[NA-Discuss] [At-Large] Post-Paris Review

[Vittorio Bertola]

Ross Rader ha scritto:
> Evan Leibovitch wrote:
> 
>  > The apparent staff obsession to fund constituencies that don't need the
>  > subsidy, at the expense of those who do, is what I consider worrisome.
> 
> I don't see this as a staff push. My slightly uninvolved view is that 
> this emanates mostly from the GNSO Council where constituency interests 
> contend that their work is so important that they absolutely must have 
> travel funding. Perhaps Alan could shed some better light on the issue, 
> as I've not been directly involved in the Council for the better part of 
> a year.

I think that it is reasonable to conceive travel funding, attached to 
specific unpaid positions, as a reward for the commitment an individual 
puts into them. I think that this should not be incompatible with other 
personal interests being pursued at ICANN meetings, as long as the 
position is not directly connected to them. E.g. if I run a registrar 
and serve on the GNSO Council, I should not be funded - my employer 
should pay. But if I run a registrar and serve on the SSAC, then I 
should be funded (and that might make my employer more likely to let me 
serve in the position).

There might be people accepting the voluntary positions to get funding 
and then come to meetings and look out for future business 
opportunities, but I don't see that as an issue as long as the deal 
between ICANN (the community) and the individual is fair, i.e. you do 
your work well and impartially in your unpaid position as long as you 
stay there.

I am personally much more concerned by people getting funded and then 
spending most of their time sightseeing or shopping. No idea about how 
it's going now, but there were quite a few in past years, up to the 
point that specific participation thresholds were developed to be able 
to get rid of them.
-- 
vb.                   Vittorio Bertola - vb [a] bertola.eu   <--------
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