Meet&Greet for those funding Internet development | IGF 2023 Networking Session #111

Carlos Rey Moreno

Carlos Rey Moreno and Eric Huerta are coordinators of the LockNet initiative, which prioritises community-centred connectivity. The initiative supports various community-centred connectivity initiatives through regranting opportunities. Carlos Rey Moreno advocates for strengthening organisations involved in community-centred connectivity and creating enabling environments for their growth.

The LockNet initiative engages in national-level policy and regulatory analysis to support the development of effective policies and regulations that promote and sustain community-centred connectivity projects. They also work on technology development to ensure that the initiatives they support have access to the latest advancements and tools in internet technology.

The LockNet initiative places a strong focus on gender equality. They create safe spaces where women can enhance their knowledge and skills in internet technology and regulation. By empowering women in these fields, the initiative aims to promote inclusivity and diversity within community-centred connectivity projects.

The evidence supporting these activities and objectives can be seen through the initiative’s commitment to regranting. Through their financial support, they ensure the sustainability and impact of various community-centred connectivity initiatives. This demonstrates their dedication to promoting and contributing to the success of these projects.

In conclusion, Carlos Rey Moreno and Eric Huerta coordinate the LockNet initiative, which focuses on community-centred connectivity. The initiative engages in regranting, policy and regulatory analysis, and technology development to support these initiatives. They also prioritise promoting gender equality within the community-centred connectivity sector. The evidence supporting their work is substantiated by their commitment to regranting and their dedication to empowering and strengthening these projects.

Charles Noir

The Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) is committed to supporting various sectors of society. They focus on providing grants to non-profit organizations, registered charities, academics, universities, colleges, and indigenous communities. CIRA’s granting program aims to empower these groups and address their specific needs and challenges.

CIRA places particular emphasis on northern remote and indigenous communities, recognizing their unique circumstances and vulnerabilities. They strive to provide funding and support to bridge the digital divide and improve internet accessibility. This targeted approach demonstrates their commitment to reducing inequalities and promoting inclusivity, aligned with SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities.

Charles Noir, Vice President of Community Investment Policy and Advocacy at CIRA, plays a pivotal role in shaping and advocating for their community investment policies. His support for grants to these select groups further highlights the importance of CIRA’s work in these areas.

In addition to their granting program, CIRA also invests in cybersecurity services for Canadians, offering free services to help individuals protect themselves online. This initiative addresses the growing concern of cyber threats and contributes to a safer online environment. It aligns with SDG 9 – Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure.

CIRA also develops services for testing internet performance in a neutral manner, ensuring accurate assessments of connectivity. This impartial approach facilitates improvements in infrastructure and connectivity.

In summary, CIRA’s focus on grants for non-profits, registered charities, academics, universities, colleges, and indigenous communities, along with their dedication to providing free cybersecurity services and neutral internet performance testing, underscores their commitment to promoting inclusivity and security in the digital landscape. Their efforts contribute to the achievement of multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 4 – Quality Education, SDG 9 – Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure, and SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities.

Laura Conde Tresca

The Brazilian Internet Steering Committee, with Laura as a board member, plays a crucial role in supporting and funding AI centres in Brazil. These AI centres are essential hubs for research, development, and innovation in the field of artificial intelligence. By providing financial resources and support, the committee enables these centres to drive progress, encourage collaboration, and contribute to the advancement of AI technology in Brazil.

In addition to their support for AI centres, the committee also demonstrates a commitment to promoting gender diversity in the tech industry. They offer small fellowships specifically designed for women, encouraging them to write papers and contribute to the academic discourse surrounding technology. These fellowships provide financial support and recognition, helping to address the gender gap in the field and empower women to excel in tech-related disciplines.

Furthermore, the committee extends its positive impact by providing support for small events focused on Internet governance. By sponsoring and assisting in organising these events, they contribute to the dialogue and exchange of ideas concerning the responsible and inclusive management of the internet. This support fosters awareness, knowledge-sharing, and collaboration among various stakeholders regarding the governance of online platforms and services.

In conclusion, the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee, under Laura’s guidance, is a driving force behind the progress and development of AI in Brazil. Their support and funding for AI centres, provision of fellowships for women in tech, and promotion of small events on Internet governance underscore their commitment to industry, innovation, infrastructure, and gender equality. Their initiatives serve as models for other organisations aspiring to create a more inclusive and technologically advanced society.

One noteworthy observation is the multifaceted approach of the committee’s initiatives. By combining support for AI centres, gender diversity, and Internet governance, they address key areas where progress is needed in the tech industry. This holistic approach recognises the interconnected nature of these issues and ensures that efforts are made across different domains to drive positive change.

Overall, the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee, with Laura’s involvement, serves as a pioneer and catalyst for advancements in AI, promoting gender equality, and fostering responsible Internet governance in Brazil.

Audience

Janne Hedronen, representing the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, expresses concern over the financing of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), an organization that aims to promote sustainable industrialization and innovation through resilient infrastructure. The ministry has been a consistent donor to the IGF since 2006, providing approximately $2 million USD in funding. However, Janne urges participants to step up their efforts for financing the IGF, highlighting the importance and urgency of adequately funding the organization to fulfill its mandate.

