Public Participation Committee (PPC) Meeting Minutes 4 May 2012

PPC Attendees: Sébastien Bachollet – Chair, Chris Disspain, Thomas Narten, Mike Silber and Kuo-Wei Wu

Apologies: Gonzalo Navarro

Other Board Attendees: Bill Graham, Bertrand de La Chapelle, Thomas Roessler, and Bruce Tonkin

Staff Attendees: Jamie Hedlund – Vice President, Government Affairs – Amercas; Nigel Hickson – Vice President, Europe; David Olive – Vice President, Policy Development Support; Kurt Pritz – Senior Vice President, Stakeholder Relations; Samantha Eisner, Alina Syunkova, Nick Tomasso and Filiz Yilmaz


The following is a summary of discussion, action taken and actions identified:

  1. Minutes of Prior Meeting: The PPC approved the minutes of its prior meeting in March 2012.
  2. Review of Action Items: The PPC reviewed the action items identified at the prior meeting. The PPC identified items that still required follow up and were not expected to be discussed during this meeting:
    • Staff to provide budgeting information to the PPC for its meeting in Prague.
    • Staff to provide updated information to the PPC regarding work on volume discounts and proposals towards the "hub city" concept, including criteria for desirable meeting sites.

    In addition, the PPC discussed the expected structure for reporting on action items at the PPC meetings, with expected timeframes for the deliverables as well as identification of the persons responsible for completion of the items

  3. Update on Public Comment Process: Staff provided an update on the public comments open in the last few months, with 20 comment periods opened and 14 closed, and three comment periods not requiring reply periods. Staff noted that within the reply cycle, there is little by way of reply, but instead it is used as an opportunity for additional comments that do not reference prior comments. Staff is improving on the timeframe for the production of public comment summaries. The PPC then began a discussion regarding the expected outcome of public comments – is it to be a place for making statements, or is it a place for providing for facilitated discussion among the community? If it is the latter, how can we introduce behavioral change to bring the changes envisioned in the ATRT Report that has not yet come about after the new system has rolled out? To help begin this discussion, staff noted that a further focus group is planned, to allow for new inputs and further review of the public comment reply system after it has been in place for a year. The PPC also noted that there could be further work in differentiating the types of outcomes expected during comment periods, such as requests for inputs, requests for comments, and then validation of work.
  4. Report on Newcomers and Remote Participation, and Other Items at ICANN 43: Staff provided a report on the remote participation and newcomers sessions at the Costa Rica meeting. There were record numbers of Adobe Connect connections at this meeting, with service and the tool being praised in surveys. The Newcomers Track is being well received, with a lounge serving visitors and nearly 140 persons attending the Newcomers Track session. A short video on newcomers work will be posted soon on the ICANN website. The Leadership Training Program that was discussed at the PPC's public session is still under community review, with an ad-hoc working group being formed to continue cross-community socialization of the idea. The Language Service document is still also up for review for PPC.
    • Action:
      • If PPC members have comment on the Language Services Policy, there is still time to circulate.
  5. Report on the Schedule at ICANN Meetings: The PPC discussed the change in schedule of ICANN public meetings. The Board Committee Reports and the SO/AC Reports are being moved to written reports. The SO/AC Chairs will be engaged by the PPC to determine how there can be other structured opportunities for interaction with the community, such as joint SO/AC sessions. Regarding the Board meeting, there is mixed input from the community on the announcement. There is a need to communicate that the deletion of the Board meeting on Friday does not represent a full removal of Board meetings, and the Board will continue to meet in public sessions as necessary to address important items, and the Annual General Meeting is also likely to be a public meeting. The PPC also discussed that there may be value in holding the Board session with the community directly before the Public Forum, to allow for the community to respond to the Board's discussion, as well as the use of summaries to communicate outcomes of the public meetings. The PPC also discussed whether the question of removing the Friday public Board meeting should be the subject of public comment. The PPC also noted that there are requests from SO/AC chairs regarding holding specific sessions in Prague. The PPC noted that it is planned to have a session at the Toronto meeting to review the effects of the schedule change.
    • Action:
      • PPC member to work with Board chair to provide a further note to the community clarifying the schedule changes.
      • PPC member to work on the SO/AC Chair requested sessions for a decision.
  6. PPC Session with the Public in Prague: The PPC agreed on two topics for the PPC Session in Prague: (1) Language Services; and (2) An update on the public comment changes as well as education on the process.
  7. Asia-Pacific Public Meeting in Spring 2012: Staff provided a report to the PPC on the outcomes of site visits to potential venues for the Asia-Pacific meeting.
  8. Any Other Business: The PPC Chair noted that some items have been raised about the redesign of the ICANN website.
    • Action:
      • PPC members to provide chair with comments on the redesign of ICANN.org for consideration for at the next meeting of the PPC.