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Chair’s Blog: January Board Workshop Recap

11 February 2025
By
Tripti Sinha

Tripti Sinha

ICANN Board Chair

Tripti Sinha is the President and CEO of Internet2, where she champions the organization’s core mission of enabling U.S. higher education and research institutions to collaborate on mission-critical technology services and emerging technologies. Internet2 also works with global National Research and Education Networks (NRENs). Sinha has over three decades of progressive experience in Internet and Cyber-Infrastructure technologies. Her experience spans leadership roles in engineering, operations, finance, governance, advocacy, and policy.

Before joining Internet2, Tripti held two leadership roles at the University of Maryland: Assistant Vice President and Chief Technology Officer and Executive Director of the Mid-Atlantic Crossroads (MAX), a regional research and education network. In these roles, she supported advanced, high-performance networking and research technologies, including GPU compute infrastructure optimized for AI workloads and investigating evolving quantum networking technologies.

She has served on many non-profit and private sector technology advisory boards, and was past Chair of The Quilt’s Board of Directors and former Co-Chair of ICANN’s Root Server System Advisory Committee.

Tripti has a Computer Science degree from Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts and did graduate work in Computer Science at the University of Maryland. She holds executive education certificates from Harvard Kennedy School in Public Leadership and Policy, and in Global Innovation and Execution from Stanford University. She was born in India and lives in the United States. As a child and young adult, Tripti moved back-and-forth between the U.S. and India which gave her an appreciation for global pluralism. She is proficient in English and Hindi, and understands Punjabi, Urdu and the ancient Sanskrit language. Sinha has a keen interest in Information and Communication Technology innovation, entrepreneurship, governance and policy, and international affairs.

Tripti was nominated to serve on the ICANN Board of Directors by the Nominating Committee in 2018. Her term will expire at the Annual General Meeting 2027.

The ICANN Board is off to a productive start this year with the successful completion of our first Board Workshop of 2025. With several newly appointed Board members and our new CEO, Kurtis Lindqvist, in attendance, this workshop exuded energy and enthusiasm for the year ahead. The Board was especially pleased to hear from Kurtis about his initial impressions of his role at ICANN and plans going forward.

As usual, the workshop concluded with a Regular Board Meeting, during which the Board passed several key resolutions. The Board approved the final slate of applications to be funded in the inaugural cycle of the ICANN Grant Program, which marks a major milestone for this community-driven initiative. Read this blog for more information on this exciting update. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank all of the applicants to the Grant Program for their interest. The Board also thanks the ICANN organization (org) program team for their hard work and due diligence.

In the same resolution, the Board adopted an updated version of Recommendation 7 of the Cross-Community Working Group on New Generic Top-Level Domain (gTLD) Auction Proceeds, which relates to appealing grant application decisions. The Board previously approved the Fundamental Bylaws Amendments to limit access by Grant Program applicants to ICANN's accountability mechanisms. Now that the Empowered Community process is complete, the amended Bylaws are in effect.

The Board also took action on the Governmental Advisory Committee's ICANN77 Communiqué advice regarding the resolution of contention sets in the next new gTLD application round. The Board directed ICANN org to allow applicants to select a replacement string when applying, with the goal of reducing the number of contention sets.

During the workshop, the Board was pleased to host Root Server System Advisory Committee (RSSAC) Chair Jeff Osborn, who led a public informational session on the RSSAC. Jeff presented the committee's updated approach to explaining the Root Server System to a nontechnical audience, with the aim of better informing decision-makers.

Here is an overview of the other key matters the Board addressed during its three-day workshop:

Next Round: The Board received an update on the progress toward implementing the New gTLD Program: Next Round, including key milestones, dependencies, and ongoing policy discussions. We reviewed the application metrics for the Applicant Support Program and the Registry Service Provider Evaluation Program; the progress of the Implementation Review Team and ICANN org's work to develop the Applicant Guidebook; and the status of the Base Registry Agreement for the next new gTLD application round.