The IO Foundation presents their work on data-centric digital rights and their support for the technical community. They view the technical community as the next generation of rights defenders, emphasizing their role in safeguarding digital rights in an increasingly data-driven world.

Carla Braga and Raimundo from the Amazon region focus their efforts on combating misinformation and disinformation, which are closely linked with the issue of deforestation. Their work highlights the connection between the spread of false information and the detrimental impact it has on efforts to address deforestation.

Rebecca Papillo, representing the .au domain administration, runs a community grants program aimed at promoting digital inclusion and innovation for marginalized communities. The program specifically targets regional and remote Australians, Australians with disabilities, and Australia’s First Nations people. By providing grants, Papillo aims to bridge the digital divide and empower these communities to access opportunities in the digital age.

Christian Leon, from ARSUR and the Internet Bolivia Foundation, is dedicated to protecting data, fighting against digital rights violations, and promoting digital inclusion. Leon’s work focuses on addressing issues such as digital violence and ensuring that everyone has equal access to and benefits from the internet.

Access Now has developed a grant program to support grassroots organizations. Over the past five years, they have disbursed approximately $8 million to 120 organizations. This program aims to empower and enable local organizations to champion digital rights and work towards reducing inequalities.

Catherine Townsend of Measurement Lab raises concerns about monitoring the internet. While Measurement Lab is actively involved in measuring the speed and quality of the internet worldwide, Townsend highlights the potential negative implications of excessive monitoring, emphasizing the need to strike a balance between privacy concerns and the necessity of monitoring to ensure internet accessibility and fairness.

Pranav from the Internet Society Foundation is dedicated to empowering youth ambassadors and early and mid-career professionals through training programs. These programs provide free courses that cover both technical aspects of the internet and policy-related issues. By equipping young individuals with the necessary skills and knowledge, Pranav aims to create a new generation of internet leaders.

The challenges faced in financing community development and training programs are acknowledged, with a volunteer community struggling to maintain and operate due to financial constraints. Efforts are being made to conduct webinars and seminars, but in-person meetings require a sizable budget. The need for financial support to train and develop skills in the new generation is underscored, along with exploring the potential for collaboration between industry and academia in regional settings.

Furthermore, the summary highlights the challenges of achieving digital inclusion in authoritarian regimes. Foreign donor restrictions are seen as a significant barrier to securing funding for humanitarian work in such regimes, while effectively presenting the impact of these initiatives poses an additional difficulty.

The importance of measuring impact for continued support is emphasized, although funding for impact measurement itself remains a challenge. Donors increasingly seek evidence of impact, particularly for technology tools, prompting the need to develop effective measurement tools. However, writing impact reports can be burdensome for smaller organizations.

Lastly, there is a notable demand for small grants in community networks, particularly at the local level. Larger grants from big organizations often do not align with the specific needs of communities, leading to an inadequate supply of funding. This highlights the necessity for increased financial support to meet the demand for small grants.

In conclusion, various stakeholders and organizations are actively engaged in addressing key issues related to the internet, digital rights, and digital inclusion. While funding challenges persist, there is a shared commitment to promote sustainable industrialization, combat misinformation, bridge the digital divide, protect data, and empower marginalized communities. Efforts are also being made to strike a balance between monitoring the internet for accessibility while preserving privacy concerns. The need to measure impact and provide small grants for community networks further underlines the significance of continued support in achieving these goals.

Jenn Beard

Jenn Beard is an employee at the ISOC Foundation, where she collaborates with Brian Horlick-Cruz. The ISOC Foundation’s main focus is on the development of a stronger Internet, its growth, and the defence of its integrity. In pursuit of this, they have implemented a comprehensive portfolio of activities.

The foundation offers approximately 15 grant programmes, covering a wide range of areas such as connectivity, digital skills, and digital learning. These grant programmes play a crucial role in supporting projects that aim to improve access to the Internet, enhance digital literacy, and promote innovative approaches to online education. This demonstrates the foundation’s commitment to SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure) and SDG 4 (Quality Education).

One noteworthy aspect is the collaborative effort between Jenn Beard and Brian Horlick-Cruz. Although no specific details are provided, their partnership suggests a dynamic and efficient working environment within the foundation.

The analysis indicates a generally positive sentiment towards both Jenn Beard and her contributions to the ISOC Foundation. As an employee involved in the foundation’s grant programmes, Jenn Beard plays a significant role in advancing its initiatives. Her work directly contributes to building a stronger Internet, fostering its growth, and defending it from potential threats. These efforts align with the foundation’s mission and its positive impact on society.

In conclusion, Jenn Beard’s work at the ISOC Foundation, in collaboration with Brian Horlick-Cruz, encompasses various grant programmes that aim to improve Internet accessibility, digital skills, and digital learning. The positive sentiment surrounding her and her contributions further emphasise the foundation’s commitment to creating a better digital future.

