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS PAGE AND I WAS LOOKING FOR THE CONFLICTS OF INTEREST AND I PULLED UP THE CONFLICTS OF INTEREST AND I SOME PEOPLE WERE -- SOME PEOPLE THAT REMOVED THEMSELVES FROM THE NEW gTLD DELIBERATIONS I DID NOT SEE A CORRESPONDING CHANGE IN THEIR STATEMENT OF INTEREST. SO THAT LEFT ME A LITTLE CONFUSED. SO I CHECKED IT JUST NOW, AGAIN, AND I WENT TO THE NEW REDESIGNED WEB SITE, THAT'S ABOUT THE UMPTEENth TIME IN 13 YEARS THAT IT HAS BEEN DESIGNED. BUT WHEN YOU GO TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS BEFORE THERE USED TO BE A LINK THAT SAID STATEMENTS OF INTEREST. IT MAY BE IN THE NEW WEB SITE, BUT IT'S NOT EASILY THERE WHERE IT WAS BEFORE. AS I SAID, CONGRATULATIONS. I THINK YOU ARE DOING THE RIGHT THING. AND HOPEFULLY THIS HEIGHTENED STANDARD WILL PUT IT IN A REARVIEW MIRROR AND WILL FIND THE PROPER BALANCE. BUT IF YOU CAN GET THAT CONFLICTS OF INTEREST LINK THAT USED TO BE THERE THAT I CAN'T FIND AND OTHER PEOPLE, I THINK I
STEVE CROCKER: THANK YOU FOR THAT. YEAH, GETTING -- TYING UP THE LOOSE ENDS,IC, IS A GOOD THING.
ROD BECKSTROM: MICHAEL, WE'LL LOOK INTO THAT AND FOLLOW UP. THANKS.
STEVE CROCKER: TAKE IT AWAY.
MARILYN CADE: I HAVE TO WAIT FOR MY CLOCK.
STEVE CROCKER: NO. YOU CAN HAVE THAT TIME, TOO.
[ LAUGHTER ]
MARILYN CADE:
MY NAME IS MARILYN CADE. I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT ANOTHER PART OF WHAT I THINK WE ALL ASCRIBE TO. I THINK WE'RE HERE AT ICANN BECAUSE OUR GOAL, AS ICANN VERY BROADLY, AS A COMMUNITY, AS A BOARD, AS STAKEHOLDERS, AS PARTICIPANTS, IS TO HAVE AND HAVE EARNED THE TRUST AND CONFIDENCE OF OURSELVES AND OUR COMMUNITIES. AND SO SOMETHING THAT WAS NOT HEADLINED HERE IS THE DISCUSSION ABOUT ETHICAL BEHAVIOR. I WANT TO APPLAUD THE BOARD FOR THE REST OF THE DOCUMENTS THAT ARE ON THE PAGE AND THAT DESCRIBE -- AND STEVE MADE REFERENCE TO THE CODE OF CONDUCT FOR THE COMMUNITY. MY MESSAGE TO MY CONSTITUENCY AND TO OTHER EARLIER IN THE WEEK WAS, THIS IS ABOUT US AS MUCH AS IT'S ABOUT THEM, AND I REALLY WANT US TO EMBRACE THAT THOUGHT BECAUSE ALL OF US ARE ALSO PUTTING THE ORGANIZATION EITHER AT RISK OR SUPPORTING THE ORGANIZATION WHEN WE EMBRACE THE HIGHEST ETHICAL BEHAVIOR AND STANDARDS FOR OURSELVES. THE SECOND THING I'D LIKE TO SAY IS, I'VE ENCOUNTERED SOME DISCUSSIONS THAT, TO ME, IN THE COMMUNITY HAVE CONFUSED THE ISSUE OF UNDERSTANDING THAT YOU CAN HAVE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST ABOUT AN ISSUE, BUT YOU ARE STILL A HIGHLY ETHICAL AND HIGHLY ACCOUNTABLE BOARD MEMBER WITHIN ICANN. AND I THINK THAT'S AN IMPORTANT POINT FOR ALL OF US TO UNDERSTAND AND EMBRACE. THANK YOU.
STEVE CROCKER: THANK YOU.