RSS GWG Update: The Board liaison to the Root Server System (RSS) Governance Working Group (GWG) provided an update about recent progress in the effort to evolve the governance and accountability of the Root Server System. Next, the Board will appoint an alternate liaison and then work with its liaisons and the project team to support the Board's engagement with the GWG's work as it moves toward drafting recommendations.

Strategic Plan: The Board reviewed and discussed the revised Draft Strategic Plan for fiscal years (FY) 2026–2030, which reflects the Board's deliberations on the community's feedback. The Board looks forward to sharing the latest version of the plan with the community this month and considering the plan for adoption at ICANN82.

Finance: The Board reviewed the Draft ICANN Operating Plan and Budget for FY26 and the Draft FY26–30 Operating and Financial Plan, which are open for Public Comment until 14 February. In addition, the ICANN org Finance team shared the revised financial forecast for FY25, including the progress of ICANN's cost-savings initiatives.

Internet Governance: ICANN org's Government and Intergovernmental Organization Engagement team gave an overview of their recent activities and plans going forward. They also updated the Board on the latest legislative and regulatory developments, U.N. activities, and preparations for the 20-year review of the World Summit on the Information Society outcomes.

RDRS: The Board reviewed the Registration Data Request Service (RDRS) pilot program, including the program costs to date. We also discussed the improvements to the service that the Board would like to see in a permanent RDRS solution. The Board plans to discuss these potential enhancements with the Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO) Standing Committee and the GNSO Council.

Ombuds Update: ICANN Ombuds Elizabeth Field shared her initial observations about the Ombuds Office and her approach for the future. She also reviewed with the Board the Ombuds' role and jurisdiction, with particular focus on harassment.

Board Anti-Harassment Working Group Update: The Board discussed the next steps in the process of updating the ICANN Community Anti-Harassment Policy now that the Public Comment proceeding has closed.

The Board will meet for our next workshop next month in Seattle, just before ICANN82. My Board colleagues and I look forward to engaging with the community, and to continuing to build on our achievements so far. Be sure to attend the Board's ICANN82 Prep Week session for the chance to delve into some of the most pressing issues for ICANN. I hope to see you there!

Authors

Tripti Sinha

Tripti Sinha

ICANN Board Chair
Tripti Sinha

Tripti Sinha

ICANN Board Chair

Tripti Sinha is the President and CEO of Internet2, where she champions the organization’s core mission of enabling U.S. higher education and research institutions to collaborate on mission-critical technology services and emerging technologies. Internet2 also works with global National Research and Education Networks (NRENs). Sinha has over three decades of progressive experience in Internet and Cyber-Infrastructure technologies. Her experience spans leadership roles in engineering, operations, finance, governance, advocacy, and policy.

Before joining Internet2, Tripti held two leadership roles at the University of Maryland: Assistant Vice President and Chief Technology Officer and Executive Director of the Mid-Atlantic Crossroads (MAX), a regional research and education network. In these roles, she supported advanced, high-performance networking and research technologies, including GPU compute infrastructure optimized for AI workloads and investigating evolving quantum networking technologies.

She has served on many non-profit and private sector technology advisory boards, and was past Chair of The Quilt’s Board of Directors and former Co-Chair of ICANN’s Root Server System Advisory Committee.

Tripti has a Computer Science degree from Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts and did graduate work in Computer Science at the University of Maryland. She holds executive education certificates from Harvard Kennedy School in Public Leadership and Policy, and in Global Innovation and Execution from Stanford University. She was born in India and lives in the United States. As a child and young adult, Tripti moved back-and-forth between the U.S. and India which gave her an appreciation for global pluralism. She is proficient in English and Hindi, and understands Punjabi, Urdu and the ancient Sanskrit language. Sinha has a keen interest in Information and Communication Technology innovation, entrepreneurship, governance and policy, and international affairs.

Tripti was nominated to serve on the ICANN Board of Directors by the Nominating Committee in 2018. Her term will expire at the Annual General Meeting 2027.

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