Alessia Zucchetti

LACNIC, the organisation dedicated to promoting digital innovation in Latin America and the Caribbean, offers several programs to support industry, innovation, and infrastructure in the region. One of its primary initiatives is FRIDA, the Fund for Digital Innovation in Latin America and the Caribbean. FRIDA has been in operation for almost two decades, demonstrating LACNIC’s commitment to fostering and nurturing digital innovation in the region.

In addition to FRIDA, LACNIC also prioritises applied research in various areas such as network architecture, internet stability, and security. By focusing on research in these fields, LACNIC aims to contribute to the development and improvement of the digital infrastructure, ensuring stability and security for online activities in Latin America and the Caribbean.

LACNIC’s dedication extends beyond innovation and research. The organisation recognises the importance of capacity building and aims to promote the participation of women in the technical community and the wider internet ecosystem. Through its programs, LACNIC provides opportunities for individuals to enhance their skills and knowledge and contributes to a more diverse and inclusive digital landscape.

LACNIC’s initiatives are aligned with various United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 4 (Quality Education), and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities). This positive sentiment is reflected in LACNIC’s ongoing commitment to supporting digital innovation, applied research, capacity building, and gender equality.

In conclusion, LACNIC plays a vital role in promoting digital innovation and enhancing the digital landscape in Latin America and the Caribbean. Through the FRIDA grant program, focus on applied research, capacity building, and women’s participation, LACNIC supports industry, innovation, and infrastructure, contributing to the achievement of several SDGs. This ensures sustainable and inclusive progress in the region’s digital era.

Percival Henriques

Percival Henriquez, a distinguished board member at the Internet Committee and NIC.BR, is known for his expertise in internet governance in Brazil. NIC.BR, short for Núcleo de Informação e Coordenação do Ponto BR, is responsible for administering and managing internet domain names ending with “.br” in Brazil.

As a board member, Henriquez plays a crucial role in formulating policies and making strategic decisions to ensure the smooth functioning and development of the internet in Brazil. This includes overseeing domain name registrations, managing technical infrastructure, and addressing any issues or challenges that arise.

The Internet Committee and NIC.BR’s role is significant, as the internet has become an essential tool for communication, commerce, and innovation. The committee’s efforts to manage and regulate domain names contribute to maintaining a secure and reliable online environment for individuals and businesses.

Henriquez’s position highlights his expertise in internet governance and his commitment to advancing the internet ecosystem in Brazil. He is likely involved in discussions and decision-making processes related to internet policies, technical standards, and cybersecurity.

Having a dedicated and knowledgeable individual like Henriquez on the board ensures that NIC.BR remains at the forefront of technological advancements and effectively addresses emerging challenges in the dynamic digital landscape.

Overall, Percival Henriquez’s role as a board member at the Internet Committee and NIC.BR underscores Brazil’s commitment to promoting internet accessibility, security, and innovation. His contributions in shaping internet policies and strategies will have a significant impact on the development of the internet in Brazil.

Yoshiki Uchida

Yoshiki Uchida, a student at Keio University, actively participates in the White Project, an initiative that complements his studies on the Internet. The White Project, established by Professor Jim Ryan 37 years ago, is vital to Uchida’s academic journey. His involvement demonstrates a commitment to exploring and advancing knowledge in the field of Internet studies.

Uchida also expresses a keen interest in supporting the APNIC Foundation in the near future. The APNIC Foundation focuses on promoting partnerships to achieve global goals. Uchida’s intention reflects his dedication to contributing to these goals.

The evidence confirms Uchida’s involvement and interest. Uchida’s affiliation with Keio University and engagement with the White Project exemplify his commitment to quality education, a key aspect addressed in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Additionally, Uchida’s positive sentiment towards the APNIC Foundation indicates his willingness to engage in partnership goals and contribute to global progress.

In conclusion, Yoshiki Uchida’s academic pursuits at Keio University are enriched through his involvement with the White Project, aligning with his studies on the Internet. Furthermore, his expressed interest in supporting the APNIC Foundation demonstrates his commitment to partnerships for achieving global goals. Uchida’s dedication and positive sentiment towards both initiatives highlight his intention to make a meaningful impact in the field of Internet studies and contribute to broader sustainable development initiatives.

Moderator – Silvia Cadena

The APNIC Foundation, known for its work in supporting the development priorities of APNIC, is organising an event specifically for organisations that are investing in development. The purpose of this event is to foster collaboration among these organisations by providing them with the opportunity to find common ground and explore possible collaborations.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the APNIC Foundation used to host similar events, showcasing its commitment to bringing organisations together. This upcoming event aims to continue this tradition virtually, ensuring that despite geographical limits, opportunities to collaborate and cross borders are still present. It highlights the importance of open discussions and encourages organisations to engage in conversations surrounding their projects and potential collaborations.

One notable approach taken by the APNIC Foundation is to allow the fund-allocating organisations to speak first. This sets the stage for an informal conversation where participating organisations can share details about their projects. By giving each organisation an opportunity to present their initiatives, the event aims to create an environment conducive to collaboration and knowledge sharing.

