On 27 October 2017, the Cross Community Working Group on Enhancing ICANN Accountability (CCWG-Accountability) held a face-to-face meeting in Abu Dhabi, UAE, to further discussions on Work Stream 2. 52 members and participants attended in-person, and many others joined the meeting remotely using the virtual meeting room.
As a part of Work Stream 1, the CCWG-Accountability defined areas where further accountability discussions needed to take place. These discussions, called Work Stream 2, have been underway since June 2016. The purpose of Work Stream 2 is to disseminate the new accountability principles into several key parts of ICANN’s day-to-day operations and to develop a culture of accountability across the ICANN community, organization, and Board.
During the meeting the CCWG-Accountability:
- Reviewed the status of all sub-groups and the schedule for the completion of WS2 activities in June 2018.
- Confirmed its meeting schedule for ICANN61.
- Was updated on the progress of the Implementation Oversight Team (IOT) for improving the IRP.
- Approved the second reading of the final recommendations prepared by the Transparency Subgroup with some amendments.
- Held a two-hour session to discuss various viewpoints with respect to the recommendations prepared by the Jurisdiction Subgroup.
- Approved the second reading of the draft recommendations prepared by the Jurisdiction Subgroup with some amendments.
- Thanked Leon “Magic” Sanchez for his service to the CCWG-Accountability as he steps down as Co-Chair to become an ICANN Board member.
- Welcomed Tijani Ben Jemaa as the new Co-Chair appointed by the At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) to replace Leon Sanchez.
With these approvals, all sub-groups have submitted draft or final recommendations for their topics as per the schedule agreed to in May 2017. The draft recommendations will be published for public comments during or immediately following ICANN60. All recommendations will be integrated into the WS2 Final Report which should be published for public consultation in March 2018 and should be finalized for the ICANN62 meeting in June 2018.
It is important to note that the IRP IOT was included as part of WS2 for administrative simplicity but is in fact independent of WS2. Current expectations are that the IRP IOT will continue beyond the scheduled completion date for WS2 of June 2018.
The CCWG-Accountability Co-Chairs recognize the outstanding dedication of its volunteers, and express gratitude to ICANN staff for their diligent and skilled support. For more information on the CCWG-Accountability, or to view meeting archives and draft documents, please refer to their dedicated wiki page.
About the CCWG-Accountability
The CCWG-Accountability was established in 2014 as a part of the IANA stewardship transition. The group’s goal is to ensure that ICANN's accountability and transparency commitments to the global Internet community are maintained and enhanced in the absence of the IANA functions contract with the U.S. Government.
The group divided its work into two Work Streams:
• Work Stream 1 was focused on identifying mechanisms to enhance ICANN’s accountability that must be in place or committed to within the timeframe of the IANA stewardship transition.
• Work Stream 2 is focused on addressing accountability topics for which a timeline for developing solutions and full implementation may extend beyond the IANA stewardship transition.
The CCWG-Accountability proposed twelve recommendations to enhance ICANN’s accountability as a part of the IANA stewardship transition. The consensus Work Stream 1 proposal was approved and transmitted by the ICANN Board to the U.S. National Telecommunications and Information Administration on 10 March 2016. On 1 October 2016, the IANA functions contract lapsed, and CCWG-Accountability’s Work Stream 1 recommendations went into effect.
The CCWG-Accountability is comprised of 227 people, organized as members appointed by and accountable to Chartering Organizations, individual participants, one ICANN Board liaison, one ICANN staff representative, and one former ATRT member who serves as a liaison. The group also has over 130 mailing list observers.
The CCWG-Accountability is an open group. Anyone interested in the work of the CCWG-Accountability can join as a participant or observer. For more information about how to join the CCWG-Accountability, please send an email to acct-staff [at] icann.org.
CCWG-Accountability Co-Chairs
Thomas Rickert, León Sánchez, Jordan Carter
