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Nominating Committee Selection Biographies

25 September 2007

Here are biographies of those selected by the 2007 Nominating Committee:

ICANN Board of Directors


Harald Tveit Alvestrand (Norway, Europe)

Harald Alvestrand was born in Norway in 1959, and graduated from the Norwegian Institute of Technology (NTH) in 1984. He has worked for Norsk Data, UNINETT (the university network of Norway), EDB Maxware, Cisco Systems and, since 2006, for Google.

He has been active in Internet standardization via the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) since 1991, and has written a number of RFCs, including RFC 1766, the first standard for language tags in Internet protocols.

In the IETF, he has been an area director of the Applications area (1995-1998) and of the Operations & Management area (1998-1999; a member of the Internet Architecture Board (1999-2001), and served as chair of the IETF from 2001 to 2006.

He was alternate chair of the ICANN DNSO General Assembly from December 1999 to April 2001, and was a member of the WIPO panel of experts on the DNS in 1998-1999.

He is currently a board member of NORID, the .no domain name registry, and of the Unicode Consortium.

He lives in Trondheim, Norway, is married, and has 3 children.


Dennis Jennings (Ireland/UK, Europe)

Dr. Dennis Jennings has a wide and varied career.

It has spanned venture capital, where he is the co-founder of 4th Level Ventures (2002 to present) - an Irish Venture Capital company whose primary objective is to invest in companies commercialising the business opportunities that arise from university research in Ireland (www.4lv.ie). He is also an “Angel” investor, investing in early stage technology companies.

In terms of board membership, he is currently chairman and/or board member of a small number of small technology companies, and has a wide experience of the issues relating to the start-up, funding, supervision and governance, and survival of early stage technology companies.

In regard to university/research IT management, Dr Jennings was the director of University College Dublin (UCD – www.ucd.ie) Computing Services from 1977 to 1999, where he was responsible for the university IT infrastructure and a staff of over 90 people. He was interim President of the Consortium for Scientific Computing at the John von Neumann Centre (JvNC) in Princeton, New Jersey, responsible for the start-up of the supercomputer centre (1986, on leave from UCD). He is currently Chairman of the Oversight Board of the Irish Centre for High-End Computing (ICHEC – www.ichec.ie).

He is also an Internet pioneer, having been responsible for the decisions that created NSFNET (1985/86) - the network that became the Internet - while working for the US Federal Government (on leave from UCD). He was actively involved in the start-up of research networks in the Europe (EARN - President; Ebone - Board member) and Ireland (HEAnet - initial proposal and later Board member. www.heanet.ie). He chaired the Board and General Assembly of the Council for European Top level domain Registries (CENTR) from 1999 to early 2001 - www.centr.org - and was actively involved in the start-up of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) - www.icann.org - during that period.

Dr Jennings holds a 1st Class honours physics BSc degree from University College Dublin (1967), and a PhD degree obtained for a search for high-energy gamma radiation from pulsars (neutron stars) (1972). He is an opera and classical music enthusiast, and is the chairman of the UCD Choral Scholars Board of Management.


Jean-Jacques Subrenat (France, Europe)

Jean-Jacques Subrenat is Chairman of the Advisory Board of Institut Pierre Werner in Luxembourg (2007~), a tutor at ENA (Ecole nationale d’administration in Strasbroug, 2007~), an elected member of the board of Lycée Vauban, the French school in Luxembourg (2006~).

His professional experience is wide-ranging: he was a volunteer in the French Navy (1960-63), a scholarship student in Bordeaux and Paris (1964-68), a researcher at the CNRS in Paris and Kyoto (Centre national de la recherche scientifique, 1967-71), and in the French diplomatic service (1972-2005). He was an Ambassador for ten consecutive years (1995-2005).

He worked at the Ministry of foreign affairs in Paris, at the Policy Planning Staff (1976-78), on secondment to the Ministry of industry to help set up the Solar Energy Authority, as first Head of its department of international affairs (1978-80), Diplomatic Adviser to the Minister for Europe (1980-81), Deputy director for Asia and the Pacific (1984-86), Alternate director for development aid (1986-88), Alternate director for the Americas (1992-95).

He was posted in Singapore (Embassy Secretary 1973-76), in Japan (Counsellor 1981-84, Minister Counsellor & Deputy Head of mission 1988-92). He was Ambassador, Permanent Representative to the Western European Union (WEU in Brussels 1995-98), Ambassador to Estonia (1998-2002), Ambassador to Finland (2002-05), Acting Governor for France at the ASEF Board of Governors (2005).

Ambassador Subrenat has a doctor’s degree from the Sorbonne University in Paris and various other degrees (Bordeaux, Paris, Osaka). He is frequently invited as a speaker and writes articles on global trends, current affairs, international relations, social matters. Edited a book on Estonia; published a book on a major music festival in Finland.

He visited the USA as an individual guest of the International Visitor Program (1986). He was awarded honorary distinctions by Estonia (2002), Finland (2005), France (1982, 1994, 2005), Japan (1992), Thailand (1987). He was born in 1940, and is remarried. He has four children.