Collaboration and co-funding are key elements of the APNIC Foundation’s strategy to increase the footprint of their work. The foundation actively seeks opportunities to collaborate with other organisations and invest in joint initiatives. By pooling resources and expertise, they aim to have a greater impact on various development priorities.

Silvia Cadena, a strong advocate for collaboration, emphasizes the importance of engaging with organizations that are investing in technical infrastructure and the technical community. Recognising the challenges faced by network engineers and cybersecurity professionals in gaining support from traditional donors, Cadena highlights the role of the APNIC Foundation in providing grants, fellowships, awards, and research support for such initiatives. This demonstrates the foundation’s commitment to supporting technical projects and fostering collaboration within the technical community.

In addition to supporting technical initiatives, the APNIC Foundation also focuses on programmes that address inclusion, infrastructure, and knowledge. Their efforts are aimed at keeping the Internet open, stable, and accessible. The foundation allocates IP addresses and ASN numbers across 56 economies in the Asia Pacific, solidifying its impact on the industry of innovation and infrastructure. Since its establishment in 2016, the APNIC Foundation has been actively implementing projects in various areas, including education, gender and diversity, and community building and strengthening.

In conclusion, the APNIC Foundation is hosting an event to bring together organisations investing in development. With a focus on collaboration, the event aims to facilitate open discussions, promote knowledge sharing, and explore potential collaborations. The foundation’s emphasis on co-funding, cross-border collaboration, and engagement with the technical community showcases its commitment to expanding its work and supporting the development priorities of APNIC. By supporting initiatives across inclusion, infrastructure, and knowledge, the APNIC Foundation plays a vital role in keeping the Internet accessible and stable.

Valerie Frissen

Valerie Frissen is the director of SIDN Fund, a separate foundation funded by the Dutch National Registry. The fund focuses on supporting initiatives that promote responsible internet use and raise awareness. Its main aim is to empower end users, enabling them to make the most of the internet while also being aware of the potential risks and challenges associated with it.

SIDN Fund plays a crucial role in supporting projects that contribute to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education and Sustainable Development Goal 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure. By investing in initiatives that encourage responsible internet use, the fund helps to create a safer and more inclusive online space that benefits individuals and society as a whole.

Valerie Frissen strongly advocates for cooperation with other funding organizations to increase the impact of SIDN Fund’s initiatives. Recognizing the importance of collaboration, the fund actively engages with other funders in the Netherlands and international organizations. This collaboration allows them to pool resources and expertise, enabling them to implement larger-scale projects and reach a wider audience.

One notable example of this collaboration is SIDN Fund’s participation in a large conference in Brussels. This conference serves as a platform for bringing together digital rights funders from both Europe and beyond. By participating in such events, the fund not only learns from the experiences and insights of others but also shares its own knowledge and expertise. This ultimately contributes to a more coordinated and effective approach to digital rights funding.

In conclusion, as the director of SIDN Fund, Valerie Frissen emphasizes the importance of responsible internet use and raising awareness among end users. The fund’s support for projects in these areas contributes to the achievement of global development objectives. Through collaboration with other funders and active participation in conferences, the fund ensures a more comprehensive and impactful approach to advancing digital rights.

Garcia Ramilo

Garcia Ramilo is employed by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) in a significant role overseeing a membership network that spans 40 countries. The APC is dedicated to promoting the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG17: Partnership for the Goals. This underscores their commitment to fostering collaborations and partnerships to address global challenges.

In terms of resource allocation within the network, an interesting aspect is the sharing of resources through various means. A notable approach is through regranting, whereby resources are distributed based on the network’s priorities. This enables the APC to effectively support its members and partners in their initiatives. Moreover, the network also engages in capacity building and research, empowering members to enhance their skills and knowledge to drive positive change in their respective communities. Collaboration is another key aspect of resource sharing, as the APC actively works with members and partners to ensure resources are maximised and beneficial for all involved.

An intriguing aspect of the APC’s resource allocation strategy is that approximately half of the resources are directed towards its members, while the remaining 50% is allocated to different partners. This balanced distribution ensures that both the needs of members and external partners are met, reinforcing the network’s commitment to reducing inequalities (SDG10) and fostering partnerships to achieve global goals (SDG17).

In conclusion, Garcia Ramilo plays a crucial role within the Association for Progressive Communications, managing a membership network across 40 countries. The network places importance on resource sharing through regranting, capacity building, research, and collaborations. Roughly half of the resources are directed towards members, with the remaining 50% allocated to partners. Through these efforts, the APC aims to address global challenges, reduce inequalities, and foster partnerships to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

Changho Kim

In his presentation, Changho Kim, representing the Open Society Foundation’s East Asia Program, provided a comprehensive insight into their work supporting civil society organizations, with a specific focus on Northeast Asia. Northeast Asia includes China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan.

Kim emphasized that the Open Society Foundation’s East Asia Program aims to provide support and resources to civil society organizations operating in these regions. These organizations play a crucial role in fostering transparency, accountability, and the protection of human rights.

