[UA-discuss] UASG Working Group Positions Renewal Status

Thu Jan 11 06:28:03 UTC 2024

Hello Azhar Ibrahim and Huyan Le Khac,

I am writing to express my agreement with the sentiment regarding the
serious governance issues within the Universal Acceptance Steering Group
(UASG), as discussed in ICANN 78 supported by past chair and other members
of UASG.

It has been observed that despite documented protocols, there seems to be a
gap between what is outlined and the actual implementation within UASG.
During the UASG governance session at ICANN 78, the leadership—Anil Jain
(Chair), Nitin Walia (Vice Chair), and Nabil Benamar (Vice Chair)—reassured
the community that in ICANN 79, they would provide a comprehensive update
on the steps taken to address various governance issues. These include
matters such as Statement of Interest (SOI) implementation, the updating of
UASG documents, defining terms for UASG working group chairs and
vice-chairs, UA ambassadors, UA day, and more.

Given the importance of governance in ensuring the effectiveness of UASG,
it is crucial that the commitments made by the leadership during ICANN 78
are upheld. As the community eagerly anticipates ICANN 79, it is expected
that the UASG leadership will reconfirm their dedication to addressing
these governance issues. The community is looking forward to a detailed
update during the upcoming session in ICANN79 by these leaders of UASG,
where the leadership can shed light on the progress made and respond to any
questions raised by the community.

I appreciate you both bringing back the attention to this matter, and I
trust that the UASG leadership will stand by their commitment to
transparency and accountability during the ICANN 79 session.

I would like to explicitly request the UASG leadership to confirm that they
are holding the ICANN 79 session, as committed during ICANN 78. This
session is of utmost importance, and the community relies on the
transparency and accountability promised by the leadership. Running away
from this commitment would be detrimental to the trust and credibility of
the UASG.

Marc Miller

Sr. Director

South Carolina

On Tue, Jan 9, 2024 at 3:22 PM Huyen Le Khac via UA-discuss <
ua-discuss at icann.org> wrote:

> Hi Jim
>
> I appreciate your engagement and the time you took to respond. However, I
> would like to address some points to ensure clarity on certain matters.
>
> Though, communication was intended for the chair of UASG, and I noticed
> that you provided insights that are commonly seen in emails on ua-discuss.
> While I value your contributions, I would like to redirect the focus to the
> specific issue at hand.
>
> In reference to the UASG working group charter, it is crucial to note that
> the chair's role is designated for one calendar year. To avoid any
> confusion, a calendar year is defined as the period between January 1 and
> December 31. It has nothing to do with ICANN's fiscal year, which concludes
> on June 30 as mentioned by you. The charter explicitly specifies a calendar
> year, and I believe it is important to adhere to the documented guidelines.
>
> Regarding the UA Ambassador Program, I appreciate your mention of the
> renewable 12-month term, but it is essential to accurately represent the
> charter's language. As per the UA Ambassador Program charter, it states,
> "The designation of UA Ambassador will be for a period of twelve months and
> will be renewable as a decision of the UA Coordination Group." It's
> essential to emphasize that no position within UASG is permanent, and
> renewability is subject to the discretion of the UA Coordination Group.
> When there is no announcement from UASG for renewal or acceptance of all
> new pending applications then how come these certificates were issued for
> Jan- December 2024? https://twitter.com/fundeticbolivia/status/1742908117271085421/photo/1
>
>
> Also hope that the period of Jan –Dec 2024 mentioned in above certificate
> issued with Signatures of UASG Chair, automatically clears all your
> concerns about the calendar year in UASG.
>
> I believe it's crucial for all UASG to align with the documented charters
> to maintain consistency and transparency within the UASG framework until
> they are not updated again with community consensus.
>
>
>
> My two cents,
>
> Huyen Le Khac
>
> On Tue, 9 Jan 2024 at 14:44, Jim DeLaHunt <list+uasg at jdlh.com> wrote:
>
>> Azhar Ibrahim, Huyan Le Khac:
>> On 2024-01-08 23:33, Azhar Ibrahim via UA-discuss wrote:
>>
>> Dear Anil,
>>
>> I am reaching out to seek clarification on the current status of the
>> renewal process for UASG working group positions, specifically those of UA
>> Ambassadors, UASG Working Group Chairs, and Vice Chairs.
>>
>> Thank you for your interest in transparency and good governance of UASG.
>>
>> I have a couple of questions about your message, however:
>>
>> As outlined in the UASG charter,…
>>
>> Which charter are you referring to?  There is a charter for UASG
>> overall[1] and a second charter for UA Ambassadors[2], and a third for
>> Local Initiatives[2], and four for the four Working Groups[2]. I do not see
>> anything in the UASG Charter[1] which mention working groups, UA
>> ambassadors, or local initiatives. Maybe you mean the working group
>> charters?
>>
>> …these positions hold a one-calendar-year term, which officially
>> concluded on December 31, 2023.…
>>
>> What is the source of your information that the terms concluded on
>> December 31?
>>
>> The chairs and vice chairs of the working groups were announced most
>> recently[3] in August 2023, and these appointments were for "FY24". So,
>> their terms should end at the end of FY24.
>>
>> When does FY24 end for UASG?  I am not sure, but it seems[4] that ICANN's
>> fiscal year ends on June 30. Thus I guess these working group chairs end
>> their terms on June 30, 2024. But I agree with you that a clarification
>> would be helpful.
>>
>> …Recently, I came across a Facebook post by one of the UA Ambassadors who
>> proudly shared a certificate for the year 2024. This has led to some
>> confusion within the community.…
>>
>> I am concerned about confusion within the community.  Can you describe
>> this community? In which part of the world was it?  Is there evidence of
>> the confusion, such as messages in public email list archives, which other
>> UASG people could review?
>>
>> If you are concerned about UA Ambassador terms specifically, the UA
>> Ambassador Program Charter[2] says, "UA Ambassadors will be selected by the
>> UA Coordination Group and will hold the position for a renewable 12
>> months." I don't see anything there about a particular year end.
>>
>> …I am seeking clarification on whether new UA Ambassadors have already
>> been appointed, and if all previous ambassadors and working group chairs
>> and vice-chairs have been automatically renewed for the year 2024. If not
>> then how are they leading the working group meetings and why their names
>> are still on UASG.tech? …
>>
>> Note that UA Ambassadors do not lead UASG Working Group meetings, the
>> Working Group chairs and vice-chairs do.
>>
>> …Understanding the importance of transparency and effective
>> communication, could you please provide….
>>
>> Transparency and effective communication is important for the work of
>> UASG. We could use some more of it in this group. I applaud your advocacy
>> of it.
>>
>> And do you know what else is important for the work of UASG?
>> Participation in the working groups.
>>
>> I would welcome a chance to hear contributions from both of you at
>> working group meetings.  I personally joined the Technology Working Group
>> meeting[5] at 15:00UTC yesterday. Will I see you both at the EAI Working
>> Group meeting[6] at 15:00 UTC today, 9 Jan 2024? Or the Measurement WG
>> meeting[7] at 15:00 UTC on 10 Jan 2024?  Or perhaps you have comments to
>> offer on the draft UA Curriculum[8]?
>> [1] Overall UASG charter <https://uasg.tech/uasg-charter/>
>> <https://uasg.tech/uasg-charter/>
>> [2] Page with links to 6 charters, for UA Ambassadors, Local Initiatives,
>> Working Group charters <https://uasg.tech/working-groups/>
>> <https://uasg.tech/working-groups/>
>> [3] "[UA-discuss] UASG Working Group Chairs and Vice Chairs"
>> <https://mm.icann.org/pipermail/ua-discuss/2023-August/004371.html>
>> <https://mm.icann.org/pipermail/ua-discuss/2023-August/004371.html>
>> [4] <https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/governance/current-en>
>> <https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/governance/current-en>
>> [5] UA Technology WG meeting 2024-01-08
>> <https://mm.icann.org/pipermail/ua-tech/2024-January/000745.html>
>> <https://mm.icann.org/pipermail/ua-tech/2024-January/000745.html>
>> [6] UA EAI WG meeting 2024-01-09
>> <https://mm.icann.org/pipermail/ua-eai/2024-January/002055.html>
>> <https://mm.icann.org/pipermail/ua-eai/2024-January/002055.html>
>> [7] UA Measurement WG meeting 2024-01-10
>> <https://mm.icann.org/pipermail/ua-measurement/2024-January/000868.html>
>> <https://mm.icann.org/pipermail/ua-measurement/2024-January/000868.html>
>> [8]  Draft UA Curriculum
>> <https://community.icann.org/display/TUA/Draft+UA+Curriculum>
>> <https://community.icann.org/display/TUA/Draft+UA+Curriculum>
>>
>> Best regards,
>>      —Jim DeLaHunt, (not a chair or a vice-chair of anything)
>>
>> --
>>     --Jim DeLaHunt, jdlh at jdlh.com     http://blog.jdlh.com/ (http://jdlh.com/)
>>       multilingual websites consultant, Vancouver, Canada
>>
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