GNSO Council


Avri Doria (USA, North America)

Avri Doria is an adjunct professor at Lule University of Technology (LTU) in Sweden. She also works part time as a consultant to the IGF Secretariat at the UN, as an independent consultant and as an associate with Interisle consulting.

Ms. Doria, has been an Internet technologist involved in the development of Internet protocols and architectures for over 25 years, an active participant in the IETF, past chair of the IRTF Routing Research group, and Senior Fellow and past Technical Committee Chair of the Multi Service Forum She has also been active in Internet Governance for the past 5 years, is currently chair of the ICANN GNSO council, was an active particpant in WSIS and post WSIS civil society, is a past chair of the Civil Society Internet Governance Caucus and was a member of the Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG) . Ms Doria is a also a member of the APC Women's Networking Support Program.

Her current projects include research into methods of bringing the Internet into areas that are communication challenged and is working with the semi-nomadic Sámi population of Sapmi (aka Lapland) to develop an ICT infrastructure for the UNESCO heritage region of Laponia. Another current project innvolves creating a graduate curriculum in Internet Governance at LTU. Ms. Doria has one MA from the University of Chicago in Philosophy and one from Rhode Island College in Counseling Psychology and is allegedly trying to complete a trans disciplinary PhD dissertation at Blekinge University of Technology in Sweden on the nature of the relationship between technology and governance.


Olga Cavalli (Argentina, Latin America & Caribbean)

Olga Cavalli is a ICT and Internet specialist with large experience in project management, market research, competitive analysis, public policy and regulations. This experience has been developed in a multistakeholder environment.

Ms. Cavalli is a professor at Universidad de Buenos Aires, at the Instituto Tecnológico Buenos Aires and at the Diplomacy Career of the Ministry of Foreing Affairs of Argentina. In these institutions she teaches subjects related with technology and public policy. She is also an invited teacher and speaker to several other institutions from Argentina and other countries. Ms. Cavalli is a member of the Advisory Group for the Internet Governance Forum.

As an advisor of the Ministry of Foreing Affairs of Argentina, she has represented Argentina in the WSIS Second Phase held in Tunis, also in the GAC of ICANN (Governmental Advisor Committee). She is also involved in activities in the ccNSO of ICANN and in LAC TLD. Ms. Cavalli is the argentine focal point for the eLAC 2007 Regional Information Society Plan of Action, she is the coordinator of the Internet Governance Group in eLAC 2007 and was former coordinator of the Financing eLAC 207 working group. She has also been responsible for evaluating the argentine export offer in technology and for advising the Ministry in technology trends and public policy related with technology.

She has published papers and articles in many magazines and newspapers from Argentina and South America, about Internet, telecommunications and IT regulations and market. In the private sector she has worked as a consultant for many companies and non governmental organizations from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Venezuela, USA, Canada and Germany.

Graduated as Electronic and Electric Engineer at Universidad de Mendoza, she has completed her background with and MBA at the Universidad del CEMA and a Masters Degree in Telecommunication Regulation at Universidad de Buenos Aires. Today she is a PHD Candidate at the PHD in Business Administration program at the Universidad del CEMA.

She is fluent in English, German and Portuguese, and she can read and understand Italian and French. She is a member of the Argentine Chapter of Internet Society (ISOC) and she is a Certified Engineer at the Consejo de Profesionales de Ingeniería Electrónica of Argentina, COPITEC. She is the mother of Juana (12) and Federico (18).


At-Large Advisory Committee


Vanda Scartezini (Brazil, Latin America & Caribbean)

Vanda Scartezini is an Electronics Engineer and a Brazilian citizen, and graduated from college in 1970. Since then she has held many management positions with private technology companies and public institutions. She is the co-founder of and has been an active partner in Polo Consultores, a Brazilian IT consulting company, since 1985. She also acts as President of Altis, a Software & Service outsourcing company, www.altis.org.br, and as chair of the board of FITEC, an ICT R&D foundation www.fitec.org.br. She is also an associate partner of Getulio Vargas Foundation Projects (www.fgvprojetos.fgv.br) and member of the board of ABES, the Brazilian Software Industry Association.

She has been working with the ICANN community since 2000 as a GAC member until March 2004 and an ICANN Board member from 2004 until the Los Angeles meeting.

She served as National Secretary of Industrial Technology and as National Secretary of Information Technology in the Brazilian Federal Government. She is also former President of the Brazilian Patent Office. From 2000 until March 2004 she was the Brazilian representative on the ICANN Governmental Advisory Committee. She also served as GAC Vice Chair until March 2004.

She has acted as Brazilian Government representative in many international missions around the world as well as an expert and consultant for international institutions. She was honored with many of the major prizes in the Brazilian IT Industry. She is also honorable member of Abranet, the IST Brazilian Association, and of the Brazilian Chamber of Electronic Commerce. Among other ICT associations, she is also a member of WTN – World Technology Network, www.wtn.net.


