Nomination of Michael Karanicolas to GNSO Council

[Michael Karanicolas]

Hi all,

Thanks very much, Robin, for that nomination, and to everyone else for
those very kind words. I'm happy to accept the nomination, and attach my
candidate statement below:

*   - Name: *Michael Karanicolas
*   - Region:* North America
*   - Gender:* Male
*   - Employment: *Formerly with the Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD),
now a consultant for the Open Government Partnership (OGP), assessing
transparency reforms undertaken by the Canadian government, and carrying
out broader research on the efficiencies and benefits of open contracting
processes.
*   - Any conflicts of interest:* None
 *  - Reasons for willingness to take on the tasks of the particular
position: *As a relatively new face at ICANN, having only joined the NCUC
in 2015, among my main priorities is to increase the accessibility and
transparency of decision-making processes, with an eye to boosting
stakeholder engagement. Too often, ICANN's processes are hidden behind
impenetrable acronyms and procedures, which I believe frustrates many who
would otherwise be interested in getting involved. My main motivation for
seeking this position is to work to enhance the lines of communication
between the GNSO and the community as a whole, and to boost the ability of
interested participants to contribute their thoughts and ideas, fulfilling
the potential of ICANN's bottom-up policy development process.
*   - Qualifications for the position: *Since 2010, I've worked as a human
rights advocate with a dual focus on freedom of expression and transparency
(the right to information). As part of my advocacy, I've worked to design,
enhance and implement public engagement processes in a range of contexts,
from developed democracies, to emerging democracies, to non-governmental
structures like international banks, NGOs, and of course here at ICANN.
Community engagement, and opening lines of communication, are a
specialization of mine, and I would look forward to opportunities to use
these skills in the context of the GNSO.
Although I joined NCUC relatively recently, in my time here I've
demonstrated a strong ability to push processes forward, and to collaborate
effectively with stakeholders from other constituencies. This is best
evidenced by my role as Rapporteur of the CCWG on Transparency, where I've
been able to overcome substantial policy differences between stakeholders
representing different interests to arrive at a set of concrete
recommendations for reform, which are currently in the final stages of
approval. I've also been an active member of the working groups regarding
Rights Protection Mechanisms and, most recently, for the allocation of
ICANN's Auction Proceeds, and I am currently on the Executive Committee of
the NCUC.
Through my work with CLD and, more recently, with the OGP, I have had to
collaborate with partners from every region of the world, and representing
every stakeholder group imaginable. This includes business interests,
particularly from the tech sector, as I've worked to enhance human rights
protections among private sector intermediaries. I also have extensive
experience working with government officials to try and persuade them to
improve human rights protections. This includes developed democracies as
well as repressive States. I am very familiar with the language of
governments, and would make a powerful advocate for our interests.
Moreover, as an advocate, building broad coalitions is a particular
specialization of mine. As part of campaigns for greater transparency, one
of my trademarks was to unite campaigners from a variety of sectors
(environmental activists, LGBTQ activists, unions, student groups, etc.)
who shared a common goal of enhancing access to government records. Uniting
disparate groups around points of common interest is a particular skill of
mine, and one which would be useful at the GNSO.
*   - Statement of availability for the time the position requires:* Anyone
who has watched the way the work of the CCWG on Transparency has advanced
will know I have no problem putting the hours in. Originally one of two
Rapporteurs for the group, and now the lone Rapporteur after the departure
of my colleague from the business constituency, I have kept things moving
forward at a good pace. However, now that that work is coming to a close, I
expect to have more time to devote to ICANN. My move from full-time
employment with CLD to a consultancy-based system should also provide me
with more available time to contribute.

Best wishes, and best of luck to the other (really outstanding) candidates
whose names have been put forward,

Michael Karanicolas

On Fri, Aug 4, 2017 at 7:43 AM, Ayden Férdeline <icann at ferdeline.com> wrote:

> I have seen Michael Karanicolas in action at three ICANN meetings now, and
> one thing I’ve observed is that he has an executive presence — when he
> speaks, people listen. We could really use a bit more of that on the GNSO
> Council.
>
> As Robin noted in her nomination, Michael has demonstrated that he has the
> capability to represent us well on Council because he has already
> represented us professionally and intelligently on the NCUC Executive
> Committee and was co-rapporteur of the transparency subgroup in the
> CCWG-ACCT WS2. In my humble opinion, we would be very lucky to have him
> advocating for and advancing non-commercial interests on Council too.
>
> Best wishes,
>
> Ayden Férdeline
> linkedin.com/in/ferdeline <http://www.linkedin.com/in/ferdeline>
>
>
> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject: Re: Nomination of Michael Karanicolas to GNSO Council
> Local Time: August 2, 2017 4:58 PM
> UTC Time: August 2, 2017 3:58 PM
> From: alfamamadou at HOTMAIL.COM
> To: NCSG-DISCUSS at LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
>
>
> Great to have such great and young candidates to volunteer for NCSG
> councilors position in GNSO. My support to Michael Karanicolas and Ayden.
> Good luck guys..
>
>
>
>
> Envoyé depuis mon smartphone Samsung Galaxy.
>
>
> -------- Message d'origine --------
> De : Robin Gross <robin at IPJUSTICE.ORG>
> Date : 01/08/2017 20:05 (GMT+00:00)
> À : NCSG-DISCUSS at LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
> Objet : Nomination of Michael Karanicolas to GNSO Council
>
> It is my honor to nominate Michael Karanicolas for the GNSO Council.
>
> Michael has been instrumental in the CCWG Accountability, specifically in
> bringing meaningful improvements to ICANN’s transparency.  Among other
> things, Michael served as the Rapporteur for the CCWG transparency working
> group, which was the first working group to complete its recommendations
> for accountability improvements.
>
> Until recently, Michael served as the Senior Legal Officer at the Centre
> for Law and Democracy and he is now joining the Open Government
> Partnership.
>
> I’m confident that Michael will make an excellent GNSO Councilor for NCSG
> and bring a unique knowledge base and skill set to our councilors as a
> whole.
>
> Thanks,
> Robin
>
>
>
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