At-Large Advisory Committee

The At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) is one of ICANN's Advisory Committees. The mission of ALAC is to function as an advocate for the interests of individual Internet users.

Overview

The 15-member ALAC represents the At-Large Community and consists of two members selected by each of the five RALOs and five members appointed by ICANN's Nominating Committee. The committee is tasked with advocating for the interests of end-users, advising on the Internet policies developed by ICANN's Supporting Organizations, and selecting a director to serve on the ICANN Board. ALAC also plays a significant role in ICANN's outreach and engagement programs.

History

The ICANN Board adopted new bylaws on October 31, 2002, which came into effect on December 15, 2002. The creation of the ALAC was part of a larger reform effort within ICANN, now known as ICANN 2.0. The new bylaws established the ALAC and provided support for At-Large Organizations. It stated that the ALAC should consist of ten members selected by Regional At-Large Organizations, with five supplementary members to be selected by ICANN's Nominating Committee. The interim ALAC consisted of ten members, two from each of ICANN's 5 regions.

In her testimony to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation on December 8, 2011, Esther Dyson, former Chair of the ICANN Board and ALAC member, noted the difficulty of representing the average Internet user within ICANN, even with the ALAC. Specific problems included recruiting members and fostering productive message boards and long-distance communications. Since then, ALAC has focused its attention on addressing these issues, among others, to cultivate more and better participation by end-users in the At-Large Community. For instance, the At-Large website shepherds current and prospective volunteers into action through a series of options concerning one of two areas of work: 1) policy advice development or 2) organization building.

At-Large Structures

Main article: ALS

The ALAC represents a network of regionally self-organized and self-supporting At-Large Structures, which represent individual Internet users throughout the world. The At-Large Structures are divided into five Regional At-Large Organizations (one in each ICANN region – Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America/Caribbean, and North America). These RALOs manage public involvement and represent their constituents to ICANN.

Through these At-Large Structures, individual internet users have been given a voice and a space whereby they can influence the policy decisions made by ICANN.

ALAC responsibilities

Besides following the provisions of ICANN's new bylaws, ALAC has responsibilities such as assisting the formation and qualification of other At-Large Structures and RALOs. Other responsibilities undertaken by ALAC and its organizations include:

• Evaluating the accreditation process for At-Large Structures
• Analyzing and publishing ICANN's policies and decisions
• Coordinating with the GNSO and other ICANN committees
• Providing guidance and advice to various organizations regarding ICANN's proposals and activities which are relevant for individual Internet users
• Analyzing and approving the applications of At-Large Structures
• Developing Internet-based processes and methods to enable and ease the communication process between At-Large structures

ALAC Members

Africa

• Dave Kissoondoyal, Leadership Team Member, Mauritius 2019 AGM - 2021 AGM
• Sarah Kiden, Uganda, 2020 AGM - 2022 AGM
• Abdulkarim Oloyede, Nigeria, 2019 AGM - 2021 AGM

Asia/Australia and the Pacific Islands

• Justine Chew, Malaysia, AGM - 2021 AGM
• Maureen Hilyard, Chair, Cook Islands, 2019 AGM - 2021 AGM
• Holly Raiche, Australia, 2018 AGM - 2020 AGM

Europe

• Joanna Kulesza, Vice Chair, Poland, 2020 AGM - 2022 AGM
• Matthias Markus Hudobnik, Austria, 2019 AGM - 2021 AGM
• Pari Esfandiari, United Kingdom, 2020 AGM - 2022 AGM

Latin America and the Caribbean Islands

• Sylvia Herlein Leite, Brazil, 2019 AGM - 2021 AGM
• Sindy Obed, Haiti, 2020 AGM - 2022 AGM
• Carlos Raul Gutierrez, Leadership Team Member, Costa Rica, 2019 AGM - 2021 AGM

North America

• Marita Moll, Canada, 2020 AGM - 2022 AGM
• Jonathan Zuck, Vice Chair United States of America, 2019 AGM - 2021 AGM
• Gregory Shatan, United States of America, 2020 AGM - 2022 AGM

ALAC Liaisons

• Barrack Otieno, ccNSO
• Cheryl Langdon-Orr, GNSO
• Yrjö Länsipuro, GAC
• Andrei Kolesnikov, SSAC