Global Public Interest

Global Public Interest (GPI) is a belief in weighing the various interests at play, determining how to best serve the interests of the general public, and deciding by which means. It was foundational to the formation of ICANN and its commitments, and it is central to the Affirmation of Commitments, the ICANN Bylaws, and ICANN's Articles of Incorporation.

History

ICANN was founded on the principle that the Internet should be a global resource. Since the Green Paper and White Paper, a foundational goal was to ensure representation of the entire global community.

The ICANN Bylaws first incorporated the phrase "Global Public Interest" in its October 2016 amendments, as part of the IANA Functions Stewardship Transition. The amendments were submitted by the Cross Community Working Group on Enhancing ICANN Accountability, who provided a general rationale for a variety of amendments to the Mission, Commitments, and Core Values sections of the bylaws:

Based on community input and CCWG Accountability discussions, it was concluded that these ICANN Bylaws provisions, which were originally adopted in 2003, should be strengthened and enhanced to provide greater assurances that ICANN is accountable to its stakeholders and the global Internet community.

In 2018, the ICANN Board identified the GPI as one of its 2019 operational priorities and carried it over to 2021. In September 2019, the Board published a discussion paper on a proposed GPI framework.

GPI Toolkit

GPI Framework (from GPI Toolkit, ICANN.org)

The GPI Toolkit, which is shepherded by Avri Doria in its pilot version application for the SSAD and SUBPRO ODPs, is meant to systematically assess the determination of GPI when considering new actions.