*** Disclosure: The following is the output resulting from transcribing an audio file into a word/text document. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases may be incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages and grammatical corrections. It is posted as an aid to the original audio file, but should not be treated as an authoritative record.*** ICANN - Singapore Board Meeting 24 June 2011 >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: We begin with a consent agenda, and for those who are new to this procedure, this is a process by which a number of reports and other actions have been worked up through the various processes and come to the board for approval. The board has discussed each of these items prior to the meeting, understands the contents, and has had the opportunity to remove any item from the consent agenda for placement on the full agenda if it's thought appropriate that any further discussion is required on these items. Nobody has asked for these items to be changed. Just by way of explanation, they include matters such as the approval of previous minutes, changes to various bylaws, adopting charters for the GNSO, a proposal for a new charter in the GNSO, approval of a constituency recognition process, changes to some advisory committee memberships, changing the formulation of the nominating committee slate in relation to the academic representation slot, establish meetings next year in Latin America and Europe, and then thanking departing At- Large volunteers, thanking sponsors, thanking our scribes, thanking our local hosts, and thanking you, the meeting participants. So with that, I am going to move from the chair the adoption of the consent agenda. Is there a seconder for that? Thank you, George. So the motion that we adopt the consent agenda is now put. All those in favor, please raise your hands. (Hands raised) >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you. Any opposed? Any abstentions? Carried. Thank you. Let's move to the second resolution which is a very important one. It's the board's response to the recommendations received from the Accountability and Transparency Review Team, about which there has been considerable discussion in a number of fora here in Singapore, including in the public forum yesterday. And partly because of his interest and partly because as the vice chair I think it's appropriate to signal the importance that the board places on this resolution, I'd ask Steve Crocker to move the resolution in relation to the ATRT recommendations. Steve. >>STEVE CROCKER: Thank you, Peter. The ATRT recommendations. Whereas, the Affirmation of Commitments reinforced ICANN's commitment to ensuring accountability, transparency, and interests of global Internet users, and called for a community review of ICANN's execution of these commitments, to be acted upon by 30 June 2011. Whereas, ICANN has committed to maintain and improve robust mechanisms for public input, accountability, and transparency, so as to assure that the outcomes of its decision-making will reflect the public interest and be accountable to all stakeholders. Whereas, ICANN has committed to review the execution of its commitments. Whereas, implementing the recommendations that the review will strengthen ICANN's self-regulating, global, multistakeholder model that is transparent, accountable, and operates in the public interest. Whereas, the Accountability and Transparency Review Team, ATRT, received the board's gratitude for conducting this review and providing a final report which 27 recommendations to improve ICANN. Whereas, designated board committees and the Board/GAC Joint Working Group considered the ATRT recommendations and provided the board with recommendations on board action. The designated committees are incorporating implementation oversight into their work plans. Whereas, transparent and regular reporting to the community on the status of the implementation work is an essential component of enhancing ICANN's accountability and transparency, and reporting on the current work is available at http:// www.icann.org/en/accountability/ atrt-report-recommendations-project- list-22jun11-en.pdf, and will continue to be available at http://www.icann.org/en/ accountability/overview-en.htm. Whereas, implementation of recommendation number 5 with respect to board compensation requires an independent study and review. The Board Governance Committee has requested the CEO and the General Counsel to facilitate the next step in consideration of ATRT recommendation number 5, including identification of a committee of independent, nondirectors to review whether board member compensation is appropriate, and, if so, with assistance from independent compensation experts, to determine the levels of such compensation. Resolved, the board accepts all remaining ATRT recommendations and directs the CEO to proceed with their implementation. For recommendations focusing on enhancing the relationship between the GAC and the board, the board will recommend coordinated activities between the board and the GAC to oversee implementation. Resolved, the CEO is directed to regularly report to the community and the board on the status of the implementation. Resolved, the CEO is directed to provide the board with a proposal for metrics and benchmarks to evaluate ICANN's achievement of enhanced accountability and transparency. In accordance with our practice which is consistent with these recommendations, we have a rationale accompanying our resolutions, and the rationale for this resolution: As required by the Affirmation of Commitments, the recommendations resulting from the ATRT were provided to the board on 31 December, 2010, and posted for public comment. The ATRT provided a constructive report that validates and builds upon ICANN's commitments and improvements. The board encouraged and considered input from the community, including the sponsoring organizations, advisory committees, and the Nominating Committee, and is awaiting input from the Joint Working Group and the Governmental Advisory Committee. The public comments were supportive of the ATRT report, and the staff's due diligence resulted in advice that ICANN move forward with implementation of all 27 of the ATRT's recommendations with the exception of recommendation 5 relating to board compensation. For recommendation 5, staff recommends the board approve the completion of an appropriate review of board compensation, following relevant laws and restrictions on nonprofit organizations. Staff provided proposed plans that demonstrated ICANN's ability to implement the recommendations and estimated resource costs. The board has concluded that ICANN should move forward on implementation plans for the 27 recommendations, noting that each plan has an estimated budget and an implementation timeline, and will be carried out under board, GAC, NomCom, and community leadership. The board has also a concluded that appropriate review of board compensation is needed as discussed for recommendation 5 following relevant laws and restrictions on nonprofit organizations. The board finds that these recommendations have the potential to advance ICANN's transparency and accountability objectives which are articulated in the affirmation and ICANN's bylaws, can be implemented by ICANN with resource location, and do not appear to negatively impact the systemic security, stability, and resiliency of the DNS. The board has asked staff to work with affected organizations to execute the implementation plans and notes that ICANN has already made progress on implementation of several operational changes called for by the ATRT. The board agrees with the staff's assessment that the ATRT recommendation for a compensation scheme for voting board members should be supported to allow for appropriate consideration following relevant laws and restrictions on nonprofit organizations. Due to the complexity of this issue and the multiple planning and consideration stages it involves, additional effort is required to confirm whether full implementation is feasible and appropriate. Finally, in order to evaluate ICANN's execution of commitments to maintain and improve robust mechanism for public input, accountability, and transparency, and effectively measure ICANN's ability to improve elements that support these objectives, specific assessment mechanisms are needed. The board has asked staff to develop metrics and benchmarks for consideration. Without agreement on clear, measurable actions, future transparency and accountability improvement efforts and assessments could be hampered. Upon receipt of the final report, ICANN initiated significant planning work toward implementation, and to the extent possible, operational-related items, such as assuring regular provision of translations of board resolutions, were immediately implemented and incorporated into staff procedures. The board committee involved in review of the recommendations and proposed implementation plans has resulted in further direction and refinement of the implementation plans and in better assessing the time frames within which the recommendations can be implemented. The acceptance of the ATRT recommendations has a large financial impact on ICANN as significant resources will have to be allocated to sufficiently meet the recommendations. ICANN staff has carefully considered the resource impacts and provided budgetary information to the board. