Dear Council members,

Sorry - a follow up note because I don't wish my note below to discourage any constituencies from suggesting participants.

We would be delighted to receive suggestions of individuals from all constituencies to participate in the special orientation activities and follow up to Sao Paulo.

The operating plan objective is somewhat narrow, but this is in any case a pilot project. As the first step of the project in 2007 will be to "Develop a set of project objectives in consultation with ICANN constituency organisations", then perhaps we can also look at broadening this objective at that time.

All the best, Maria

From: owner-council@gnso.icann.org [mailto:owner-council@gnso.icann.org] On Behalf Of Maria Farrell
Sent: Wednesday, November 15, 2006 8:50 PM
To: 'Council GNSO'
Cc: 'Pablo Hinojosa'
Subject: [council] FYI - participation pilot project, Sao Paulo meeting

Dear Council members,

ICANN staff have been working with community members in Latin America to create a set of orientation activities for new participants at the Sao Paulo meeting. We have worked with GNSO participants and ICANN's regional liaison in the region, Pablo Hinojosa, to identify and invite members of the Latin American business and technical community to take part in a series of events at the meeting. These will include social events and participation at informational events such as the tutorials.

We hope to have approximately a dozen interested potential new participants to whom we will provide information materials, and introduce to GNSO constituency members during the ICANN meeting. The goal is to familiarise these potential participants with ICANN issues and processes, and follow up with them after the meeting to facilitate a continued involvement, if appropriate.

To ensure that we have cast as wide a net as possible, I would like to invite you to suggest individuals who might also take part in focused orientation activities and benefit from follow up after the meeting. Individuals from the business community, technical/industry experts, and developers of new business models using the Internet would be welcome to participate.

This activity is being done as a pilot project to take advantage of opportunities to boost participation in the Latin American region, and to provide solid information for developing a comprehensive participation project.

Section 4 of the ICANN Operating Plan (Section entitled; '4. Increase participation in and efficiency of the ICANN multi-stakeholder environment', http://www.icann.org/announcements/operating-plan-22jun06.htm) sets out the objectives and activities of the participation project:

The strategic objective is to improve and deepen participation in the ICANN's process by:

4.1.3: The business community
4.1.4: Technical and industry experts
4.1.5: Developers of new business models that use the Internet

When the actual project begins (projected in first quarter of 2007), it will:

Develop a set of project objectives in consultation with ICANN constituency organisations,
Develop and implement a "recruitment plan" (including metrics and targets) of leading technical, business and policy individuals that describes the benefits and opportunities associated with participation in the ICANN model
Use increased participation to enhance Supporting Organisation and Advisory Committee effectiveness

ICANN staff will use the lessons learnt during the pilot project to share with the community in order to inform the project's objectives, metrics and implementation plan.

If you wish to suggest individuals to participate in activities during the Sao Paulo meeting, please email me to let me know.

Many thanks, Maria