GNSO OSC Constituency & Stakeholder Group Operations Team

GCOT is an abbreviation for the GNSO OSC Constituency & Stakeholder Group Operations Team. It is also known as the GNSO Council Operations Work Team. It was established by the GNSO Operations Steering Committee (OSC) to identify areas that need to be reviewed in order to best seat the new Council, and to provide recommendations to update areas and submit them to the OSC for reviewing and feedback.

Tasks assigned to GCOT

The GCOT was assigned with task of handling cross-constituency efforts to review the existing operating rules of the GNSO. It was also assigned with the task of reviewing the existing GNSO operating procedures and recommend any necessary changes that would be in conjunction with the goal of the GNSO Council. It operates as a strategic manager of the policy process.

Work of GCOT

In 2009, GCOT developed a set of recommendations concerning seating the new GNSO Council at the 36th ICANN meeting in Seoul, South Korea. The GNSO Council approved the recommendations provided by the GCOT for the new GNSO Operating Council. GCOT also provided some further recommendations regarding the amendments to the GNSO Operating Procedure. These amendments were mostly proposed in accordance with the Board’s GNSO Improvements Report.

GCOT also completed and submitted certain documents of its recommendations that it thought needed to be incorporated in the GNSO Operating Procedures (GOP). The recommendations it proposed were mainly regarding the Council Member Term Limits, Board Seat Elections, Absences and Vacancies, Voting and Statements and Disclosures of Interest. Out of these, some of its recommendations from the Statements and Disclosures of Interest are still being approved by the Staff Action and are waiting for the approval by the OSC and Council.

Generic Names Supporting Organization. Develops and recommends to the Board substantive policies relating to generic top-level domains and other responsibilities set forth in the Bylaws (ICANN Bylaws).