Dear NARALO Colleagues,

 

I hope you’re all doing well.

 

Following the recent NARALO UA Day sessions and the valuable conversations we've had, I wanted to share a brief reflection that might add another dimension to our continued efforts around Universal Acceptance (UA).

 

As we know, UA is not only a technical priority but also a social one—requiring awareness, trust-building, and tailored strategies for engagement across diverse communities. In thinking about how we implement, spread, and support UA programs, I believe it's helpful to consider the cultural context in which these efforts take place.

 

Drawing inspiration from Erin Meyer’s The Culture Map, we are reminded that cultural differences—such as communication style, trust-building approaches, or attitudes toward hierarchy—can greatly influence how information is received and acted upon. For example:

  • In some regions, trust may be built through formal credentials and technical accuracy; in others, personal relationships and storytelling may carry more weight.
  • In highly hierarchical cultures, individuals might expect endorsements from senior figures before engaging.
  • Communities with a more flexible view of time may respond better to iterative, ongoing awareness efforts than to single-time campaigns.

 

Understanding these dynamics could help us customize our strategies more effectively, especially as we promote EAI readiness and multilingual Internet adoption. Whether we are supporting Indigenous language communities in Canada or engaging local stakeholders in other regions, being culturally attuned will increase the reach and impact of our UA advocacy.

 

I would like to finish by saying—this is just my two cents on the matter, shared with the hope of sparking further dialogue and collaboration as we continue strengthening our work together.

 

Warm regards,

Mohibul



 


On Tue, Apr 22, 2025 at 2:34 PM Glenn McKnight via NA-Discuss <na-discuss@icann.org> wrote:
Hi All 
This is  something that Adrian did for the Spanish session as well.  I hope that the UA people will provide translation for our sessions and followup the efforts by Mohibul and Adrian will summarize the talking points and relevance to NARALO
G
Glenn McKnight, MA 
Virtual School of Internet Governance 
Chief Information Officer
YOUR SOURCE FOR INTERNET GOVERNANCE EDUCATION 
Mobile  437-237-4655



On Tue, 22 Apr 2025 at 14:24, Louis Houle via NA-Discuss <na-discuss@icann.org> wrote:
+1

Thanks Mohibul.
Louis Houle
Président
Un Québec branché sur le monde
UQBM.Quebec
581 994-9955
Le 2025-04-21 à 16:53, Glenn McKnight via NA-Discuss a écrit :

Excellent


On Mon, 21 Apr 2025, 3:55 pm Mohibul Mahmud, <mohibul.mahmud@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello,

A quick summary of the English session if anyone interested:

Universal Acceptance (UA) Day English session focused on promoting domain and email inclusivity across languages.


Glenn McKnight opened the session, joined by co-hosts Louis Houle and Rukaya Gulmahamed, celebrating a trilingual event (English, French, Spanish).


Naela Sarras (ICANN) explained the history of domain names and the need for Universal Acceptance of all valid domain names and email addresses.

She emphasized that despite global linguistic diversity, English still dominates internet content (~52%).


IDNs and EAI (Email Address Internationalization) are critical for digital inclusion but face systemic rejection in software.


Louis Houle shared Canada's volunteer-led effort to develop Label Generation Rules (LGR) for 65+ Indigenous languages.


Kevin King highlighted that even with encoding and input, proper font design is essential for readable, culturally accurate text.

He shared real-world challenges and partnerships with Indigenous communities to ensure correct typographic representation.


Bridget Chase detailed Indigenous language revitalization in British Columbia, stressing gaps in encoding, keyboards, and fonts.

She emphasized the human right to language access, citing UNDRIP Article 13.


Julien Bernard covered EAI's technical aspects, showing most email servers still reject non-ASCII addresses.

He explained that implementation gaps, not technical limitations, are the real challenge.

Speakers urged tech vendors to update systems and support inclusivity.


Funding and ethical collaboration are vital for scaling this work.


The session ended with appreciation for volunteers and a call to continue UA advocacy.

 

Best

Mohibul





On Mon, Apr 21, 2025 at 1:04 PM Glenn McKnight via NA-Discuss <na-discuss@icann.org> wrote:
Hi All 
Please see the three recordings in Spanish( Moderator  Adrian Schmidt),  French  (Moderated by Rookayya) and English ( Moderated by Glenn) 
Special thanks to Louis Houle who provided his leadership in all three sessions and vision to focus on Indigenous Languages in the three sessions. 
Glenn McKnight, MA 
Virtual School of Internet Governance 
Chief Information Officer
YOUR SOURCE FOR INTERNET GOVERNANCE EDUCATION 
Mobile  437-237-4655

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