The Open Society Foundation recognizes the value of civil society organizations in promoting democratic governance, advocating for social justice, and challenging systemic inequalities. Through financial grants, capacity-building initiatives, and strategic partnerships, the program enables these organizations to undertake projects, research, and advocacy efforts that address pressing issues in their respective societies.

Within Northeast Asia, the program seeks to address diverse challenges that vary across the countries in the region. In China, civil society organizations face numerous restrictions and obstacles due to the government’s tight control over civil liberties. However, the program seeks to support these organizations in their fight for social justice, human rights, and the rule of law.

In Hong Kong, recent political developments have highlighted the importance of safeguarding civil society space. The Open Society Foundation’s East Asia Program plays a vital role in providing resources and support to organizations working to protect freedom of expression, assembly, and association in the face of increasing restrictions.

Taiwan, on the other hand, offers a relatively more open environment for civil society organizations. The program aims to enhance the capacity of these organizations to advocate for progressive reforms and social change, particularly in areas such as gender equality, LGBTQ+ rights, and environmental sustainability.

South Korea, a vibrant democracy, faces its unique challenges, including labor rights, democratic participation, and social inclusion. The program supports civil society organizations in their efforts to address these issues and promote good governance, social cohesion, and inclusive policies.

Finally, in Japan, civil society organizations face challenges related to democratic participation, minority rights, and refugee protection. The program works to empower these organizations, enabling them to advance human rights, social justice, and democratic values.

In conclusion, Changho Kim’s presentation highlighted the Open Society Foundation’s East Asia Program’s critical role in supporting civil society organizations across Northeast Asia. Through its financial, capacity-building, and collaborative initiatives, the program aims to empower these organizations in their pursuit of social change, human rights protection, and democratic governance. By addressing country-specific challenges and fostering cross-border collaboration, the program seeks to contribute to a more inclusive, just, and democratic Northeast Asia.

Michel Lambert

Michel Lambert is a member of Equality, a Canadian organisation dedicated to advancing freedom online. Equality focuses on creating open-source tools and services that aid in the support of this cause. Their work aims to counteract the concept of “splinternets” and promote internet freedom for all.

In addition to their tool development, Equality also extends support to smaller organisations, small businesses, and individual developers. Over the past two years, Equality has actively provided assistance to these entities. Their support encompasses a range of areas, such as helping smaller organisations gain the resources and guidance needed to develop new technology against the splinternets. Notably, Equality extends its support to both small businesses and individual developers, recognising their role in technological advancements.

The new technologies fostered by Equality cover various aspects, with a particular focus on virtual private networks (VPNs) and satellite technology. These innovative solutions allow users to navigate online platforms securely and overcome the obstacles posed by splinternets. By facilitating access to such technologies, Equality empowers individuals and businesses to protect their digital freedoms and fully participate in the modern interconnected world.

The sentiment expressed towards Equality is overwhelmingly positive. The speakers involved in discussing this topic emphasised the importance of Equality’s work in promoting internet freedom and supporting technological innovation. Equality’s commitment to open-source development and its focus on supporting smaller organisations and developers highlight its dedication to fostering an inclusive and free digital space.

In conclusion, Michel Lambert collaborates with Equality, a Canadian organisation at the forefront of championing internet freedom. Their creation of open-source tools and services, along with their support for smaller organisations and developers, demonstrates their commitment to combatting the concept of splinternets. Equality’s efforts play a crucial role in ensuring digital rights and fostering technological innovation worldwide.

Paul Byron Wilson

Paul Byron Wilson, the head of APNIC (Asia-Pacific Network Information Centre) and a trustee in the Internet Development Trust, is a notable figure in internet connectivity and development. He plays a significant role in advancing the internet infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific region. Wilson’s work includes supporting high-bandwidth connections for research and education networks in the Pacific, contributing to SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure) and SDG 4 (Quality Education). The Internet Development Trust funds projects of the APNIC Foundation, including the ISF-Asia grants, promoting innovation and infrastructure development. Wilson’s involvement with ArenaPAC further demonstrates his dedication to creating high-bandwidth connections in the Pacific for enhanced education and research collaboration. Overall, Wilson’s leadership and involvement highlight his commitment to driving progress in internet connectivity and the promotion of quality education in the Asia-Pacific region.

Hirochika Asai

The White Project, founded 37 years ago by Professor Jim Ryan, is a renowned research consortium that focuses on conducting research and promoting educational activities. The project places a strong emphasis on collaboration between academia and industry. Hirochika Asai, a representative of the White Project, highlights the importance of this collaboration and its benefits for both sectors. This partnership enables the exchange of knowledge, expertise, and resources, leading to innovative breakthroughs and advancements across various fields.

One notable achievement of the White Project is the operation of ArenaPAC, a high-capacity submarine cable infrastructure dedicated to facilitating research and education. ArenaPAC serves as a crucial communication channel, connecting scientists, researchers, and educators, and enabling them to share data. Its significance is highlighted by Paul, who cites it as a remarkable achievement.