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Steve. Is there a seconder for this? I see Rod Beckstrom is going to second it. Thank you, Rod. Now, any discussion on this resolution? Bruce. >>BRUCE TONKIN: Thank you, Peter. I just wanted to provide a couple more comments, just on the affirmation and commitment recommendations that are being examined by the Board Governance Committee, just to given the committee a bit of a feel for the approach we're taking and how we're managing the implementation and monitoring of the implementation. And the different committees will probably take different approaches, but the Board Governance Committee has divided the recommendations into sort of three categories. One is ones that we feel have already been done or implemented, ones that we are incorporating into our standard operating procedures, and then thirdly, ones that need some further investigation and planning. For each of the recommendations on the Board Governance Committee, we've assigned a board lead, similar to how we handled the discussions with the GAC on new gTLDs where we identified a single board member that would focus as the lead manager on that topic and work closely with staff. So just going through these very briefly to give you a bit of a feel for it. The first recommendation was around mechanisms for identifying the skill set required by the board, and the topic lead for that is Ray Plzak. The second one, which is related to the first one, which is reinforcing and reviewing trainings and skills building programs, which Ray Plzak is also going to be focusing on working closely with staff to implement that. The third one is around the Nominating Committee procedures, transparency, being transparent about their timeline, et cetera. The lead on that will be Ram Mohan, and he will be working closely with Amy Stathos on the staff. So the reason why I am giving you some of these names is so if this is an area that is of particular interest to a member in the community, feel free to talk to the relevant board lead with any of your ideas because we're always looking for feedback. The fourth one is how the board can enhance its performance and work practices. That topic will be led by Cherine Chalaby. The fifth one around the compensation scheme, as we mentioned in this resolution, it's about getting appropriate independent advice, because the board would be conflicted if it tried to directly work out how to compensate itself so we will be using something that's truly independent from us to look at that issue, and Cherine Chalaby will also be acting as the liaison between staff. But mostly it's going to be run by the staff, the General Counsel's office, on that issue. The sixth one is clarifying the distinction between issues that are subject to ICANN policy development processes and matters that should be within the purview of the staff as a management function. That topic will be led by Ray Plzak. The seventh one is about publishing materials and rationale. Also will be led by Ray Plzak. Publishing a reasoned explanation of decisions, so they are all kind of related under 7. Then the board should, number 8, was have a document produced and published that clearly defines the circumstances where materials will be redacted. We feel we have done that. That's available on the ICANN Web site. 19, the board should publish its translations within 21 days of a decision. Again, we're incorporating that into our procedures in terms of which translations we do and under which circumstances. Number 20 is the board should ensure all necessary inputs have been taken into account in the policy-making processes, and make sure that we can document and identify where those inputs have come from. That will be led by Cherine Chalaby. And the last one is the board should implement the recommendation that calls for independent review of our three accountability mechanisms, so we have ombudsman, reconsideration requests, and independent review tribunal. And again, that's a substantial piece of work, and Bill Graham will be taking the lead on that. And those had a are interested in that topic should approach him with ideas on how you think we should do that. That's all I had, Peter, but I wanted to give people the sense that we are taking each much these seriously and we've identified an individual on the board that's able to work and take input from the community, particularly with respect to the implementation and monitoring of progress on those recommendations. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Bruce. I see Bertrand. >>BERTRAND DE LA CHAPELLE: Thank you, Peter. I just would like to add a comment on what Bruce has said regarding the implementation of the recommendations of the ATRT. The ATRT report arrived at a moment when we were engaged in the new gTLD program that considerably developed the interaction between the different parts of the community. And sometimes one of the best modalities for implementing is actually to do. And I want just to highlight that the interaction that has developed between the parts of the community, and particularly regarding the ATRT recommendations on the interaction between the board and the GAC, a lot of the recommendations have actually taken some kind of reality in the way the different structures have interacted. And so there will be a huge element of stock taking from what has happened in the past few months. Some of it have already been done, in particular between the GAC and the board on the Joint Working Group. It's an important element. But there are other elements that can be taken from the process of new gTLD to draw the lessons of how it has functioned. And particularly in terms of traceability of the work flow and the balance of the different structures into the organization. So I just wanted to highlight this because there are many lessons that can be drawn from what has been accomplished in the last few months, and this will be integrated in the work that we are doing to implement the ATRT, which is a very important element of the program for the coming months. Thank you. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Bertrand. Would anyone else like to speak to this? Thank you, Mike. >>MIKE SILBER: I think given that there's a slightly more substantial audience than there was for the PPC community report back yesterday, let me just indicate that the PPC has taken responsibility for recommendations 15, 16, 17, 18, and 21, which deal primarily with the public comment process, the formalization of the comment, reply comment cycles, the calendaring and other -- provision of other information to make the community more aware of the policy-making that's going on as well as the translation policies. At the moment, those processes have seen some pretty significant changes to be made to the pages, templates, and document formats and structures that are going to be used, as well as a greater deal of transparency relating to the comment/reply comment cycles. We're going to be testing that with a focus group, and once focus group impact input has been accumulated, we will be rolling that out and we will, of course, welcome additional comment from the entire community. That being said, we haven't tinkered as much with the real engine room of the process, given the relatively tight deadlines. And having read recently an article on the Administrative Procedures Act in the United States, I thought it was instructive that there was a comment made about ten years of painstaking research and drafting before that Act was introduced. Now, we certainly aren't proposing ten years of painstaking research and interaction, but what's been done is to meet the timelines is a revamp rather than a complete retooling of process. And that's something that's going to need to start once the new forward-looking or community-facing aspects have been made available and are well received. Then we are going to have to start retooling some of the back end and some of the processes in the back office to make that even more efficient. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Mike. I'd just like to close with a couple of comments, I think, on the strategic importance of this. I think we all understood at the time we ended the Joint Project Agreement that its time was up, and we moved forward from a system of reporting to the United States government on a regular basis to work on reporting to the community as a whole and being accountable to the community as a whole. And the installation of these review mechanisms, checking on ICANN's performs against its commitments, is an integral part of that. It's done by the volunteer community. It's an essential element of the self-regulation part of the ICANN model. And then for the recommendations from that process to come to the board and for the board to adopt all of those and working on implementing those is a tremendous sign of strength, I think, in that accountability model. So I just want to put that into context. I think this is an historic motion. I am very pleased to be associated with voting for it, and I congratulate the review team on bringing us the recommendations, the community for going through the work that they went through, and then the board and the committees and staff and everyone else who has worked on the implementation strategy so that these can be carried out. And I think adopting 27 out of 27 recommendations is an extraordinary position, and the board is delighted to do it. So with that, unless there's any further comments, I am put that resolution. All those in favor of this which will have the effect of putting in train implementation of all 27 of the ATRT recommendations, please raise your hands. (Hands raised) >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Any opposed? Any abstentions? And carried unanimously. Wonderful work. [Applause] We come then to the third resolution, which is relation to the WHOIS team budget. And I'll ask Mike Silber to move that resolution. And, Mike, can I just ask you to refrain from reading the rationale and later motions. I think we won't need the full rationale read into the record. So, Mike, can you move the resolution in relation to the WHOIS budget? >>MIKE SILBER: Thanks, Peter. I'll try not to go past the established limits. Whereas, the WHOIS review team has determined that it needs to undertake a consumer research study to evaluate the effectiveness of WHOIS policy and its implementation as it relates to promoting consumer trust. Whereas, the board wants to remind the community that the following WHOIS studies are currently underway; 1, a WHOIS misuse study with a budget of approximately $150,000 U.S.; 2, a WHOIS registrant identification study with a budget of approximately $150,000 U.S.; 3, a WHOIS proxy and privacy abuse study with a budget of approximately $150,000; and, 4, a WHOIS proxy and privacy and relay study with a budget of approximately $80,000 U.S. Whereas, the WHOIS review team has determined such a consumer study must be undertaken by a third party with expertise in the area. Whereas, the WHOIS review team has determined that such a study shall cost no more than $125,000 U.S. Whereas, the board finance committee has recommended that the board approve the budget allocation requested by the WHOIS review team not to exceed $125,000 U.S. dollars. Resolved, the board approves a budget allocation not to exceed $125,000 U.S. dollars for purposes of engaging a third party to undertake a research study to evaluate the effectiveness of WHOIS policy and its implementation as it relates to promoting consumer trust. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Mike. Is there a seconder for that? Ramaraj, thank you. Any discussion on implementing these budgetary provisions? Rita? >>RITA RODIN JOHNSTON: So I'm looking at all the studies that we currently have under way and the amounts that they're costing the community. And I'm looking at this new study that is being recommended by the WHOIS review team to be approved by the board for an additional 125k. And I'm thinking about all the conversations we've had this week about budgets and information and volunteer fatigue and more work and travel support. I'm also thinking about my expression of interest to get elected to the board. I think, even the original one, as one of my goals on the board was to finalize the WHOIS issues. So I'm sort of sad that we're now getting another study, and we're still not getting that concluded. We had a number of WHOIS studies. I think that this issue ended in deadlock. I don't know. Chuck's there. He'll know better than me. Bruce will know. If we just sort of take it to a 50,000-foot level, I think there are some issues that are impassable. And we need to have a compromise here. Because I think that it's fine to do this study. Now we'll have five, and we'll have a lot of money that's been spent again and a lot of discussion on these. But it's -- you know, it's six years, everyone. Let's try to come to the table, look at the information from these studies, get a decent bang for our buck, and try to figure out a conclusion and a way to move forward. Because this is one of those things that, to me, has been dragging out, wasting time, wasting money. Let's try to get this one done and move forward. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Rita. Anyone else? Bruce. >>BRUCE TONKIN: Yeah. I think the sum of those studies adds up to, I think, 655,000 that we're using to study the problem. I think one of the reasons why I wanted to make sure we identified all the activities is that we did hear during the week there were, you know, some elements of the community that were suggesting are we using our resources in the best possible way? And one of the ways we can use resources effectively, just to reiterate Rita's point, is making sure that we look at the needs of the overall community on a topic like studies of WHOIS. And we optimize the total spend. And we avoid repeating the same work in different forums or different silos. So that's one of the reasons why we've tried to put all this into the one -- in the whereas, clauses so that, as a community, we can see in total what resources we are allocating to WHOIS and also encourage the community to provide feedback and work with us, as Rita says, to get the most effective results from that very substantial investment. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Bruce. Anyone else? If not, I'll put that resolution, which will have the effect of authorizing this further WHOIS study. All those in favor please raise your hands. Thank you. Any opposed? Abstentions? Carried unanimously. Coming then to the resolution dealing with the renewal of the dot net agreement. And I'd ask Katim if he would read this resolution, again just noting that we don't need to read the rationale. Thanks. >>KATIM TOURAY: Okay, Peter. Thank you very much. With pleasure. Resolution number 4. Renewal of the dot net agreement. Whereas, the current dot net registry agreement is due to expire on 30th June 2011. Whereas, section 4.2 of the current dot net registry agreement provides that the agreement shall be renewed upon the expiration of the initial term so long as certain requirements are met and that upon renewal, in the event that certain terms of this agreement are not similar to the terms generally in effect in the registry agreements of the five largest gTLDs, determined by the number of domain name registrations under the management at the time of renewal, renewal shall be upon terms reasonably necessary to render the terms of this agreement similar to such terms in the registry agreement for those other gTLDs. Whereas, the proposed dot net renewal registry agreement includes modified provisions to bring the dot net registry agreement into line with other comparable agreements, example, BIZ, COM, INFO, ORG, including modifications to terms such as traffic data, limitation of liability, indemnification, assignment and notice provisions. Whereas, ICANN commenced a public comment period on the proposed dot net renewal registry agreement on 11 April 2011 -- see the URL -- that was open through 10 May 2011. Whereas, ICANN received 186 comments addressing subjects such as the renewal of the agreement in general, the process of competition review of new registry services, rights protection mechanisms, use of traffic data, the new provisions with respect to special programs for registrars in underserved geographies, registry fees and registration pricing, and a summary and analysis of the comments was prepared. Whereas, the dot net agreement provides for U.S. 75-cent registry- level transaction fee and ICANN has used the funds to support developing country Internet communities to participate in ICANN, enhancing security and stability of the DNS, and for general operating funds, ICANN commits to provide annual reporting on the use of these funds from dot net transaction fees. Whereas, additional changes were made in response to public comment. Resolved, the dot net registry agreement is approved, and the CEO and the general counsel are authorized to take such actions as appropriate to implement the agreement as so revised. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Katim. Is there a seconder for this resolution? I see Bruce is seconding it. Thank you. Any discussion? Bertrand. No? All right. Seeing none, I'll put the resolution. All those in favor of the resolution, please raise your hands. Any opposed? Any abstentions. Bertrand. Under our usual practice, Bertrand, we have the facility of you recording a statement, if you'd like to, in relation to -- no? Abstention noted. We'll move on. Thank you for that. Let's come to resolution 5, which is the Internet number certification program. And I'll ask Kou-Wei to take us through that. Kou, resolution number 5. >>KOU-WEI WU: The Internet number certification RPKI programs. Whereas, ICANN has made a commitment to support resource public key infrastructure RPKI in the ICANN 2011-2014 strategic plan and the plan for enhancing Internet security and stability and resiliency. Whereas, ICANN has received requests from the stakeholder for ICANN to operate the global trust anchor of the Internet number resource certification system to assign RPKI objects. Whereas, the IETF secure Internet domain routing working group has published several IETF standard documents that solidify the technology known as RPKI (as of this writing four documents are currently in the RFC editor queue, 4 have been approved for publication and a further 5 are awaiting IESG actions) And one of the documents approved for publication is a request for IANA to issue a number of RPKI objects. Whereas, the regional Internet registries have already constructed Internet number resource certification systems based on the RPKI technology and have both trial and operational deployments. Whereas, technical operational, and infrastructure elements must be deployed and implemented to support the GTA of the Internet number resource certification system. Resolved, 2011 June 24, the board directs the CEO to take steps to prepare to implement and deploy an ICANN global trust anchor for the supporting RPKI objects and necessary support structures for the implementation and Internet number resources certification systems. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Kou-Wei. Is there a seconder for that? I see Ray Plzak. So it's moved and seconded by members appointed by the addressing community, which seems appropriate. Any further discussion? Anyone wish to comment on this resolution? Noting the operative instruction is to prepare to deploy. So there's work to be done, but it will come back to the board for a decision to launch. All right. I'll ask all those in favor of this resolution please to raise your hands. Any opposed? Any abstentions? Carried unanimously. Thank you. Let's move to the budget. And I'll call on Ramaraj, who is the chair of the finance committee that's put a lot of work in, along with the finance staff and, of course, the community in developing the budget. Ramaraj. >>RAMARAJ: Thank you, Peter. Whereas, on 18 March 2011, ICANN's board approved an update to the strategic plan. Whereas, the framework for the FY12 operating plan and budget was posted in February 2011 for community consultation and was presented at the Silicon Valley ICANN international public meeting. Whereas, community consultations were held to discuss and obtain feedback on the initial framework. Whereas, the draft FY12 operating plan and budget was posted for public comment in accordance with the bylaws on 17 May 2011, based upon the framework for the FY12 operating plan and budget, community consultation, and consultations with the board finance committee. Whereas, ICANN has actively solicited further community feedback and consultation with ICANN community through online fora, conference calls, meetings in Singapore and in the open forum in Singapore. Whereas, the ICANN board finance committee has discussed and guided staff on the development of the FY12 operating plan and budget at each of its regularly scheduled meetings. Whereas, the ICANN board finance committee met in Singapore on 18 June 2011 and discussed the FY12 operating plan and budget and recommended that the board adopt the FY12 operating plan and budget. Whereas, the board has heard comments from the community during the meetings in Singapore, the board will make adjustments to the budget where appropriate in order to address the community's concerns. Resolved, the board adopts the FY12 operating plan and budget. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Ramaraj. Is there a seconder for that resolution? I see Gonzalo. Thank you, Gonzalo. Discussion about the budget or implementing it? Rita? >>RITA RODIN JOHNSTON: So, again, I think we had a limited audience at the 8:00 a.m. committee reports this morning. So I wanted to just reprise one thing that I talked about. We heard a lot of comments from the community about the budget and understanding a little more detail, having some more input into where things are going and how they're being spent. And, as the chair of the audit committee, I think I spoke yesterday about this new software application that we're actually implementing, the first phase due to be implemented by July 1st. So I asked Juan Ojeda, the controller at ICANN, to give me a quick three bullets points about this software that I could share with you. I just wanted to focus on the third point. It's called Great Plains. And it's a new financial accounting software that intends to improve the finance function in a number of ways. Notably, it will allow ICANN to improve its reporting for forecasting, budget line item variance analysis and enable more robust departmental work. It will also allow us to provide project cost accounting reports to enhance our external reporting. So, again, this is the hope. This has been a long-term project that audit and finance committees have been working to automate behind the scenes a lot of the ICANN budgetary process and inputs and try to create a better output for the community. So I encourage you, as ICANN is rolling out this application, to get together ideas from your SOs and ACs as to what types of reporting you'd like to see, what input, and share them with staff so we can be sure that the budgets do provide the detail and the information that you all want to see. Thank you. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Any other comments on the budget? If not, I'll put that resolution then. All those in favor of this resolution, which will have the effect of adopting the budget, raise your hands. Any opposed? Any abstentions? Carried unanimously. Thank you for that. We come then to resolution 7, which is a report, the final report, in fact, from the joint board-GAC working group. It's cochaired by Ray Plzak and Heather Dryden. And Heather is with us as the representative from the GAC, of course, is the chair of the GAC. I call on Ray then to move this resolution. >>RAY PLZAK: Thank you, Peter. Before I read the recitals and resolutions, I would like to note two things. One, as the board co-chair, I would like to thank all the members of the GAC who worked very hard in developing these recommendations. They've put in a lot of time and a lot of effort, as did the board members. And so my personal thanks. Secondly, you will note that this resolution also dissolves this working group. That doesn't mean that this work is over. There is a lot more to do. When you read the record -- and I hope you do, because it's going to be placed out for public comment -- you will see there's a lot of things to do. And so the board and the GAC will be working together as well as with different portions of the community to bring the recommendations in here to fruition. Having said that, I will now read. Whereas, the board created the board-GAC joint working group to review the GAC's role within ICANN, consider measures to enhance support of the GAC's work and to propose better ways for governments to be informed about ICANN and for enhanced opportunities for the GAC to meet with the ICANN board and community. Whereas, the JWG submitted its final report for consideration. Whereas, the JWG has now concluded the work called for in the working group's terms of reference. Resolved, the board receives the final report from the JWG, acknowledges the work of the JWG members, and thanks them for producing this report. Resolved, the board directs the CEO to post the JWG report for public comment. Resolved, the board hereby dissolves the board-GAC joint working group. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Ray. Is there a seconder for that resolution? I see Katim. Would anybody like to speak to the resolution? I'm looking particularly at Heather as a cochair, an opportunity to say something. >>HEATHER DRYDEN: Thank you very much, Peter. It would be a good opportunity for me to thank the board members that participated in the joint working group. We did carry out quite a bit of work and are quite satisfied with the contents of the report. And so we hope that it will be seriously considered and taken into account in order to support the efforts of the GAC within ICANN. And I would note that the report is going to be posted for public comment. So there is an opportunity for the community to comment on that. And so we hope that the implementation can come fairly quickly following that. So thank you, again, to board members for their efforts. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Heather. Back to you, Ray. >>RAY PLZAK: Thank you, Peter. When you read this report, you will note that it also points out the -- how the work relates to the recommendations from the ATRT. And that was mentioned this morning in the GAC communique. So not only does this report produce the work that it was assigned to do, but it is also addressing the issues of the ATRT. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Okay. Any other discussion about this report, which accepts the report, thanks the working group, closes it down. And, of course, then there's a lot of follow-up work to be done by others. Seeing none, I'll put that resolution then. All those in favor of the resolution, please raise your hands. Okay. Any opposed? Any abstentions? Carried unanimously. Thank you, obviously, Heather and Ray, particularly, for carrying that burden. We come then to a relatively open item on the agenda, which is simply titled "Issues Arising From the Singapore Meeting," which is an opportunity for the board to say anything if it wishes about anything that was observed during the Singapore meeting that's not covered by any particular resolution. I have an indication, I think, that Thomas wanted to respond on one item. Thomas, did you want to make a point about the ATR communications? >>THOMAS NARTEN: Thank you, Peter. I just wanted to acknowledge that, both at the public forum yesterday and also, as we went around to various constituencies, I certainly heard the message that on the ATRT and what we were doing, we didn't do a very good job of communicating what we were intending to do. And I think that point was taken. And I think there was a suggestion made yesterday that maybe a webinar or other ways of sort of getting the information out would be useful. And I think that's a suggestion we'll take with us and try to follow up on. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Thomas. Bertrand. >>BERTRAND DE LA CHAPELLE: Thank you, Peter. I just wanted to share one idea, which is the fact that those meetings will have a different flavor in the coming months because the intensity of the policy making will be reduced, which leads to a very interesting question, that Dakar is a very important meeting that will take place just before the opening -- it's the last one before the opening of the application round. And I wanted to take the opportunity to make a call for suggestions on how to make this meeting in Dakar as useful as possible in terms of exchanges or best practices or putting people in contact and facilitating things to make this a very successful event. And the second point is that, during the interactions between the board and the different constituencies the other day, I wanted to share not only what Thomas was saying regarding the communication and what we actually are doing already on the ATRT implementation, but also the message regarding the lessons to take from the last few months and the balance of the different groups in the policy making and the development of our activities. So I just wanted to indicate that is going to be something that we are also discussing in the future. Thank you. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Bertrand. Anyone else? I'd just like to comment I think on the tone of the meeting since the decision on Monday to launch the new gTLD program. And, clearly, that's been something that's occupied us for five or six years, certainly in the last two or three years extremely intensively and, of course, in the last six months. So it's been almost daily fare for many of us. I think I wanted to just comment that it's a testament, I think, to the multistakeholder model and the policy development process that we've gone through it and tested every portion of it in the way that we did, including right through the GAC consultation process including at the end, agreeing to disagree with the GAC in providing a rationale. And that's a perfectly routine exercise, it seems to me, provided for in the bylaws. It's not something that the board did casually. But the point I really want to make is that, having done that, there's an enormous -- I detected what seems to be a enormous sort of relief in the community and acceptance from everybody that it's time to move on. I'm particularly grateful -- and I don't want to steal any of Heather's thunder. She's going to read the GAC communique. We've seen that. I just want to comment on one line in the GAC communique, which I'm very grateful for. "The GAC expresses its willingness to continue to work constructively with the whole ICANN community on the new gTLD program." Thank you, Heather, and the GAC for that. I think the whole community feels nobody got everything they wanted out of the process. But everybody feels that we now have a program that we're pleased with, and everybody is ready to move on. And I hope there's been a great lightening of tension. And I think the attitude of music night on the Tuesday night was perhaps the best place for the expression, all of the community singing and dancing together there was excellent. And the tone of the meeting is now constructively moving forward to implementing this extraordinary program. So thank you to everybody for that. And thank you, Heather, for that work by the GAC and that acknowledgment and the communique, I think that's excellent. Okay. that's -- any other comments about Singapore? We then come to the other item, which is very similar, which is any other business. Does anybody have any other business? Seeing none, in which case we'll move to some thanks. There's a formal note of thanks to Rita Rodin Johnston. We had a little session in the public forum yesterday where members of the community spoke. This is the board's chance to pay tribute. And I'll ask Gonzalo. Gonzalo, would you mind moving the resolution thanking Rita? >>GONZALO NAVARRO: Thank you, Peter. It's going to be a pleasure. We are going to miss you. Whereas, Rita Rodin Johnston was appointed by the GNSO to the ICANN board in May 2006. Whereas, Rita was also appointed by the GNSO in April 2008 to serve an additional three-year term. Whereas, Rita concludes her term as a member of the board of