Fatimata Seye Sylla (Senegal, Africa)

Mrs Fatimata Seye Sylla is an MIT/ Media Lab Master of Science with a first university degree from Le Havre University (France) in computer Science. She has a post graduate management degree from the African regional management school in Dakar (CESAG).

Fatimata has worked for ten years within the Senegalese government and for nine years in the IT private sector in Senegal. Within the Senegalese government, she has conducted the first national project to introduce ICT in the educational system as a project manager.

She is the founding President of the NGO Bokk Jang 2B1-SN (www.bokk.org), the Executing Agency for the USAID funded Program “Digital Freedom Initiative” (DFI) and the OSIWA E-Riders project in Senegal (2003 – 2005) under her leadership.

As an international consultant, she has worked and conducted research studies for Unesco, UNFPA, UNECA, ITU, USAID, UNDAW, FRANCOPHONIE, IDRC and PANOS Institute, in the field of Information and Communication Technologies use in Education, gender, media and development. She has written several papers related to IT and development, some of them are published. She was a Board Member of CATIA (Catalysing Access to ICTs in Africa), a DFID program (2003 – 2006).

Among other activities, she is a Board member of OSIRIS (www.osiris.sn), ISOC (www.isoc.sn) associations and of REGENTIC, a gender and ICT network in Senegal. She is presently the National Coordinator of the African Civil Society for the Information Society (ACSIS) in Senegal and a Council Member of Free and Open Source Software Foundation for Africa (FOSSFA).


Nguyen Thu Hue (Vietnam, Asia/Australia/Pacific)

Ms. Nguyen Thu Hue, born in November 1971 in Vietnam. Married with two children, Hue Anh (10) and Hai Minh (1). Ms. Nguyen lives and works in Hanoi, Vietnam.

She is the founder and director of the Center for Marinelife Conservation and Community Development (MCD), a Vietnamese NGO. Prior to joining MCD, Ms Nguyen worked as the Country Coordinator for International Marinelife Alliance (IMA), an international NGO with headquarters in the United States of America. Earlier, she held a position at the Hanoi office of Baker & McKenzie, an international law firm. She has diverse experience in working in cross-cultural environments, project management and planning, and working with the business sector and local communities.

Ms Nguyen has also worked on a number of international development projects outside of MCD. From July 2003 to August 2005, she was country coordinator for the Global Internet Policy Initiative (GIPI), an EU-funded project on internet policy reform in Vietnam. She was also program coordinator for the USAID funded project “Internet Training for Female NGO Heads and Female journalists in Vietnam” where she worked with Internews Network, a US based media organization. She has actively participated in Internet governance in Vietnam.

Ms Nguyen has a Masters degree in International Business Administration from the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) in addition to a Degree in Economic Law from Hanoi Open University. She also studied Internet Law at Harvard Law School, USA, in 2004.


ccNSO Council

Nashwa Abdel-Baki (Egypt, Africa)

Nashwa Abdelbaki is an IT expert with over 20 years of experience at the national, as well as regional and international level.

She is an early Internet pioneer, bringing Internet connectivity to Egypt in the early 1990s. As part of this process, she helped build Egypt's national networks both locally and regionally and took technical lead of the Egyptian Universities Network (EUN). Academically, she is a Doctor of Engineering in the field of multimedia networking from Ulm University, Germany. Dr. Abdelbaki received an MSc from the Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University and a BSc from the Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University.

Nashwa Abdelbaki joined the Egyptian Supreme Council of Universities directly from graduation as a systems engineer in the area of computer systems and networking architecture. She was responsible for engineering and development of system techniques and networking algorithms and architecture that suited the heterogeneity of the Egyptian national environment. This was accompanied with constructing, developing and leading the qualified working groups and teams for introducing the newly and locally developed concepts to the native community.

Based on experience gained earlier, her professional experience was extended to the regional and international level to help with deploying and developing the regional networking architecture - something that involved bringing the know-how of networking infrastructure and media connectivity to the local and regional domains of African, Arab and developing areas.

From 1993 to 1999, she also led, managed, organized and helped with teaching and educating a number of the international IT conferences and networking workshops (e.g., ISOC/INET) that targeted the methodologies and techniques to study, build, manage and maintain national networks. She was one of the four that submitted the first proposal to establish AfriNIC.

Dr. Abdelbaki has also worked as an IT consultant and expert on the national and regional level for networking and IT deployment and maintenance. This includes fund raising schemes, and budget management while opening new domains of collaborative work within corresponding parties. Supported by her German DAAD scholarship, from 2000 to 2005, she led a research program in an academic project for the degree Doctor of Engineering in Ulm University in Germany. This fruitful phase of her professional life focussed on the future integrated multimedia networking architecture and services, especially in the university environment, with emphasis on synchronized adaptive interactive multimedia communication systems, compression techniques, media simulation, QoS, MPLS, DiffServ...

Currently, Dr. Abdelbaki is Vice Executive Director, EUN, and advisor for IT, Secretary General, Supreme Council of Universities (SCU).