Additionally, the White Project recognizes research and education as vital for driving the future global acceleration of human activities, particularly in scientific research. They firmly believe that investment in these areas is essential to achieve long-term sustainable development goals. By fostering strong partnerships between academia, industry, and educational institutions, the White Project aims to create an environment that encourages innovation, knowledge exchange, and technological advancements.

In conclusion, the White Project, led by Professor Jim Ryan, is a reputable research consortium that conducts research and promotes educational activities. Through its collaboration between academia and industry, it has successfully facilitated the exchange of knowledge and resources. The operation of ArenaPAC, a high-capacity submarine cable infrastructure, supports research and education. The White Project recognizes the importance of research and education in the future acceleration of global human activities, particularly in scientific research. By continuing to foster collaborations and invest in these areas, it strives to achieve sustainable development goals and advancements in various fields.

Ellisha Heppner

Ellisha Heppner is the grants management lead for the APNIC Foundation. Her role involves overseeing the administration and distribution of grants, ensuring they are aligned with the foundation’s goals. One of the key programs she manages is the ISF-Asia grants, which follows a competitive process and accepts proposals on an annual basis. These grants focus on promoting projects related to infrastructure, inclusion, and knowledge.

The ISF-Asia grants are instrumental in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations. They contribute to SDG 9, which focuses on industry, innovation, and infrastructure, SDG 4, which aims to ensure quality education, and SDG 10, which aims to reduce inequalities. Through these grants, the APNIC Foundation actively supports sustainable development and social progress.

In addition to the broad themes of infrastructure, inclusion, and knowledge, the APNIC Foundation provides specific funding for projects related to IPv6 and environmental sustainability. This is made possible through the Ian Peter grant, which aligns with SDG 9 and SDG 13, focused on climate action. By offering dedicated funding for these areas, the foundation promotes the adoption of IPv6 and the development of environmental solutions.

Ellisha Heppner’s role as grants management lead is vital in ensuring the effective distribution of grants in line with the foundation’s objectives. Her expertise and oversight critically contribute to the selection of promising proposals and the meaningful impact of awarded grants in the Asia-Pacific region.

In summary, Ellisha Heppner plays a key role at the APNIC Foundation as the grants management lead. Under her supervision, the ISF-Asia grants focus on infrastructure, inclusion, and knowledge, while also supporting specific areas such as IPv6 and environmental projects. Through these grants, the APNIC Foundation contributes to the achievement of SDGs and promotes sustainable development in the region.

Brian Horlick-Cruz

Brian Horlick-Cruz manages grant programs at the Internet Society Foundation, with a focus on community-oriented funding initiatives. These programs contribute to the achievement of SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, as well as SDG 17: Partnership for the Goals.

In his role, Brian supports a broad range of technical communities, including network operator groups and national research and education networks. This involvement highlights his commitment to fostering collaboration and innovation within the industry. By providing resources and support, Brian ensures the growth and contributions of these technical communities to industry advancement and infrastructure development.

Brian’s impact extends beyond technical communities, as he also coordinates programs for Internet Society chapters and the National and Regional Internet governance forums. These platforms serve as arenas for discussions, knowledge sharing, and policy formulation that shape the future of the internet. Under Brian’s guidance, these programs facilitate the exchange of ideas and the development of strong governance frameworks.

Overall, Brian Horlick-Cruz’s work as a grant program manager at the Internet Society Foundation is highly regarded. The sentiment towards him and his contributions is generally positive and neutral, reflecting the significant impact he has made in the field of grant management and community support.

In summary, Brian Horlick-Cruz manages community-oriented grant programs at the Internet Society Foundation. He supports various technical communities, internet governance forums, and Internet Society chapters. His efforts contribute to advancing industry, innovation, infrastructure, and achieving sustainable development goals. Brian’s positive and neutral sentiment reflects the value and esteem he has earned in his role.

Janne Hirvonen

Finland has been actively funding the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) since 2006, contributing a total of approximately 2 million USD. However, there are concerns regarding the current financing of the IGF, suggesting that the existing financial arrangements may not be sufficient. The specific points of concern have not been specified, but there is a negative sentiment associated with the current situation.

On the other hand, there is support for upscaling efforts to ensure the long-term sustainability of the IGF. The call for upscaling is motivated by the recognition of the crucial role that the IGF plays in fulfilling its UN mandate. The IGF is seen as a platform that promotes dialogue and cooperation among various stakeholders to effectively address the complexities of internet governance.

To secure the sustainability of the IGF, it is suggested to explore unconventional means of financing beyond the traditional methods. This would involve fostering an environment that is open to suggestions and innovations in terms of financial support. By encouraging new approaches to funding, it is believed that the IGF can address the existing concerns and ensure its continued operation.

In conclusion, Finland has been a significant contributor to the IGF’s funding for over a decade. However, concerns have been raised regarding the current financing situation, prompting the need for upscaling efforts to ensure the long-term sustainability of the IGF. Exploring unconventional means of financing and recognizing the crucial role of the IGF in fulfilling its UN mandate are highlighted as important strategies to address these concerns and secure the future of the IGF.