directors on 24 June 2011. Whereas, Rita has served as chair and member of the board Audit Committee, member of the board review working group, member of the board governance, compensation, reconsideration and structural improvement committees, member of the GNSO improvements working group, member of the ICANN board and ICANN Governmental Advisory Committee working group, member of the ICANN board equivalent strings working group and ATRT review teams. Resolved, Rita has earned the deep appreciation of the board for her term of service as a director, and the board wishes Rita well in all future endeavors. [ Applause ] >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Gonzalo. [ Applause ] >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Board members, before you -- before you do, I'm going to give the opportunity for board members to speak, but if you don't want to speak, that's fine. [ Standing Ovation ] >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Well, Rita, it looks like you've been spared individual comments from board members. Bruce. >>BRUCE TONKIN: Thank you, Peter. I think as the other board member that is elected to the board from the GNSO, it is appropriate for me to make a couple of remarks. One of those, Rita's been on the board since two thousand- -- for five years, and she was elected to the board twice by the whole of the GNSO back in the days where it required the entire GNSO Council to elect a board member. One of the challenges from the GNSO is that it is a very diverse group, and at times on the trademark topic it's something that people had very passionate views, and I think Rita has really shown the strength of her character, I think, over the last 12 months, in that there has been huge pressure. Most of the -- or a large portion of the topics that have been raised by the GAC in terms of the level of detail have been on the topic of trademarks. A large portion of the discussion with respect to new gTLDs since the policy was approved in, I think, June of 2008 has been on trademarks. And I think the thing to remember here is that Rita has tried to understand both sides of that debate since the very beginning. On one hand, she supported the development of an expert group, the implementation review team, and that expert group came up with a -- I guess a well-reasoned set of proposals, but then she was an advocate - - having got that, an advocate of taking that back to the whole GNSO, which, you know, includes a much more diverse range of stakeholders than that original expert group, and the GNSO, I think, came back and then there was obviously a balance. Obviously people that came up with the original proposal were upset that there were some changes made and we did hear some of that feedback from volunteers in the community because you feel frustrated that a group reaches a consensus on a particular topic and another group looks at it and then makes some changes. But that really is the essence of the model, that we take something and we keep refining it and we keep refining it. And then finally when we were reaching the endgame, Rita really defended that work that had been done by both the IRT and the GNSO, and even though, you know, she's a trademark expert and she could obviously understand the trademark perspective and appreciate some of the arguments being put forward to change it, at the same time she really respected the process that was used to develop those final recommendations and really challenged those that came in later to actually provide a really strong justification for making a change. And there were some final changes that were made by the board, but it wasn't just in consultation with the GAC. It was a repeated process of going back, getting feedback from the community members, both the noncommercial and commercial side, throughout that process. And a lot of that feedback, you know, may not have been visible because people come along to the public meeting and they see the GAC and the GNSO, the GAC and the board, but it really was a much larger community interaction. And in San Francisco, we invited each of the constituencies to give their final views. So I really want to use that as an example to give credit to both the strength of character of Rita and also really the huge amount of work she's had to do in the last year, and also the huge amount of pressure she's been under in the last year to resolve those issues to reach, as close as we can, a consensus. So my -- I take my hat off to Rita for managing that particular task, and will really be sorry to see Rita go, but I'm sure that we will maintain contact in the future. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Bruce. Anybody else like to speak? I see Erika. >>ERIKA MANN: I'd like to express a special thank you to Rita. When I joined the board, quite recently, all members of the board -- and the staff is included -- were very open and helpful and encouraging to understand the subject as fast as possible, but Rita really took me under her wings, as they say and she introduced just not only the various subjects to me, which I was quite familiar with but nonetheless it is very important to understand all the details and the background information and to understand the community as a whole, but she was really a guidance in many ways. And I think she's one of the most wonderful persons I have met. And I have met many people internationally. She's very colorful, incredible intelligence, and full of energy. She will never let go, if there is an issue she wants to defend, but she will always take the interest of the whole Internet ecosystem into consideration, and I'm extremely grateful that I have met her and I am looking forward to staying in contact with her. Thanks so much, Rita. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Erika. Ray. >>RAY PLZAK: Thank you, Peter. Rita is a very hard-headed and opinionated person. There's no doubt about that. But the reason for that is that she has principles and she stands by them. But having said that, Rita is also the first person who is willing to sit down and work out compromises and collaborate without sacrificing those principles, and that is what makes working with Rita on this board a joy. And so jersey girl, I'm going to miss you. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Ray. I see Bertrand and then Ramaraj. >>BERTRAND DE LA CHAPELLE: I will not go too long without -- by fear of being emotional. It's been an extreme pleasure to get to know you. That's all. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Bertrand. Thomas? >>THOMAS NARTEN: Thanks, Peter. I joined ICANN back in 2005, and at that time I had zero experience with ICANN and, you know, most of the folk that I knew in the IETF thought I was crazy. Which is beside the point. But sort of looking back, what I have found most satisfying and worthwhile really is the people that I've worked with and that I've met, and it's not just a handful, it's literally dozens of people here. You know, it's a great community and Rita really exemplifies that ideal to me. She's principled, hard-working, you know, able to dive into details, yet also keep focus on the big picture and so on. And so, you know, all the while we're sort of locked in rooms pulling our hair out, she's been able to maintain the good humor that allows us to actually have a little bit of fun, even as we're beating each other up. So thanks, Rita. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Thomas. Ramaraj? >>RAMARAJ: Rita, in my time on the board with you, you've been one of the keenest listeners. I know it's not usual for you, but you've been a keen listener. [ Laughter ] >>RAMARAJ: When you have spoken, it has often resulted in a clear shift in the direction we have taken. The clarity of your thinking has consistently allowed the board to make decisions that are informed, factual, and based on clear and strong principles. Watching you operate in the BGC, compensation, audit, there's no doubt that your departure from this board will truly be this board's loss. I echo what Thomas said. You really have a great sense of humor which you bring in when you're in the midst of serious business and seriousness in the midst of all levity. It's been my privilege to consider you my friend, wish you well, and I'm sure we'll see more trailblazing from you. Good luck. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Ramaraj. I'd just like to take this opportunity of reading something from the public comment, as it were. Rita, I have a message from Mark Carvell, who of course was leading the intellectual property effort from the GAC in the new gTLD negotiations and he says, "I missed the opportunity in the open forum yesterday to add a GAC contribution to the testimonials for Rita so I would like to ask if it could be put in the public ICANN record that I as the GAC IP topic lead sincerely appreciated her contributions to the board's and the GAC's work on improving the rights protection mechanisms in the new gTLD round. This was a complex set of issues and a steep learning curve for me in particular. Rita was a great help to me by articulating the issues in such a clear, comprehensive, and concise way. Her receptive and patient approach and dedication to the task at hand was undoubtedly a major factor in achieving so much progress on so many elements of the GAC scorecard issues. I'd be happy for you to forward this on to Rita with best wishes for her future." So Rita, consider that message passed on from Mark Carvell. Rod. >>ROD BECKSTROM: Rita, you are brilliant, striking, and incredibly effective. As I've mentioned on the Tuesday night toast or Monday night toast, you're like a falcon hovering over the board waiting to see an issue go astray and you fly down at full speed and strike with stunning accuracy, and as Ramaraj said, that has informed many a good board decision and it's been just an exceptional success at interventions that I think I may have seldom ever seen in another board and I respect you so much for it. But what I most respect about you, Rita, is how incredibly genuine you are, and caring for other people, and your ability to have power by speaking the truth so freely, so openly, all the time. We are going to miss you and I am going to miss you incredibly. Thank you so much. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you. Sebastien. >>SEBASTIEN BACHOLLET: Thank you. We will miss you, Rita. But we will miss much more than Rita, because in this board, there will be just one woman who will be -- has a job of director and voting director. The liaisons do better work in the gender balance. There are two amongst five. The community needs to think about that because the best testimony that we can give to Rita is to have more women to this board. Thank you very much. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Sebastien. Cherine? >>CHERINE CHALABY: One of the things I look for when I come to work is to find people I like working with, people who are fun, and from day one I found Rita. So that was a pleasure. As Erika said, Rita also took me under her wings, metaphorically and physically -- [ Laughter ] >>CHERINE CHALABY: -- to the point where I had to have a photo taken where Rita is sitting down and I'm standing up -- [ Laughter ] >>CHERINE CHALABY: -- and she's still taller than me. [ Laughter ] >>CHERINE CHALABY: Rita, I'll miss you. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Cherine. Reinhard. >>REINHARD SCHOLL: Dear Rita, what I always find fascinating is how, at one moment, you are that serious and terrific lawyer that everyone is scared of and that everyone wants to have on his or her side rather than having to argue against, and then at the next moment this joyful, cheerful, happy girl and funny girl that you would never have dreamt of would be a lawyer. [ Laughter ] >>REINHARD SCHOLL: And this, while always being authentic and true to yourself. So I would like to join the community and thank you very much for your outstanding service. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Reinhard. Kuo-Wei. >>KUO-WEI WU: Well, I have many words for Rita. First of all, I need to thank her for being very patient. Although my English has a Chinese accent, she will listen. [ Laughter ] >>KUO-WEI WU: Second of all, I think I need to thank Rita. You know, I'm not in a legal background and she is really very patient to explain to me, you know, what is the consequence in legal terms. And of course we all miss you. Anytime you come to Taiwan, be my guest. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Kuo-Wei. Heather. >>HEATHER DRYDEN: Thank you, Peter. It's certainly true that being a board director represents a tremendous amount of work, no less on issues like trademark where we did have the benefit of working closely with Rita on those issues. So simply, I would like to recognize that effort and thank you for it and wish you all the best in the future. Thank you. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Heather. Ramaraj -- sorry. Ram. The other Ram. Ram Mohan. [ Laughter ] >>RAM MOHAN: Rita, you were our fighter, our tester of faith, our teller of truth. I'll miss that clear-eyed thinking, I'll miss that pragmatic decision-making, and I'll miss the courageousness in tackling problems. Know that whatever you do and wherever you go, you'll always be held in great esteem and deep love from all of us. This is farewell, but not goodbye, my friend. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Ram. George. >>GEORGE SADOWSKY: Thank you. There have been some remarkable analogies here, and as I think of my contact with Rita and my work with her, my analogy is that she is my Virgil guiding me through the hell of trademark law. Thank you very much, Rita. You're very patient and I appreciate it a lot and we will miss you. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, George. Anyone else? Gonzalo and then Mike. >>GONZALO NAVARRO: Thank you, Peter. To be brief, Rita, you're not just an excellent lawyer, incredibly intelligent woman. I'm all for some community inspiring the rest of the people. You are one of the finest human beings that I ever met, so I'm really glad to be hear and I'm not going to get as emotional as Bertrand, but we are going to miss you. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Gonzalo. And Mike. >>MIKE SILBER: Peter, thank you. And thanks to the community for their indulgence. I think we last put them through this sort of torture in Seoul, with the schmaltz-fest that took place there, and we'll try to rein it back a bit, but I think with Rita and Peter living, it's very difficult not to pay tribute to both of them, because both of them have shaped this organization in their own way. I'm not going to compare the two. I'm not going to analyze or in any way rank their contributions because I think the clarity is there. While Peter's may be greater in stature, Rita's are certainly greater in terms of community appreciation. So Peter, I think thank you for putting in the hard yards and not always the pleasant tasks about getting things moving, and Rita for the pleasantness that you've brought to making difficult decisions. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Mike. Suzanne. >>SUZANNE WOOLF: Oh, good, I think I get the last word. I don't want to prolong the schmaltz-fest, but I want to say thank you, Rita and woohoo! Good job! [ Applause ] >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Suzanne. Steve, and then I think I might get the last word on this one. Steve? >>STEVE CROCKER: One wonders if there's anything left to say. Enormous intellect and focus in a -- with a personality that betrays and hides the zeroing in and ability to attack. Rita personifies unfair advantage, and you definitely want her on your side of the table. The other thing which I think we all know is that Rita is incredibly tough and has survived personal tragedy and has resilience that in my mind is of heroic proportions. There is a rarity that will not come along again very rapidly. Thank you, Rita. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, Steve. I get to go last. I'm going to say thank you also for years of extraordinary service. The adjectives are difficult to select from but the obvious ones to me are strong-willed, clear-thinking, passionate, intelligent, and happy. I think one of the things I've been grateful for is that you keep the board at the high level that's required for board debate. Whenever we tended to descend in the weeds, you would reach down and pull us up. The other thing I'm grateful for is the balance, always, of your view. Not swayed -- sorry, swayed by any subjectivity, and that's really because your decisions and your arguments were principles- based, not on emotion or appeal to any particular sensitivities. Coupled with that, of course, was already the readiness to do the deal and as soon as you could sense that we might be close, you would help us bridge the last few gaps to get there. And thank you for your patience with the late-night sessions, as we did that, including one last night. Like others have mentioned, I need to say that you coped with your only personal tragedy of your accident particularly well. I was very proud and pleased to speak at your wedding. I was proud to be included and a small part in that part of your life. Very proud to have served with you on this board. And very pleased to have you as a friend. Thank you. So I think we've declared that resolution carried by acclamation. We can move on to the next resolution and for that, because it involves some of my interests, I'll hand the chair to the vice chair, Steve Crocker. Steve? >>STEVE CROCKER: Thank you, Peter. Yes, indeed, this is all about you. [ Laughter ] >>STEVE CROCKER: Our thanks to Peter Dengate Thrush. Whereas, Peter Dengate Thrush was appointed by the ccNSO to serve on the ICANN board in January 2005. Whereas, Peter was also appointed by the ccNSO in April 2008 to serve an additional three-year term. Whereas, Peter concludes his term as a member of the board of directors on 24 June 2011. Whereas, Peter has served as chairman of the ICANN board, member of the ATRT, co-chair of the President's Strategy Committee, chair of the executive committee, chair of the compensation committee, chair of the board global relations committee, and member of the following board committees: Finance, board governance and audit. Resolved, Peter has earned the deep appreciation of the board for his term of service as a director, and the board wishes Peter well in all future endeavors. And let me add things that are not on the program. We have a certificate of appreciation. This is standard practice, and it's standard practice because, in fact, Peter initiated the standard practice. We gave one to Rita earlier, and this is -- this is yours. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you. [ Applause ] >>STEVE CROCKER: But wait. There's more. We have a new standard practice initiated at this meeting. We have buttons. [ Laughter ] >>STEVE CROCKER: These say, "Former ICANN director," and it should say "former ICANN director Version 1.0" because we may evolve these things. [ Laughter ] >>STEVE CROCKER: But we're going to do everything we can to take advantage of the brain trust and goodwill and knowledge that we have in our former directors, and so Peter, one for you. [ Laughter ] >>STEVE CROCKER: I got to put this on. This is very dangerous. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: And you kiss both cheeks. >>STEVE CROCKER: Not really. And one for you, Rita. This is even more dangerous. [ Laughter ] >>STEVE CROCKER: I'm not going to do that. [ Laughter ] >>RITA RODIN JOHNSTON: Thank you. >>STEVE CROCKER: There's a technicality here of asking for whether we want to speak, and I guess that's not a technicality. Whether we want to pass this. Does anybody want to make remarks? Cherine. >>CHERINE CHALABY: I thought I get mine in first because there will be a lot more comments like this, but can I say that working with you is just like a roller coaster ride. There are ups and there are downs, there are screams and there are silences, there's excitement and there's apprehension. But because of you, we always get there safely at the end. And guess what. When we look back, we say I enjoyed the ride. Thank you. