Question: ICANN has been too understaffed and underfunded to handle the size of the at-large membership. Do you see as beneficial a program to allow and encourage international volunteers to assist the ICANN staff?

Nominee Replies

Barbara Simons - posted on 2000-10-04 18:32:20 I have worked extensively with volunteers during my years as a volunteer leader in ACM, most recently in my role as President. I know that volunteers can contribute a lot, and I also know that a paid staff person in general is more reliable than a volunteer. After all, most volunteers have full time jobs to which they must give first priority. Even without hiring additional staff, ICANN can improve the situation a lot by allowing the at large membership to communicate via ICANN's web page. Such a facility is badly needed. If I am elected to the Board, one of my top priorities will be to create communication mechanisms within ICANN that allow at large members to organize and to communicate with one another. Donald Langenberg - posted on 2000-09-24 11:12:34 This is an intriguing idea, and I would support exploration of how it might work in practice. Most of the institutions and organizations that have been important in my own life, from my professional associations (e.g., the American Physical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science) to the public and private universities I have served have relied heavily on the work of dedicated volunteers. I can't see why that wouldn't work for ICANN.. Emerson Tiller, J.D., Ph.D. - posted on 2000-09-23 22:03:38 I do not believe that the size of the at-large membership has been the real problem. I think the real problem has been one of ICANN priorities. ICANN has not set the at-large program as a major priority in its governance arrangement. If it had, then more thought, resources, and effort would have gone into the at-large membership project. I'm sure the staff assigned to the at-large project are doing their best. But ICANN may need to devote more to staff resources for this effort. Note that volunteerism has already occurred with respect to informing the public and registering at-large members. Recall the efforts done by CDT/Common Cause/American Libraries Association to register the public. I did the same with icannVote.com (http://www.icannvote.com). You yourself provided a valuable service with ICANNNOT.ORG in keeping the public informed about the at-large endorsement process. And other groups are working to set up at-large member discussion forums (see http://domain-owners.org/pipermail/icann-na/). But I think international volunteers to assist ICANN staff would be fine if coordinating the effort can be done efficiently. Harris Miller - posted on 2000-09-22 06:22:23 I always believe that more participation and voluneteerism is a good thing. Yet the truth is that ICANN's staff is too small for the burdens it faces. I think that ICANN should consider options including expanding the staff. Lawrence Lessig - posted on 2000-09-22 05:12:17 I completely agree with the premise. The ICANN staff has done a great deal with little real support. I don't know if they have considered the possible role of volunteers, except to the extent you consider working groups to be volunteers (as opposed to indentured servants). More volunteerism is good for all. Lyman Chapin - posted on 2000-09-21 18:20:18 I agree that ICANN's staff can't handle the at-large membership, which is an order of magnitude larger than expected (which, by the way, is itself a good thing). However, although it sounds simple, it's not easy in practice to add volunteers to a staff; I'd rather see an increase in ICANN hired staff (which means an increase in funding).