Hello Christian, Thank you very much for this explanation. I now understand just how crucial the GGP is, especially given that we were just concluding... years of policy development. I'm looking forward to the Working Group's recommendations when they will be published for public comment. I'll be happy to review and make my input. Thank you. Warm Regards, Christabel Mebaghandu ________________________________ From: Christian Wheeler <christian.wheeler@icann.org> Sent: Thursday, 19 February 2026 22:50 To: Christabel Mebaghandu <christabel.mebaghandu@ccpjd.org>; policy-development-accelerator@icann.org <policy-development-accelerator@icann.org> Cc: Devan Reed <devan.reed@icann.org>; Carlos Reyes <carlos.reyes@icann.org>; Daniel Gluck <daniel.gluck@icann.org> Subject: Re: [Ext] Re: NEXT WEEK | Meeting Invite | Policy Development Accelerator | 19 February 2026 Hi Christabel, Thank you for your question. Several ASP-related recommendations from the New gTLD Subsequent Procedures (SubPro) Final Report<https://gnso.icann.org/sites/default/files/file/field-file-attach/final-repo...> envisioned a “dedicated Implementation Review Team” (IRT) making certain decisions about the Applicant Support Program, including decisions related to outreach activities, metrics to evaluate success, and allocation of limited financial resources. My own observation is that the SubPro working group had difficulty coming to agreement on these finer points, and so they were essentially pushed out for a future IRT to resolve. ICANN org expressed concern that implementing these ASP recommendations would entail empowering an IRT to make policy decisions, which is not the role of an IRT<https://itp.cdn.icann.org/en/files/consensus-policy-implementation/irt-princ...> (rather, they are responsible for helping ICANN org interpret approved community recommendations). So, the GNSO Council decided to initiate<https://gnso.icann.org/sites/default/files/policy/2022/draft/draft-subpro-gg...> the GNSO Guidance Process<https://www.icann.org/en/governance/bylaws#annexA2> (GGP) for the first (and so far only) time in order to provide guidance on these unclear ASP elements so ICANN org and the IRT group are not misinterpreting or dictating policy. The GGP working group took on the tasks of clarifying these ASP elements and providing guidance regarding expertise, metrics, outreach, and financial allocation. I hope this clarification helps. For more specifics, I would encourage you to check out the hyperlinks included above and in Module 3A<file:///Users/christian.wheeler/Downloads/Applicant%20Support%20Module%203A%20(2).pdf>, otherwise please feel free to reach out if you have any more questions! Kind regards, Christian Wheeler Policy Development Support Specialist ICANN From: Christabel Mebaghandu <christabel.mebaghandu@ccpjd.org> Date: Wednesday, February 18, 2026 at 2:08 PM To: "policy-development-accelerator@icann.org" <policy-development-accelerator@icann.org>, Devan Reed <devan.reed@icann.org> Cc: Carlos Reyes <carlos.reyes@icann.org>, Daniel Gluck <daniel.gluck@icann.org>, Christian Wheeler <christian.wheeler@icann.org> Subject: [Ext] Re: NEXT WEEK | Meeting Invite | Policy Development Accelerator | 19 February 2026 Dear Devan, Thank you for referring these materials, they have been very engaging and insightful. My question is regarding the GGP working group. I tried to understand the reasoning behind the WG, but I simply do not, especially given that the 2022 convening was a pilot and there are no other instances to refer to (for now). I'd appreciate any clarity on this, and will send further questions across! Warm Regards, Christabel Mebaghandu ________________________________ From: Devan Reed via policy-development-accelerator <policy-development-accelerator@icann.org> Sent: Friday, 13 February 2026 15:55 To: policy-development-accelerator@icann.org <policy-development-accelerator@icann.org> Cc: Carlos Reyes <carlos.reyes@icann.org>; Daniel Gluck <daniel.gluck@icann.org>; Christian Wheeler <christian.wheeler@icann.org>; Devan Reed <devan.reed@icann.org> Subject: [policy-development-accelerator] NEXT WEEK | Meeting Invite | Policy Development Accelerator | 19 February 2026 Hi Accelerator Participants, I hope all is well. Next week we will be holding a Role Play on the topic of the Criteria for Applicant Support. We covered the topic in Term 1. If you need to review the content you can find more information here: https://icann-community.atlassian.net/wiki/x/MwAmG [icann-community.atlassian.net]<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/icann-community.atlassian.net/wiki/x/MwAm...> Please reach out to the mailing list policy-development-accelerator@icann.org<mailto:policy-development-accelerator@icann.org> with questions. If you have a question, I am sure others do too! I am looking forward to our discussion. Thank you Kind regards, Devan Dear all, The Policy Development Accelerator session is scheduled for Thursday, 19 February 2026 at 13:00 UTC for 60 minutes. * Time zone converter: https://tinyurl.com/4yktdksj [tinyurl.com]<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/tinyurl.com/4yktdksj__;!!PtGJab4!9fMwKuk-...> * Sessions Wiki Page: https://icann-community.atlassian.net/wiki/x/AYC0Jg <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/icann-community.atlassian.net/wiki/x/AYC0...> Join Zoom Meeting: https://icann.zoom.us/j/95345481555?pwd=TXJTMWJJeDd0ZlZxSXpHeUoxRm5rQT09<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/icann.zoom.us/j/95345481555?pwd=TXJTMWJJeDd0ZlZxSXpHeUoxRm5rQT09__;!!PtGJab4!-5Qyb9cjzQSWiYrlpTqmYOPnfNpDP-RjGdfMQhsS_r30pX1V4hTiIc1Q56-dGQLGN4TZTy4SfbN16yKae8561opJ144$> Meeting ID: 953 4548 1555 Passcode: n%EJ!g3$Y. One tap mobile +13126266799,,95345481555#,,,,*3123531579# US (Chicago) +19294362866,,95345481555#,,,,*3123531579# US (New York) Meeting ID: 953 4548 1555 Passcode: 3123531579 Find your local number: https://icann.zoom.us/u/aWh1Qhe0x<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/icann.zoom.us/u/aWh1Qhe0x__;!!PtGJab4!-5Qyb9cjzQSWiYrlpTqmYOPnfNpDP-RjGdfMQhsS_r30pX1V4hTiIc1Q56-dGQLGN4TZTy4SfbN16yKae856kSgZ918$> Thank you! Kind regards, Devan