<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">Dear Jordi, many thanks for this acknowledgment and you are exactly in line with my thinking!</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">In addition to what you have described in your message, I would like to add the following observations/suggestions/comments:</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">- big corporations, companies, initiatives, etc that aim to be transparent, inclusive, participatory and engaging have to dedicate much more resources these days when it comes to those they need to consult, engage, involve. </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">- limiting engagement only to the level of one time events, workshops or meeting/s is not sustainable neither for the corporation/organization nor for the people supported to attend/participate. Unfortunately, many of the priorities for the region articulated by ICANN staff today referred mostly to the importance of events, creating content in particular languages, etc. </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">- constructive engagement of people or organizations on the ground happens only if there is an overlap in terms of personal and professional development related ambitions along with the broader objectives and goals of the organization (in this case of the ALSs). If ICANN wants more engaged ALSs, it has to start providing organizational support - some examples here might include: provision of organizational capacity assessment tools/expertise that might help the ALS understand what are most underdeveloped components of the organization, what is needed to strengthen those, and how the broader vision of the ALS is in line with ICANN, IG and the broader ICT4D related objectives globally or regionally. </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">In addition to this, the organizational capacity assessment exercise/process, might help ALSs review the kind of services they provide, the kind of activities they need in place in order to be sustainable organizations, fully operational organizations that have the ambition to engage meaningfully in ICANN and other fora of interest to them. </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">- PLS - Peer learning and Support might be smth of value at this point within EURALO - that would allow ALSs learn from each other and create a community in which things related to organizational development, outreach and others, might be explored in addition to spefic ICANN related issues. </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">All the above would be taking place in between the meetings, and would make the face-to-face events/activities/fora much more meaningful and valuable. </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">And finally, ICANN staff needs to put much more efforts into the co-creation processes - co-creating its local/regional/global strategies together with ALSs in other forms/means and ways. But this is a separate topic! </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">As ever,</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066">Veronica</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;color:#000066"> </div></div><div class="gmail_extra"><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Tue, Jun 28, 2016 at 11:14 AM, Jordi Iparraguirre <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:ipa@josoc.cat" target="_blank">ipa@josoc.cat</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">Hi,<br>
<br>
first, please accept my apologies for not being present during the<br>
complete GA, it overlapped some early morning family duties.<br>
<br>
I'd like to stress what Veronica said (typed) during the last minutes of<br>
the meeting.<br>
<br>
It would be nice (and a milestone in our engagement endeavour) if ICANN<br>
staff (regional and HQ) and fellow ALAC members could drop a line and<br>
try to meet with local ALSs whenever they get close to an ALS place.<br>
<br>
ALS members not directly involved in the IG/ICANN processes experience<br>
low involvement, and thus face a low barrier to leave the ALS, so<br>
difficulting ALS growth, participation and renewal.<br>
<br>
They join the ALS because they somehow feel identified with our goals,<br>
but many do not have time or wish to actively participate in the policy<br>
development processes. To increase engagement, having the opportunity to<br>
meet or to listen to other people directly related to these processes<br>
may help. They may feel identified and satisfied to have this 2nd row<br>
seat to the process.<br>
<br>
Warn enough in advance. Let's keep in mind that many members of the ALS<br>
do have a job not related to IG and cannot ask for a free day to attend<br>
and/or organize a formal meeting. So sending them as much in advance an<br>
invitation to attend your presentation, or reserve some minutes for an<br>
informal afterwork meetings might be very well received.<br>
<br>
For any average ALS member, to fully participate in the ICANN policy<br>
development process asks for high involvement; learning curve is long<br>
and almost flat, you need quite a lot of time to read, understand and<br>
participate, and quite often you need free time during standard working<br>
hours to join a teleconference or other activities. Not easy.<br>
<br>
BTW, this is something that we have also proposed to ISOC staff.<br>
<br>
rgds<br>
jordi<br>
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</blockquote></div><br><br clear="all"><div><br></div>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><b style="color:rgb(0,0,102)"><i><font face="verdana, sans-serif">Veronica Cretu </font></i></b><div><font color="#000066" face="verdana, sans-serif"><b><i><br></i></b></font></div><div><font size="1" face="georgia, serif" color="#20124d"><b><i>MA in Contemporary Diplomacy</i></b></font></div><div><font size="1" face="georgia, serif" color="#20124d"><b><i>President, Open Government Institute<br></i></b><b><i>Republic of Moldova - <u><a href="http://opengov.si.md/" target="_blank">http://opengov.si.md/</a></u></i></b><br></font><div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="1" color="#20124d"><br></font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="1" color="#20124d"><i><b>Member of the Steering Committee, </b></i></font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="1" color="#20124d"><i><b>Open Government Partnership (OGP);</b></i></font></div><div><font size="1" face="georgia, serif"><font color="#0000ee"><b><i><u><a href="http://www.opengovpartnership.org/about/steering-committee/role-and-current-membership" target="_blank">http://www.opengovpartnership.org/about/steering-committee/role-and-current-membership</a></u></i></b></font><br></font></div><div><font size="1" face="georgia, serif" color="#20124d"><br></font></div><div><b style="font-family:georgia,serif"><i><font size="1"><font color="#20124d">Email: <a href="mailto:veronicacretu@gmail.com" target="_blank">veronicacretu@gmail.com</a> and/or <a href="mailto:veronica@cretu.md" target="_blank">veronica@cretu.md</a></font></font></i></b><br></div><div><font face="georgia, serif"><b><i><font size="1"><font color="#20124d">Skype: veronicacretu <br>Phone: 373 067435000</font></font></i></b></font></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>
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