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Steve's the chair. >>STEVE CROCKER: Oh, I'm sorry. So Ray, I see your hand up. >>RAY PLZAK: Thank you, Steve. Peter, there have been times when I thought that you had appointed me to the herald non-recognition chair. But I have always treasured working with you, both before I came on the board and since I have been on the board. I think we have accomplished a lot together in both of those relationships. And I wish you all the best and thank you very much for your service. >>STEVE CROCKER: Bruce? >>BRUCE TONKIN: Thank you, Steve. I think the thing that stands out to me and to a number of board members is, I think, two things, his stamina. To give you an idea of that, the board conducted its workshop last night. That finished at 2:00 a.m. Then I thought I'd escaped, but then Peter dragged me into another meeting from 2:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. And at that point, I said I need to go to bed to attend Rita's Audit Committee meeting at 8:00 a.m. because I didn't want to miss that. But -- so I thought I would do a little bit of a tally of the number of hours Peter has worked this week pretty much based on what I have seen in both his agendas and awareness of where he's been working. So if I include the plane trip which would have been probably eight hours, I think Peter has worked so far 140 hours this week. This is quite extraordinary. There are probably only a couple other members to the community, some who came to the public mic yesterday, that come close to that. But he really has an enormous stamina. He is always here on time. He might work all night on something, but he'll be here on time for the pre-breakfast meeting at 6:00 or 7:00, or whatever time he has managed to get me out of bed. So he really has enormous stamina. The second thing is, like Rita, Peter really sticks to the principles particularly with respect to public benefit and the Internet. And on some topics, he might be the only member of the board that has a particular view because he thinks it's in the public interest. And by the time he's finished, he has managed to convert most of the board to his point of view. So he has that ability to argue a topic to the benefit of users but very well argued, obviously very strong skills. The barrister skills come out in that exercise. So it is the combination of his stamina and his drive to work in the best interest of the community. So I thank you, Peter. >>STEVE CROCKER: Mike? >>MIKE SILBER: Thanks, Steve. I think just one disclaimer, of course, being a lawyer and that is many of us are either keeping quiet or keeping it short out of respect for the attendees, not out of any disrespect to the honorees because I think we could talk about Rita and Peter all day. I first met Peter at the Stockholm meeting. I have disagreed with him many times since, I have argued with him often. But the one thing that has been fundamental is I have always had enormous respect with him, for his views, the way he presents them, the manner in which he conducts himself. And he will be sorely missed. >>STEVE CROCKER: Thank you. George? >>GEORGE SADOWSKY: Thank you, Steve. Continuing with the analogies, I like Cherine's analogy but I would liken working with Peter more like a very long plane ride which we all have a good deal of experience with. And that is we generally take off on time, we have to obey the crew's instructions, we go a long way, there is turbulence along the way but there is also sometimes good food and drink. And when we land, we find we have gone a long way and gotten where we wanted to go. Thank you, Peter. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you, George. [ Applause ] >>STEVE CROCKER: Very cute. Erika? >>ERIKA MANN: Peter, I was deeply impressed by your capability, the way you work specifically at night. It seems to be when it gets later during the night, you become more alive even than you are during the day. And your greatest moment I have experienced in the short time I have worked with you is really when it is really, really, really late and everybody is more or less getting very tired. Now, I think you have a great future in politics because I can tell you, all deals -- all good deals are always made at night. So don't consider to look into this option. I think you will have a great and incredible future there. >>STEVE CROCKER: Kuo? >>KUO-WEI WU: Peter, I think we met a long time ago in Wellington. And I just join the board a little bit more than a year. And you always drive us crazy every day, even in 1:30 or 2:00 a.m. You still have the energy to open the eye, and you keep pushing us to get it resolved. And I think the whole community should thank you to make this thing happen. So we all will miss you. Thank you, Peter. >>STEVE CROCKER: Reinhard? >>REINHARD SCHOLL: Peter, I would also like to join my colleagues in the community in thanking you in your terrific engagement in the cause of ICANN and your truly profound knowledge of all matters related to ICANN are truly outstanding. And I would also like to thank you for having visited the ITU in Geneva and for your help in building bridges. Thank you, Peter. >>STEVE CROCKER: Sebastien? >>SEBASTIEN BACHOLLET: Merci. Thank you. Mr. Chairman, Mr. Chair, I don't know if you drive a car the way you drive the board. I was very happy that I was the one driving you in Paris, France -- in the streets of Paris, France, or else I would have been very, very scared. But even while being scared, we arrived at the final goal. Thank you so much for the way you lead us at this board. And thank you for everything you do. We did visit a few places together in Paris. Two weeks ago we were in Paris together, and it was absolutely great that I did spend such a good time during the night in Paris. Nighttime in Paris, that was great for me as well. Thank you, Peter, for everything. >>STEVE CROCKER: Thank you. Ramaraj? >>RAMARAJ: Peter, like everybody else, truly admire your leadership style and your ability to get things done. I just wanted to take this opportunity to tell you that one of the traditions that you've started but we will keep it going and that is the single malt drinkers club. Thank you, Peter, for introducing a nice tradition. Thank you. >>STEVE CROCKER: Thank you. Suzanne? >>SUZANNE WOOLF: Just to keep it quick, but, Peter, thank you for everything, especially for your willingness to hear obscure, ambiguous but ultimately well-meant and I think helpful advice from the techies. >>STEVE CROCKER: Thank you. Rita? >>RITA RODIN JOHNSTON: Thank you, Steve. I already made comments at Peter's farewell dinner. I just wanted to say a falcon can only strike when there is clearly identified prey. [ Laughter ] And I think Peter has done an excellent job of lining up the issues for us, keeping us moving through and allowing me to do that striking. So thank you for really all of your hard work. And where we are today is much to your contributions and leadership. Thank you. >>STEVE CROCKER: Rod? >>ROD BECKSTROM: Peter, you are eloquent, articulate, dashing, redoubtable, indefatigable, some find you irresistible. You are an international genius of Internet policy and governance. You are a gentleman leader. You are a great chairman. And you have lifted this organization. Thank you for the powerful, effective and intense collaboration together, Peter. And thank you for giving me this opportunity to serve the ICANN community during your board leadership. Thanks for the tireless contributions to the Internet for 13 years and all those around the world who enjoy the benefits of those fruits. Being a great runner of board marathons does not even begin to describe your awesome force and stamina. Thank you for your incredible passion and service to ICANN. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you. >>STEVE CROCKER: Thomas? >>THOMAS NARTEN: Thank you, Steve. There is, of course, much that I could say, but others have already spoken quite eloquently. So let me just say thanks for your service and especially for your good humor, your good naturedness and your genuinely friendliness towards everyone. Those are often the most underappreciated qualities that allow the community to actually work together, find consensus and produce good work. Thanks. >>STEVE CROCKER: Bertrand? >>BERTRAND DE LA CHAPELLE: Peter, there has been a few analogies. I would like to add another one, which is the pilot for ships that get out of the harbor. You've actually been at the very beginning when the ship was launched, and you've been in a position in the last few years of steering the boat at the moment when there are many reefs in different places and actually taking various tangents managing to get it to at least first step in its long cruise. What has been achieved on Monday is largely due to your exigence, your drive and your strength and your vision. But actually there are three faces to you. One is the very public face which is a man of stature and very big presence. The other one is the one we see in the working groups which, I think, a few of us have illustrated clearly in terms of the demand. But I want to highlight the third one that Thomas has just briefly mentioned. And those of you who have had the possibility to have a drink afterwards with Peter or just talk very informally is a complete sort of unplugged, relaxed manner where the deep nature and the deep human nature of the man emerges. And I think Bruce was probably right in quoting the 140 hours, but this is without the after-hours where you actually see the third element. I want to thank you for having treated me basically the same way when I was in the GAC and when I'm now in here, both on the kind side and on the strong interaction side. But the last one I want to say is there is nothing more rewarding than being able to convince Peter. If you manage to do that once, wow, that's an achievement. I think I've done that once or twice, and it is really something that I'm proud of. Thank you very much for what you do. >>STEVE CROCKER: Gonzalo. >>GONZALO NAVARRO: Thank you. Thank you, Steve. Peter, I know that you like history so you will understand the meaning of the following words: veni, vidi, vici. I think you are entitled to those words. And this organization is so much better and different with you. So congrats for that, and I'm going to miss this roller coaster. >>STEVE CROCKER: Thank you. Ram? >>RAM MOHAN: Peter, for a while now a few of us have organized an ICANN runners group. We meet every morning at 6:00, and we head out for a run, typically a short run, three or four miles. But, Peter, running with you is like running an ultra-marathon, not even just a marathon. Your stamina, determination, focus, energy and the absolute clear intent to finish -- to get to the finish line obviously qualifies you to become an honorary member of the ICANN runners group. You will be missed. You are one of the few people inside of ICANN who are recognized by just your first name and that's pretty cool, I think. I'll miss you on the board. Thank you for your service to the community and for your leadership. >>STEVE CROCKER: Thank you. Anybody else? Have I missed, Heather? >> HEATHER DRYDEN: Thank you, Steve. Having been on the receiving end, I can confirm the existence of your barrister skills. And like Bruce, I