[NCUC-DISCUSS] Candidate SOI NCUC Chair - Renata

[Renata Aquino Ribeiro]

Dear NCUC members,


This is my candidate statement for the position of NCUC Chair. I hope
you do not mind if I take a few minutes of your day to speak with you
directly about why I am running for this seat, and what I can bring to
the table.


I hope this is the beginning of an ongoing conversation.


The NCUC is a fantastic group, and this election has great candidates
for all the positions, so we should take this moment to reflect on
what we have accomplished so far and what could be the next steps. I'm
grateful for all of the expressions of support that I received on-list
and privately. It really has been very humbling.


###Experience in ICANN


My first involvement with ICANN was in Buenos Aires for ICANN 53
(2015). At this meeting, I was an ICANN Fellow, and since then I have
joined working groups as an observer, have volunteered widely
throughout the community, and have had the privilege of serving as an
alternate - and have been appointed to important committees, such as
the GNSO’s Standing Selection Committee - as a full, voting member. My
first leadership position within ICANN was as the representative for
Latin America and the Caribbean on the NCUC Executive Committee. If
you sometimes think I talk too much about my region, that’s why. I was
elected to do that and also to help outreach and inreach globally. I
have taken my role on the NCUC Executive Committee very seriously, and
if I was to become Chair, I’d definitely make a point to continue what
I’m doing -- but with a global focus. In addition, I have been an
ICANN Coach and Mentor multiple times. It’s one of my favourite roles.
I love teaching and helping others realise their full potential. It is
why I defend teaching so much and respect acquired experience that I
will always use the wisdom of the veterans and work towards NCUC
goals. I also understand NCUC goals and our limited mission which is
to work on domain name policy and not always broader internet
governance issues.


###Vision of ICANN and NCUC


ICANN is a great Internet policy space, and specialising in
DNS-related themes is a pathway towards understanding much larger
issues which would greatly benefit from civil society engagement and
energy. The NCUC has grown significantly since I joined, and this is
definitely due to the amazing commitment and inspiration that our
members instill in newcomers of this group. The NCUC is dynamic and
combative, being vocal when there are truths which need to be spoken.
Not only is NCUC "the conscience" of ICANN but also its arms and legs;
without the movement that civil society brings to debates on Internet
policy issues, ICANN would have no destiny.


###Short, mid and long term goals


I have been reflecting deeply on whether or not I should accept this
nomination. It was not an easy decision for me to make, because I have
really enjoyed serving my region on the Executive Committee, and I
knew that I would only be reading to step forward and take on the role
of Chair if I thought I could really bring something new to the table.
I think that I can, and I’d like to explain to you what that is. The
role of the Chair is to work with the other elected Executive
Committee members to strengthen  the NCUC's strategic plan. It
requires a strong coach to help mould the other members into being
good teachers themselves, and it requires someone who can help build
consensus. I have experience in doing both of these things. There are
also a few actions which I believe NCUC leadership can work together
with our energised members to achieve mutual goals.


Short-term goal: My immediate priority if elected will be to increase
our in-reach efforts. We’ve got so many great members, and I want to
help people like you become more engaged in our policy work. I’ll
begin by mapping out NCUC members who are involved  in working groups,
and then I’ll see what skill gaps exist and what knowledge and
interests others have which are not being utilised. In 2018, the need
for this work is growing in urgency because the NCUC has updated its
bylaws and developed new operating procedures. The time is now to
harness YOU and all that you bring to the table, so we can have more
and more successes in the ICANN policy space. We'll also work together
for putting into practice projects NCUC has started recently, like our
policy writing course.


Mid-term goal: I will look to build an ideal quotient of participation
in working groups, aiming to redistribute the workload among our
currently active volunteers so to reduce burn-out. I believe that the
NCUC leadership should work more closely with the NCSG’s Policy
Committee, helping build effective participation in working groups and
creating process flows to help manage volunteers workload.


Long-term goal: I will work on following and applying our operating
procedures for the NCUC. My idea is to focus on how can we routinely,
and without missing anyone, consistently run our in-reach and outreach
capacity building efforts? I will also explore innovative new
strategies for expanding the NCUC budget. Together with member
collaboration we will apply for grants, find new donors, and expand
our travel support programme and the NCUC Fellowship.


###About me


I'm from the northeast of Brazil. I live in Fortaleza, Ceará state.
Here I'm a researcher, teacher, and founder of a research collective.
I am very involved in Internet governance activities outside of ICANN.
You might already know that I am on the Multistakeholder Advisory
Group of the United Nations Internet Governance Forum, where I am a
voice for civil society. Other communities I participate in are the
Internet Freedom Festival, and the Fórum da Internet do Brasil
(Internet Governance Forum Brazil). I have participated in Schools of
Internet Governance in Brazil, India, and the United States. I earned
a PhD in education from the Catholic University of São Paulo in 2012.
Prior to this, I  lived in the United Kingdom for 4 years and studied
my Master’s degree at the University of Westminster, graduating in
2003. I earned my Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from PUC-SP 1998.


I maintain a blog in Portuguese:

https://pesquisaeducacao.wordpress.com


I keep my ICANN Statement of Interest updated:

https://community.icann.org/display/gnsosoi/Renata+Aquino+Ribeiro+SOI