Keywords: Internet Governance Forum, IGF funding, Finland, financing, sustainability, stakeholders, dialogue, cooperation, UN mandate.

Moderator – Silvia Cadena:
We have the okay? Thank you. I was just going to say we are having some technical issues, but apparently they have been resolved. Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Silvia. I am the acting CEO of the APNIC Foundation. APNIC is really proud and the Foundation is really proud to host this event again after COVID and a few ones that we missed. But before COVID, we used to try and do this with organizations that were investing in development to try and find some common ground and try to get to know each other, what our priorities are, and how can we find ways to collaborate or at least don’t feel that alone in the field when we are supporting our communities. So we are very happy to host you today. It is going to be a very informal conversation where we hope that organizations that are across the room that are some that we know and some that we don’t know will take the microphone and share about the projects that they are investing in. For those of you that are receiving funding from us, I would appreciate if you let the people that are investing to talk first and we will see how we can talk about the ones that are receiving funds at a different time, I would say. I am also very happy to have with me Valerie Friesen here who has been also spearheading a similar approach to those that have been investing in, you know, from the domain name industry, also foundations and organizations that are allocating funds to support internet development. So there are a number of different organizations and initiatives. So for us at the foundation, we are always looking at opportunities to co-fund and collaborate and make the footprint of what we are doing bigger. And although in some areas some of you have geographical limits about where your funds can go, same for us. We only cover Asia Pacific 56 economies. There are opportunities where we can cross, you know, borders and collaborate. So I will pass the mic to Valerie to introduce herself a little bit and then we will do around the table introduction, a very short, just focusing on who are you, your priorities and, you know, the organization that you represent. And then we will continue with the session. Thank you, Valerie.

Valerie Frissen:
Okay. Well, very happy to be here. Thank you, Sylvia, for organizing this. I’m working in the Netherlands as a director of SIDN Fund. And SIDN is the Dutch National Registry which founded a separate foundation to fund all kinds of initiatives and organizations that try to work on developing a responsible internet, as we call it. So we are funding particularly projects that are sort of empowering end users in terms of educating them to use and to know everything that is necessary about responsible use of the internet and awareness building kind of projects. We also cooperate a lot with other funders in the Netherlands and actually also with international organizations. Actually, at the moment, there’s a large conference in Brussels that is bringing together all the digital right funders from Europe and from outside of Europe where my colleague is participating now. And I think there are many of the registries, the domain name registries that also have public interest programs or community building programs or separate funds that are working in a similar way as we are. And this would be really interesting to cooperate.

Moderator – Silvia Cadena:
Thank you, Valerie. Valerie is also hosting a similar event at the ICANN meeting in Hamburg in a few weeks. Very informal. Who’s there? Just meet me after the meeting and we can see whether we can meet at the ICANN. Yeah. So we are trying to figure out a more regular calendar so that we can have a chat and see what our priorities are. On that note, I’m going to just mention very briefly what the APNIC Foundation also invest on. So we are the fundraising arm of APNIC. APNIC allocates IP addresses and ASN numbers across 56 economies in the Asia Pacific. And we have established a foundation in 2016 to support increased investment in the development priorities of APNIC to keep the Internet open, stable, reliable and secure in the region, but also to make it affordable and accessible. So the foundation is a fundraising foundation. And we are very lucky to have the support from the Asia Pacific Internet Development Trust at the moment. And we have one of the trustees here with us that will address us in a minute. And I think the kind of work that we are doing is to support programs across inclusion, infrastructure and knowledge. We have grants, fellowships, awards, research support, and we implement also projects directly across education, gender and diversity, and community building and community strengthening. So it’s kind of like a large portfolio that we are doing. And we’re trying to collaborate more, especially with the foundations and organizations that are investing in technical infrastructure and technical community as that part of the investment is very ignored, let’s say, by the normal donors as they tend to focus more on end users and digital literacy, safety, things like that. So getting support for network engineers and cybersecurity professionals is quite hard. So with that, I will pass on to my colleague, Alicia, here, who is the grants management lead of our main mechanism for funding to the community. And then we can get the rolling mic to start probably from Paul, this way, and we’ll see how it goes.

Ellisha Heppner:
Yes. Hello, everyone. I’m Alicia Hittner. I’m the grants management lead. My portfolio that I look after under the APNIC Foundation is the ISF-Asia grants, which is a competitive process called for proposals once a year that we look to fund in infrastructure, inclusion and knowledge. And we also have some subsets, which is IPv6, which is important to us, and also the environment with our Ian Peter grant.

Paul Byron Wilson:
Thanks, Sylvia. Hi, everyone. I’m Paul Wilson. I’m the head of APNIC, which I think Sylvia has already described very well. We also are trustees in an Internet Development Trust, which is funding projects of the APNIC Foundation and also an academic networking backbone in the Pacific that’s called ArenaPAC, and it’s establishing high-bandwidth connections to create a research and education network backbone around the Pacific at the moment. Thanks.

