Summary Record of IGFSA 19th Meeting of the Executive Committee

Nov 7, 2016 | Meeting Summary Records, Reports and Meeting Minutes

Internet Governance Forum Support Association (IGFSA) 

19th meeting of the Executive Committee

7 November 2016

Summary Record

 

1. The Executive Committee held its nineteenth meeting on 7 November 2016 in Hyderabad, India, in the margins of ICANN 57. The following members and staff took part in the meeting:

Subi Chaturvedi; Edmon Chung; Avri Doria; Tarek Kamel; Jimson Olufuye. Markus Kummer; Kyle Shulman.

2. It was noted that with five Members of the Executive Committee taking part in the call a quorum was established for holding the meeting. (Kyle Shulman participated remotely via Webex.)

3. A draft agenda had been circulated prior to the call and was adopted as follows:

a) Adoption of the Agenda
b) IGF Secretariat funding request
c) Admission of new members
d) Agenda for General Assembly

  • Budget
  • Fellowship programme
  • Election of the Executive Committee
  • Booth and outreach at the IGF

IGF Secretariat Funding Request

4. The Executive Committee discussed a request from the IGF Secretariat to provide fellowships for four NRI coordinators.  It was noted that the current budget line reserved for NRIs would allow funding four fellowships. It was agreed to pursue this matter offline to determine if funds from other budget lines could be utilized for this purpose..

Admission of new members

5. The Executive Committee admitted the following three members:

  • Ms. Andrea Saks
  • Mr. Cedrick Adrien Mbeyet
  • Mr. Lawrence Olawale-Roberts

Agenda for the IGFSA General Assembly

6. The Executive Committee discussed preparations for the 3rd annual General Assembly, due to  take place on Monday 5 December 2016, Day Zero of the 2016 IGF. The Executive Committee noted that there were several issues that would need a more in-depth discussion and agreed that one more meeting would need to take place prior to the General Assembly, preferably in Guadalajara. Among other things the Executive Committee would need to address the following issues:

  • A budget proposal for 2017.
  • The selection process for providing IGFSA fellowships. The view was held that it would be best to have an external selection process, e.g. though the IGF Secretariat.
  • It was noted that there was a need to elect new members of the Executive Committee, as four seats were becoming vacant. (The seats of Raùl Echeberria and Avri Doria are open for rotation and both of them had indicated that they would not stand again, while Virat Bhatia and Cheryl Miller had decided to step down.) It was noted that he Articles of Association are flexible as regards the size of the Executive Committee. Article 10 states that it “shall be composed of a minimum of five and a maximum of nine members”.  The Executive Committee decided to propose reducing its membership and, for efficiency’s sake, limiting the number to seven, as this would facilitate finding a quorum that is necessary for decision-making. It was therefore agreed to propose electing two new members to the Executive Committee and invite members interested in standing as a candidate for election to send a Statement of Interest to the Secretariat. Markus Kummer announced his intention to stand as a candidate.
  • The Secretariat proposed amending the Articles of Association with regard to the approval of new members.  The current system of approval by the Executive Committee had proved burdensome and it was felt that by simplifying the process it would be easier to recruit new members. The Executive Committee agreed therefore to propose making membership automatic upon payment of dues and propose changing this Article accordingly. As a corollary, it was proposed introducing a commitment to adhere to the objectives of IGFSA as contained in Article 3 by ticking a box in the application form (either online or hard copy). In addition, it was recalled that Article 5 (d) automatically excludes members for non-payment of dues for more than one year. This was also found to be somehow problematic, as many members find it difficult paying their dues online. It was therefore agreed to propose deleting Article 5 (d) and encourage cash payments at the annual IGF meeting.
  • The Executive Committee agreed to propose the following agenda for the General Assembly:
    • Approval of the record of the previous General Assembly
    • Election of the members of the Executive Committee
    • Adoption of the contents of the reports and financial statements for the year
    • Approval of the annual budget, based upon a recommendation by the Executive Committee
    • Modification of the Articles of Association
    • Discharge of the activity of the Executive Committee.