admire your ability to chair and to hold meetings and do that for such extended periods of time. However, I have no intention of adopting those practices myself. [ Laughter ] And I do appreciate your good humor. That certainly makes a difference when we are all working so hard and under such pressure at times. So thank you. >>STEVE CROCKER: Thank you. Katim. >>KATIM TOURAY: Thanks, Steve. I just couldn't resist the temptation to wait to be the last person to speak on this. But this gives me the opportunity, of course, to comment on both Peter and Rita departing us. I will be very brief. I will do it the ICANN way. I will say "plus one" to everything that's been said about the tool and approving everything that's been said on Boardvantage. Bon voyage. >>STEVE CROCKER: I'm obliged unfortunately to steal your position at last. Peter, it has been a pleasure to work with you the last several months. I have had the pleasure of being vice chair, and I have had the pleasure over several years of watching you closely under multiple circumstances, private, public, group meetings. And people have spoken about your incredible stamina, your mellifluous voice, your full head of hair. It is an unbeatable combination really. [ Laughter ] We've had multiple opportunities, and I've had a few. So I think I'll subside here. But I certainly share the sentiments of everybody else. Thank you. I guess we have the technical business here. Resolved, I think we want to pass by acclamation. (Standing ovation.) >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thank you. >>STEVE CROCKER: I think you have one last piece of business here which is to bring this to a close. >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Thanks, Steve, thank you for chairing that. I would like to just say a few words in reply. I had a chance to say thank you all for the opportunities of having this wonderful opportunity on Monday night, and I won't repeat any of that. But it is my last chance to say. Just a couple things I would like to say. I would like, first of all, to take the opportunity that's been made available to me to post some final thoughts on the Web site which I can compose at slightly more leisure than is available through the course of an ordinary meeting. I would just like to comment on the fact that it has been in the last few years an incredibly busy policy period. And again just listing some of them: XXX, the GNSO restructuring, redoing the board committees, the new gTLDs, ending the Joint Project Agreement. We've introduced simultaneous interpretation. We've built up a fellowship program. We have seen the first strategic plan developed and then worked through that. We've launched sTLDs. Dot travel and DotAsia are now parts of the landscape. We had the work on the President's Strategy Committee, building institutional confidence. It has been the most extraordinary period, IDNs and IDN ccTLDs and DNSSEC. The list of things we have actually done in the last few years is just extraordinary. Let me just be absolutely clear, I'm not the originator of any of that. None of it was my idea. But I've been able to help, I think, work on those processes, of course, supported by a cast of thousands, particularly in more than the last couple of years, of course, by a new CEO. Rod has been a fantastic -- Rod has been fantastic at managing and organizing the delivery of these enormous challenges. Hugely satisfying, of course, to bring them all home. I think of all of them, the most important historically we will look back and see was the Affirmation of Commitments. I know we're all excited about the gTLD policy, and that's clearly going to make a change to the look of the Internet. But in the long-term strategic history of ICANN, I think the changing of the relationship with the United States Government and the shift to accountability to the world in becoming transparent and accountable at that level is in the end going to be the biggest thing that will have happened in this time. So as I say, I didn't originate any of that. But I have been able to work on it but, of course, supported by absolutely incredible staff. At the risk of offending those -- because we don't have the time, I just want to focus on perhaps some of the longer serving and begin with Diane. Diane? Absolutely extraordinary effort. Of course, Diane remembers when I was regarded as a rebel at ICANN and, in fact, was mischaracterized as an opponent of ICANN for quite a long time. I think no one was more surprised than Diane when I became the chairman of the board, not something remotely possible when I was a member of the Boston working group challenging things in 1998. Thank you, Diane, for putting up with me and supporting me so thoroughly. Tribute also to further incredible staff John Jeffrey and the team, Dan and Amy and Samantha, Dan particularly. People have talked about the late-night sessions. Once I'd finished and gone down to have that social chat in the bar with Bertrand and the others, Dan and the others would be there typing up the resolutions, getting all the material ready. They worked extra hours, and so that's been extraordinary. Of course, Kurt and all of the gTLD team and, of course, many others which we count. Very impressive to see the building of the very strong international quality management team of Jamie, Elise, Barbara and David and others all coming -- all beginning to work together powerfully, creating a tremendous amount of synergy amongst themselves and with the board and the community. Of course, I have to say thanks to the people who helped me get to this position, in particular, and work with me in the other capacities and that's Vint Cerf, obviously who I took over from. He was a great help. And also Paul Twomey with whom I worked closely for a number of years. Things we could have done better, I think we need to keep a close eye on the structure of ICANN. It should always be an elegant tension as the members of the community contest with each other for resources, contest with each other for policy positions. We've got a most unusual model with the provider-supplier-customer all in the same room making the policy, overseen, of course, in a particular special role by governments and then underpinned by the support of the At-Large community of users. So there needs to be constant tension to make sure that balance on different issues is maintained. And perhaps the best example of that recently is the debate around the RAA, making sure we are using the right mechanisms to make the appropriate policy changes. I think things we need to keep an eye on in the future, we need to take a role in the inevitable market, whether we like it or not, in the IPv4 address space. And we need to pay attention to strengthening and getting on to some kind of long-term IANA relationship. We need to work on exactly what "consensus" means for all of us and what serving the "public interest" means. Let me just give my view about that discussion that was yesterday about defining the "public interest." I think we should resist that with all our might and main. Whoever defines the "public interest" will have won the big chunk of the argument and will have excluded the others because there is no such thing as "the public interest." There are many public interests, and they are always competing. Our job is to get it right. The obvious example are the proponents of free speech and the trademark interests. Trademark has a monopoly on speech. Both perfectly valid interests and keeping them and getting the balance right is the job. There is no such thing as "the public interest." Search has to be for identifying the elements and establishing the balance. I want to also pay tribute to the past and present boards for support. It's been an incredible honor to be elected four times as your leader. As some of you have hinted today in what should have been flowing tributes, I'm not actually perfect. I know that's a surprise to some. But I appreciate the way all of you have gone along with my defects, especially my technical grip on things and how that's been tolerated. And I particularly want to acknowledge and thank the backup from Steve, from Thomas, from Suzanne and Ram and Harald before them, wonderful support from my favorite techies. It is unbelievably comfortable to have what are, in fact, world class -- the leading experts in the world supporting the policy-making process. So thank you for that. Lots of other thank yous I can't go through the entire 21. But, again, perhaps picking among a galaxy of stars, Thomas, we have been here about the same length of time. I thank you for your patience and the way you have become the conscience of the board in many ways. Rita, obviously we've mentioned the strength, the articulate presentation of clear principles. Ramaraj, sitting silently, watching and then a razor sharp observation backed by truly superb memory, very helpful for keeping us on track. Bruce, an unbelievable resource for ICANN in all roles, having already served many years as DNSA chair to come on the board and then continue to strive the extraordinary steady pace, the knowledge and the increasing wisdom. Very grateful for your friendship and counsel and support. So let me thank everybody as a group. It has been an incredibly good team, good friendship. And perhaps close by thanking and welcoming the new directors, thank you for standing. Thank you for the service that you are about to give, particularly, of course, my old friend Chris Disspain, who takes my seat on behalf of the ccNSOs, having already proved excellent leadership among the ccTLD community and very confident will bring that to the board so that a quota of blue-eyed, silver- haired antipodean lawyers is maintained. Congratulations to your elections. Just to say thank you also for the photo books that are going around and perhaps a special mention to Michelle Chaplow. There has been an actual professional photographer working for free to capture some photographs. And she wants to get a last one with the whole board which will be excellent. We are going to do that. And it is Singapore, I understand the motto of Singapore is Majulah Singapura which means "Onward Singapore." Let me close by saying "Majulah ICANN," onward ICANN. Thanks very much. >>STEVE CROCKER: I'm afraid that moment has actually come that we have to ask you to -- >>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: Let me do it this way, Steve. Let me declare the meeting closed and then, of course, Rita and I will depart. Thank you. Meeting adjourned.