2007-03-30 - Regional At-Large Organization MOUs

Whereas, the ICANN Bylaws, Article XI, Section 2, Part 4, provide a process that allows individual Internet users to participate meaningfully in the work of ICANN, as the community known as 'At-Large', and;

Whereas, groups representing individual internet users throughout the world have made outstanding progress in their work together, resulting in three regions concluding their negotiations on creating Memoranda of Understanding with ICANN to create their Regional At-Large Organisations ("RALOs"), and;

Whereas, the three regions are the Asia/Australia/Pacific, the African, and the European regions, an achievement which represents a considerable milestone in the development of the multi-stakeholder process which is so fundamental to the work of ICANN, and;

Whereas, the ICANN Board wishes to recognise and applaud the At-Large community worldwide, and especially in the African, Asia/Australia/Pacific, and European Regions, for the achievement of this milestone in their development, and;

Whereas, the Board is pleased to highlight the fact that with the creation of these three RALOs, the At-Large Advisory Committee is now composed of 8 elected members and 5 Nominating Committee members, with only two remaining Board-appointed members, and;

Whereas, the General Counsel's office have reviewed the draft MoUs and determined that they meet the requirements the ICANN Bylaws establish for the formation of a RALO, and advised that a 21-day public comment period should be observed, and;

Whereas, the African and European user groups have met as a part of the ICANN Lisbon Meeting, and elected their representatives to the At-Large Advisory Committee as a part of their work, allowing for the diverse communities engaged in ICANN to be present to recognise this achievement, and;

Whereas, the Asia/Australia/Pacific Region are in the process of formally providing written confirmation of their consent to be bound by the terms of their MoU with ICANN, and shall formally sign the MoU in a public ceremony at the October 2007 ICANN International Meeting to be held in the Asia/Australia/Pacific Region, and;

Whereas, the Parties to the African and European MoUs, composed of ICANN and representatives of the At-Large Structures in the African and European regions, signed it at a public ceremony on Thursday 29th March 2007 at the Lisbon ICANN meeting, the execution of the agreement on ICANN's part contingent upon final approval by the ICANN Board following completion of the public comment period, and;

Whereas, the public comment periods for the African and Asia/Australia/Pacific concluded on the 28th March 2007, and the public comment period on the Latin America and the Caribbean region concluded on 4th January 2007.

Resolved (07.22), the Board ratifies the Memorandum of Understanding with the European At-Large Structures, on the same basis under which it was signed, and;

Resolved (07.23), the Board gives its final approval to the Memorandum of Understanding between the At-Large Latin America and the Caribbean Region and ICANN, and;

Resolved (07.24), the Board gives its final approval to the Memorandum of Understanding between the At-Large African Region and ICANN, and;

Resolved (07.25), the Board gives its final approval to the Memorandum of Understanding between the At-Large Asia/Australia/Pacific Region and ICANN.