Dear All, Please find below an announcement of an upcoming Accountability and Transparency Activities Webinar scheduled to take place Wednesday, 31 August between 14:30-15:30 UTC. ** Are you wondering how ICANN is progressing on its commitments to improve transparency and accountability, and how ATRT improvements will help you? Do you have an opinion to share on the changes made to date by ICANN's Board of Directors, Governmental Advisory Committee, Nominating Committee, and Staff? If so, join the ATRT Activities Webinar on Wednesday, 31 August 2011 from <http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?msg=Accountability+%26 +Transparency+%E2%80%93+%E2%80%9CATRT%E2%80%9D+%E2%80%93+Activities+Webinar& iso=20110831T07&p1=1240&ah=1&am=30> 14:00 -- 15:30 UTC. The webinar is open to all, and will be conducted in English. If participants find it useful, more sessions will be scheduled. The meeting will be run in Adobe Connect with a slide presentation along with a dial-in conference bridge for audio. No RSVPs are needed. Here's how to connect: * From the US dial Toll Free - 800-550-6865 and enter Participant Code 8752 * From other countries see a list of international numbers posted at <about:blank> http://www.adigo.com/icann/ * To join the Adobe Connect online "room" go to this URL: <about:blank> http://icann.adobeconnect.com/atrtimplementation/ Participants will have opportunities to ask questions after each agenda item presentation. During the course of the webinar, questions may be submitted using the chat function of Adobe Connect (in addition to joining the discussion queue on the conference bridge). The session will be recorded, and the slides and an MP3 will be publicly posted. The webinar agenda is included below. Staff will brief you on <http://www.icann.org/en/accountability/atrt-project-list-workplans-22jun11- en.pdf> 27 ATRT implementation plans that involve a wide cross-section of ICANN's community, and will discuss key deliverables, schedules, opportunities for public input, and end-goals. ICANN's Board directed that implementation move forward on the Accountability and Transparency Review Team's broad-ranging recommendations. Much has been accomplished and much work lies ahead. This webinar will help you get-up-to-speed on all of these efforts, and will enable you to share your input on completed and planned improvements. For example: * To provide better access to, and insight into, Board decisions, ICANN provides a wealth of <http://www.icann.org/en/minutes/> Board meeting information online, including briefing materials, expanded minutes, and rationale statements for Board resolutions, as well as conditions for <http://www.icann.org/en/minutes/board-briefing-materials-guidelines-21mar11 -en.htm> redaction of posted material. Are you finding these useful? * To help advance the effectiveness of the Governmental Advisory Committee and its interaction with the Board, ICANN increased funding to support government participation in the GAC and multilingual access, and the <http://www.icann.org/en/public-comment/board-gac-jwg-final-report-07jul11-e n.htm> Board-GAC Joint Working Group recently issued proposed improvements for public comment. Do you have additional suggestions? * To improve the processes ICANN uses to gain public input and develop policy, ICANN's Bylaws have been translated into multiple languages, and ICANN's <http://www.icann.org/en/public-comment/> Public Comment Webpage has been redesigned. Is the new structure easier to use and more effective? These are just some examples of ATRT-related activities. You can find more detailed information on ICANN's <http://www.icann.org/en/accountability/overview-en.htm> Accountability & Transparency web page. Accountability & Transparency - "ATRT" Activities Webinar Agenda 1. Introduction and Overview - Denise Michel, Advisor to the President & CEO 2. Board Operations, Composition & Review of Decisions - Samantha Eisner, Senior Counsel - Questions & Comments from participants 3. Governmental Advisory Committee Operations, Engagement, Interaction with Board - Jeannie Ellers, Executive Assistant - Questions & Comments from participants 4. Public input & Multi-lingual Access - Filiz Yilmaz, Senior Director, Participation & Engagement and Christina Rodriguez, Language Services Manager - Questions & Comments from participants 5. Misc., and Measuring Success & Upcoming Activities - Denise Michel 6. General Comments & Questions From Participants ** Regards, Heidi Ullrich, Seth Greene, Matt Ashtiani, Gisella Gruber-White, Marilyn Vernon, ICANN At-Large Staff