[IGFmaglist] MAG Virtual Meeting - Main Session discussion

[Wisdom Donkor]

Dear Lynn, MAG Members,

In addition to my early submissions on this thread, why Data for
Sustainable Development Roadmap should be given main session slot.


Taken into consideration governmental institutions that are charged with
gathering, the private sector and NGOs in particular must contribute from
their national perspectives. While this session can be a 90 minute session,
it should be inclusive of non usual speakers, inclusive of a few of the
govt entities, and IGOs, such as UNESCO,  and then a cross community of
speakers that are from not only the telcom community and those who usually
attend IGF but reaching into the financial, agriculture, and health areas.


What are we counting, and why? Just the number of smart phones is not
enough. What is the content in local languages? What applications are
changing lives on a country by country level? How many health care workers
have access to smart applications that mean that there are fewer deaths in
childbirth? fewer deaths due to diseases that are preventable? how many
women and men small farmers have access to smart devices and smart
applications that change the output their small plots so that their
families and their villages are fed? How many ...



As we are now in our 9th year of our ten year phase of the IGF itself, I
wonder if we should not follow the UN prioritization of the SDGs, which
would give us a higher priority and visibility in the overall UN system.


For instance, what to measure in order to achieve the SDGs but also the
WSIS goal of an inclusive information society for all?

how to measure? who can contribute? How can the IGF advance the SDGs and
contribute to the measurement criteria - e.g. the new statistical
indicators initiative of UNESCO.


Thanks


*WISDOM DONKOR (S/N Eng.)*
E-government and Open Government Data Platforms Specialist
ICANN Fellow / Member, UN IGF MAG Member, ISOC Member,
Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) Member, Diplo Foundation Member,
OGP Open Data WG Member, GODAN Memember, ITAG Member
Email: wisdom.dk at gmail.com
Skype: wisdom_dk
facebook: facebook at wisdom_dk
Website: www.data.gov.gh
www.isoc.gh / www.itag.org.gh

On Fri, Jun 30, 2017 at 10:37 PM, Lynn St.Amour <st.amour at bluewin.ch> wrote:

> Dear MAG members,
>
> at our next virtual MAG meeting we are scheduled to finalize the Main
> Sessions.
>
> We made some good progress at our last MAG meeting and after carefully
> reviewing the transcript and the Adobe Connect chat log, I have tried to
> capture the current state below.  Apologies for the length of this email,
> but I thought it best to pull all the threads together.
>
> *Back to the Beginning*
>
> So we know what we are working with:
>
> "Day 0”  2017 is slightly unusual.  Given the IGF is being held late in
> the year, the IGF meeting schedule was advanced one day.  This means that
> Day 0 is on a Sunday (not Monday).   This complicated some of the Day 0
> events.  This combined with the Swiss government’s desire for the Host
> Country opening and ceremonial sessions to be more interactive and more
> integrated with the rest of the IGF program, led to a new proposal.  It was
> proposed that the Opening session (Monday afternoon) include a topic-based
> discussion among high-level speakers, tentatively titled, ‘What rules for
> our global digital polity?’ This would be followed on the second day of the
> IGF meeting with a high-level thematic (Main) session on (again tentatively
> titled) 'the Impact of digitization on politics, public trust and
> democracy’.  These sessions would be multistakeholder in nature with
> participation from all SH groups.  After some discussion within the MAG, it
> was agreed to proceed, despite there being some concern re setting a
> precedent and using an additional Main Session slot.   At the same time,
> many welcomed the innovative approach noting it addressed concerns heard in
> many of the previous years.  So, this is a pilot.
>
> *Where are We?*
>
> Given we have the Opening and Closing Ceremonies/Sessions and the "High
> Level Thematic” Session, this leaves five (5) 3 hour Main session slots
> (see attached grid).
>
> Coming out of the MAG meeting we have:
>
> a)  6 Main Session proposals remaining: 1 - Gender Inclusion and Future of
> the Internet (2 hours), 2 - Human and Social Dimensions of the Internet
> (1.5 hours), 3 - Creating an Inclusive Workforce in a Digital Economy,  4 -
> Empowering Global Cooperation, Cybersecurity for Sustainable Development
> and Peace, 5 - Data for Sustainable Development Roadmaps, 6 -  Local
> Interventions, Global Impacts, How Can International Multistakeholder
> Cooperation Address Internet Shut-downs, Encryption and Data Flows?
>
> b)  a request from the DCs for a 1.5 hour Main session slot - Title: TBD
> (preference was for a 3 hour slot, but recognizing various program
> constraints this was reduced)
>
> c) a request from the NRIs for a 3 hour Main session slot: ‘Rights in the
> digital/online world’ (separate document has been sent by the NRIs to the
> MAG)
>
> d) the Connecting and Enabling the Next Billion(s) Phase III has said they
> will work to integrate their activities into the overall IGF Program.
>
> And, to be discussed separately from Main Sessions, we also have a request
> from the NRIs for  6 - 12 thematic Workshops.
>
> MAG members made several suggestions regarding Main Session selections,
> notably to look at possible mergers as well as to shorten requested
> durations.  The first pass of this was done during the MAG meeting.
>
> One proposal (supported by several MAG members from different SH groups)
> was to select a small number of main themes to align/develop Main Session
> proposals around (something we lost when we moved to the community “tags”
> process for the workshops).   Suggestions were: Cybersecurity, Gender,
> Digital Economy, and a Technical Subject ("such as the merged proposal on
> the local interventions, multistakeholder cooperation on Internet
> shutdowns, encryption and data flows").    If the MAG decides to go forward
> with this approach we would align/develop the Main Session proposals above
> with these 4 themes.  This will require either consolidation or potentially
> moving some of the Main Session proposals above to a WS slot if the MAG
> feels this is appropriate.
>
> There was also a proposal made by a MAG member that there were overlaps
> (“super-positions of subjects”) between 3 Main Session proposals: "Creating
> an Inclusive Workforce in the Digital Economy”, "Human and Social
> Dimensions of the Internet", and "Data for Sustainable Development
> Roadmaps” and that these should be factored down to (2?) main subjects.  I
> believe this proposal complements the one above.
>
> Also there was considerable interest in the proposal on "Data for
> Sustainable Development Roadmaps” but a number of MAG members felt this was
> better suited to a WS format rather than a Main session.
>
> *Straw Chair Proposal*
>
> Building on the suggestions above and in order to help focus our
> discussions, I would like to put forward a 'Straw Chair Proposal’, subject
> obviously, to the MAG's approval.
>
> Chair Proposal: We go forward with the 4 themes proposed (tentative Main
> Session alignment below):
>
> Four (4) Themes:
> Cybersecurity - (4) Empowering Global Cooperation, Cybersecurity for
> Sustainable Development and Peace
> Gender - (1) Gender Inclusion and Future of the Internet (2 hours)
> Digital Economy - (3) Creating an Inclusive Workforce in a Digital
> Economy,
> Technical Subject - (6) Local Interventions, Global Impacts, How Can
> International Multistakeholder Cooperation Address Internet Shut-downs,
> Encryption and Data Flows?
>
> This leaves 2 Main Session proposals: 2 - Human and Social Dimensions of
> the Internet (1.5 hours), and 5 - Data for Sustainable Development Roadmaps
> to either be integrated into other Main sessions or perhaps moved to a WS
> slot if the MAG feels this is appropriate.
>
> Going forward with the 4 Themes above leaves us with the following slots:
> 1 x 3 hour Main session, and 1 x 1 hour Main Session slot (as the Gender
> Main session is requesting 2 hours).  Total Available: 4 hours
>
> The DCs have requested a 1.5 hour slot (title: TBD), and the NRIs have
> requested a 3 hour slot titled: ‘Rights in the digital/online world’.  As
> agreed, the NRIs will speak to this in our upcoming MAG meeting.  Total
> Requested: 4.5 hours
>
> My reading of the discussions in the MAG meeting and on the MAG mailing
> list with respect to the importance of all the Intersessional work is that
> there is substantial support for Main session slots for the DCs and the
> NRIs (from several SH groups).  At the same time there were questions
> raised by some MAG members and alternative proposals put forward; and these
> are under review by the NRIs and the MAG.  Note: there has not yet been a
> consensus call within the MAG, this will take place at our MAG meeting next
> week.  Also, please note: while I am personally very supportive of giving
> the DCs and the NRIs Main Session time, I am only trying to reflect what I
> hear from the MAG overall.   If someone sees a different 'emerging
> consensus', please say so.
>
> If the MAG approves the 4 Themes approach above, and *if* the DC and NRI
> requests are approved *as they stand*, we will be over the available time
> by 30 minutes - so I see a few possible paths: 1 - the MAG asks the Main
> session proposers (and NRIs) if anyone could make a *2.5 hour split* Main
> session slot work (that is a 1 hour slot followed by a break and then a 1.5
> hour slot or vice versa (giving 2.5 vs. 3 hours), 2 - another alternative
> is the NRIs have a 1.5 hour slot mirroring the DCs or, 3 - one of the "4
> Theme” sessions above reduces their time to 1.5 hours (allowing the NRIs a
> 3 hour slot).  Note: if Option 2 is selected (a 1.5 hour slot for the
> NRIs), we still have a 1 hour slot available (perhaps for either the CENB
> program or one of the other 2 proposed Main Sessions?).
>
> I very much appreciate the clear intent from everyone to work together to
> build a great IGF program.  Clearly, there is work to be done going forward
> to weave all the IGF activities together and this work will be undertaken
> in the MAG WGs (and are open to non-MAG members).
>
> Thankfully, there are a lot of creative people on the MAG.  So please
> review this carefully and send in any comments or suggestions, preferably
> ahead of next weeks MAG meeting so we can close expeditiously on this topic.
>
> Best,
> Lynn
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Igfmaglist mailing list
> Igfmaglist at intgovforum.org
> http://intgovforum.org/mailman/listinfo/igfmaglist_intgovforum.org
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://intgovforum.org/pipermail/igfmaglist_intgovforum.org/attachments/20170704/548893c5/attachment.htm>