Maria Farrell
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| Country: | Ireland |
| Email: | maria.farrell [at] icann.org |
| Website: | |
| Blog: | [crookedtimber.org crookedtimber.org] |
| LinkedIn: |  [Maria Farrell Maria Farrell]
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| Twitter: |  @mariafarrell
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Maria Farrell Maria Farrell is a writer and independent consultant; her expertise is in Internet policy development, communication, and community-building.[1] She currently serves as a Committee member on ICANN's Nominating Committee, and as a Communications Consultant and Task Manager of Electronic Waste (Brazil) for infoDev, an IT division within The World Bank.[2]
She is a contributor to the blog, CrookedTimber.org. Ms. Farrell is a former ICANN staff member.
ICANN Involvement[edit | edit source]
Ms. Farrell represents the Non-Commercial Users Constituency on the Nominating Committee,[3] she has been a part of the NomCom since December, 2010.[4] At ICANN San Francisco, Maria Farrel noted at the public comment forum how Rod Beckstrom was forcing the departure of a large number of experienced staffers under his management of the organization, herself included; she openly criticized this "hollowing out" of expertise within the body and decried the degradation of its international reputation.[5] That opinion was met with sustained applause a the forum, and has been seconded by other ICANN insiders.[6]
From 2005 to 2010, she was a member of the ICANN Staff, first as the Policy Support Officer for the GNSO and later as the Director of Information Coordination. She was promoted from the former to the latter in 2007. That role saw her taking on significant responsibilities, including: managing corporate affairs, internal communications with the Board and other departments, and the management of staff involved with the President's Strategy Committee, the Translation Unit, and the NomCom.[7][8]
Career[edit | edit source]
Maria Farrell has work in IT and Internet policy outside of ICANN as well, including International experience in London and Paris.[9] For two years she was the Policy Manager of IT, e-commerce, and telecommunications for the International Chamber of Commerce. She has also worked as a Policy Executive for the Law Society of England and Wales, and as a Policy Adviser for the confederation of British Industry.[10]
Early in her career she was also involved in Irish film and television production.[11]
Education[edit | edit source]
Maria Farrell recieved her MA in Interactive Media from Dublin University in 1999; she had previously studied abroad at McGill University in Montreal, where among other activities she took part in a Debate team that saw her placing in competitions at Harvard, the University of Toronto, and Concordia. She recieved her MSc in Government and Comparative Politics in 2000 from the London School of Economics.[12] From, 2004 to 2006, while she was working with ICANN, she was also pursuing a MBA with Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School.[13]