[IRP] Conference call FRIDAY, 14.00 GMT

[Lisa Horner]

Hi all

Dixie has put together some comprehensive notes from the call we had this afternoon (see below - thanks Dixie, and everyone who could make the call!).  Any questions/comments welcome.  Robert B has kindly volunteered to look into setting the web platform up...I'll send a note asap to kick start our brainstorming of people and experts we want to consult, and we'll take it all from there.

All the best,
Lisa


Meeting minutes: The Charter Consultation Process (11/02/12)

Participants: Lisa Horner, Dixie Hawtin, Brett Solomon, Marianne Franklin, Michael Gurstein, Carlos Affonso de Souza, Shaila Mistry.

Outcomes:
*The "Punchy principles" will be sent around to the Coalition shortly. The aim is for these principles to be agreed upon in around two weeks time so that they can be launched together with the online consultation platform
*All members of the Coalition should feel welcome (and indeed encouraged) to look for opportunities for the Coalition to issues statements on human rights and Internet issues (like the recent statement we issued on Egypt). Members should draft statements and send them to the list for discussion, being wary not to endanger any of our members.
*When lengthy administrative/procedural discussions begin on the list, a separate ad hoc mailing list will be set up for that discussion and everyone will be free to join that list should they choose. This will prevent alienating members through too many emails.
*The online consultation platform (using digress.it) is being worked on, and the aim is for it to be launched in roughly two weeks time.
*An online inventory will be set up (and members will be encouraged to contribute) to identify organisations we would like to consult with, issues we would like to consult on, and events which provide useful opportunities for consulting on the Charter.
*Thereafter all Coalition members will be asked to take on some commitment (however small) to engage with a community/issue/conference which is convenient for them.

For those who are interested - the discussion which led to those outcomes:
Punch principles
*We began the call with a discussion about the 10 punchy principles (an informal working group established itself at the IGF to distil the Charter into 10 punchy principles for outreach and advocacy purposes).
*Brett gave the group an update on where the Principles are. A set of principles has been developed by the WG although they have not been finalized. They still need discussion within the Coalition and sign off before they can be used.
*Concerns were raised about the need to ensure that we don't confuse or alienate anybody through too many documents.
*Carlos de Souza discussed how the 10 Brazilian principles had proved very valuable in shaping and informing the debate on the Brazilian Civil Framework for the Internet.
DECISION: The Principles will be sent around to the wider Coalition for discussion, although they have been discussed lengthily within the WG so it is hoped that this will be a fairly easy discussion. The aim is to launch the principles alongside with the online consultation platform in two weeks time. The wider consultation process will be to look at the Charter, not the punchy principles. The Punchy Principles will be used to introduce people to the Charter and for advocacy purposes.

Statements
*We discussed strategies to make sure that the Charter and the Coalition is useful for dealing with real human rights issues. The question was posed about whether making statements (like the one we made in Egypt) was a useful activity for the Coalition to engage in.
*People raised the point that statements are a useful way of raising awareness about the way that human rights relate to ICTs in real situations and in reinforcing and raising awareness about the Coalition.
*People also raised the point that we need to be careful that we do not compromise any Coalition members through making statements.
DECISION: Statements are a useful activity but we must be vigilant to ensure that we do not compromise our members. Everyone in the Coalition should be encouraged to take the initiative in drafting statements to relevant issues when they arise. Those statements will be submitted to the list for discussion and sign off by the wider Coalition.

Steering Committee
*We discussed whether it would be beneficial to establish a steering committee to guide and drive the Consultation process and the finalization of Version 2.0.
*Concerns were raised that some Coalition members may only be interested in substantive issues and may feel alienated by the amount of emails they receive dealing with procedural issues.
*It was felt that an informal group of especially interested members is emerging naturally, but that there was no need to make this formal, and that new voices and contributions are always welcome.
*Some concerns were voiced about how to distinguish between procedural and substantive issues and how to ensure that information is related back to the wider coalition.
DECISION: For the time being all topics will continue to be discussed on the main list. On occasions where an administrative issue needs extensive discussion an ad-hoc email list will be created for that purpose and anyone will be free to join. We will also aim to have fairly regular conference calls to discuss procedural issues and, as always, anyone will be welcome to join in.

Consultation
*Three different tactics were presented for consulting on the Charter: setting up an open, online portal for anyone to give feedback, consulting on specific issues (e.g. eHealth and eGovernment) and consulting with specific groups (e.g. Council of Europe and UNESCO).
*The idea for holding a large forum (or a number of forums) and having open invitations was proposed as a way of being as inclusive as possible. All were agreed that this would be wonderful but felt that it was probably not possible at present due to a lack of resources.
*Another option which was proposed was to latch on to existing events (such as regional IGFs, academic conferences, human rights conferences etc.) and attempt to run organize workshops at these events to look at the Charter.
*It was felt that a very useful starting position would be to start by getting everyone in the Coalition to feed in to an inventory of different organizations, issues and conferences that we should consult. Coalition members can then be encouraged to take responsibility for consulting with a community/issue/conference that is convenient for them.
DECISION: An online Google Doc will be created and Coalition members will be asked to contribute to an inventory of different organizations/issues and events that we should consult with on the Charter. Thereafter everyone will be asked to take responsibility for some aspect of the consultation however small.


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