[Finance-sc] Consensus Call: Process to institutionalize General Assemblies and Summits

[Alan Greenberg]

Forgive this last minute message, but recent discussions have made it 
painfully clear that we need to act quickly and decisively if we want 
to see continued success in funding GAs and Summits. For the current 
fiscal year, we requested three GAs and got one. It is not clear that 
we will fare much better in the future, and the potential for future 
budget vetoes (and more important the raising of the issue even if it 
does not process to a veto) makes it even more tenuous.

Although we had senior ICANN support for additional Summits and 
potentially more frequently than every five years, the inability to 
fund GAs is problematic. The suggested way forward is to request 
multi-year funding for a full plan of GAs and a future Summit. It we 
are to success in this coming budget process, we will need to sow the 
seeds for it in Dublin, and particularly to get senior management 
support for the concept. I, Olivier, Heidi and others are prepared to 
start talking to people but I would like to be able to say that this 
is supported by the ALAC FBSC.

Please voice your approval or disapproval as soon as possible.

Alan