[IRP] Informal IRP meeting

[Dixie Hawtin]

Dear IRP list,

First of all a big thank you to everyone who attended and participated in our formal meeting! I think it was an important and useful addition to the wider movement around rethinking copyright and its impact on human rights.

With regards to the informal IRP meeting, we lost many people on the way to lunch, so we were able to brainstorm abit about what we need to discuss - but if people are willing, I would like to suggest that we have another informal meeting later in the week which more people can attend and we can hopefully get more views and perspectives. I'd like to suggest that we arrange a meeting in one of the rooms during Thursday lunch period from 1:30pm (so everyone can have their lunch before the meeting, and that will leave us with one hour to discuss IRP issues before the afternoon sessions begin. Please let me know if this works for everyone.

>From the smaller meeting we just had now there are two main issues for the agenda:

1. The organisation of the IRP and organising en election process.
We spoke about various ways of trying to develop an enhanced secretariat-type structure for the IRP, in order to ensure that we have a small committed group of individuals who are able to drive our activities. Suggestions included transforming our current steering committee of 13 members, into a smaller group of 3 or 4 members. Another suggestion was to have two co-chairs who would each sit for two years - so that every year we have one new co-chair and one continuing chair (as the IGC is currently run).

2. Priorities for the next year
We spoke about the fact that as an entirely volunteer-driven coalition we have limited resources and that the most productive strategy would be to select a discrete area for thr IRP to work within and have an impact. We discussed the Charter and many people felt that the current document is useful internally and for clarifying our thinking and building consensus, but that the 10 IRPs are far easier to engage with a broader audience. The idea came up that over the next year (or more) we could make our main activity to engage with the different principles initiatives that are coming out in different forums and by different actors - using the 10 IRPs - and to try and ensure that these all are inline with human rights standards and the thinking that we have done in this area. Copyright was suggested an issue that will come up in many of these discussions (so it is useful for us to think through our approach in this area) and something that we may want to come back to in future years.

Anyways, this was just an initial meeting to discuss possible way of working and activities, but it would be wonderful if we can have a broader discussion on Thursday. Please let us know if you can attend. Or if you cannot but have some thoughts you would like to share please send them through on the list.

Thanks again!
Dixie

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