Brian Horlick-Cruz:
Hey, everyone. My name is Brian Horlick-Cruz. I’m a grants manager at the Internet Society Foundation. We run a whole big set of different grant programs funding many different kinds of initiatives. I work on a portfolio that mainly consists of sort of a community-oriented grant funding programs, so running a program for chapters of the Internet Society or running a program for the NRIs, so national and regional Internet governance forums, as well as a whole variety of different technical communities, including things like network operator groups, national research and education networks, things of that sort, and I’ll pass it on to our program officer, Jen Beard.

Jenn Beard:
Thanks. My name is Jen Beard. I’m also at the ISOC Foundation working on the things that Brian described, but also our full portfolio deals with building a stronger Internet, growing the Internet, and defending the Internet, so all of those different things we run about 15 grant programs that range from connectivity all the way to digital skills, digital learning, and, yeah, it’s great to be here with you all.

Garcia Ramilo:
Hello. I’m Chad Garcia-Ramelow. I’m from the Association for Progressive Communications. We’re a membership network, and we are in about 40 countries with our members. The grants, we’re not a grantee. We’re not a donor. We’re not a funding organization, but we do share resources, and the way we do this is through in many different ways, so we do regrant, and the regranting really goes to the priorities of the network. So one of them, it ranges from human rights-related to connectivity, community-centered connectivity, and Carlos can speak more about that and also Eric. One of the things, we do different things. It can be about capacity building. It can be about research, and much of it, about half of it, I’d say maybe would go to our members, but the 50% then goes to different partners. And sometimes it’s through open calls. Sometimes it’s through really working with a group of members or partners to collaborate on sharing the resources.

Alessia Zucchetti:
Hello, everyone. My name is Alessia Zucchetti. I am the coordinator of research and cooperation at LACNIC, which is the Latin American and the Caribbean registry. And, well, in the case of LACNIC, we also have the main grant is called FRIDA. It’s the Fund for Digital Innovation in Latin America and the Caribbean, which has existed since, well, for the past almost 20 years, so as long as LACNIC almost. And apart from that, we also are focused in applied research, mainly in technical topics related with network architecture, Internet stability, security, among other fields. And we also have, well, different programs that are focused mainly in capacity building, in favoring the participation of women in the technical community and the Internet ecosystem at large as well in the region. And, well, I’m very glad to be here with all of you. Thank you.

Changho Kim:
My name is Changho Kim. I work for Open Society Foundation’s East Asia Program. Yeah, we provide support for the mainly for the civil society organization. I’m only covering the Northeast Asia side, meaning China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan. Thank you.

Percival Henriques:
Hello, everybody. I am Percival Henriquez from Brazil. I’m a board member at the Internet Committee and NIC.BR. Thank you.

Laura Conde Tresca:
Hello. My name is Laura Tresca. I’m also a board member of the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee. And the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee funds some AI centers in Brazil. And we have some small fellowships for women to write papers. And also we support small events on Internet governance.

Michel Lambert:
Hi. My name is Michel Lambert. I’m working with an organization called Equality based in Canada. We are creating, actually, tools and services, open source tools and services to support freedom online. We have started in the last two years to support smaller organizations, smaller business, even individual developers, creating new technology to counter the splinter nets. So all kinds of new, could be VPNs or satellite technology, whatever, just to make sure that people can access to content when there are some issues at that level.

Moderator – Silvia Cadena:
Can we continue with the gentleman over there? Thank you so much for doing the rolling microphone yourselves.

Charles Noir:
Hello, everybody. My name is Charles Noir. And I come from, I’m the Vice President of Community Investment Policy and Advocacy at CIRA, which is the Canadian Internet Registration Authority, .ca. We operate the .ca ccTLD. Part of what we do is we have a granting program. Amongst other ways, we give back. We’re focused on nonprofits, registered charities, academics, universities, colleges, and indigenous communities with a particular focus on northern remote and indigenous as of late. And so that’s part of what we do. We also invest in free or producing free services, for example, cybersecurity services that Canadians can use in order to help protect themselves online. We also provide and build some services so they can test their online Internet performance in a way that is third-party and neutral so they can hold telcos to account for the speeds they’re getting. But that’s about that.

Janne Hirvonen:
Hello. My name is Janne Hedronen. I’m representing the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I took the seat on the table, as all the others also. Certainly our focus here is on IGF and funding the IGF. Ever since 2006, we’ve been funding IGF. Altogether, we’re at some 2 million euros, U.S. dollars, actually, as they counted. So our focus has been in the mandate of the IGF, what has been given by the UN resolution to it in the very beginning. Certainly we are open for suggestions also beyond IGF. What I’ve been hearing, what sort of discussions we’ve been having during this time here in Kyoto, I’m a bit concerned, I must admit, regarding the financing of the IGF. I hope that all the participants in these discussions take this concern seriously. I think it’s about time for us all to step up our efforts in this regard and ensure that the IGF has enough resources to fulfill its mandate. Thanks.

Audience:
Hi. I’m from the IO Foundation. I sat on the table thinking that it was about participants, and all of a sudden I’m just surrounded by people who give money. I cannot give money, I’m sorry. So our organization works on data-centric digital rights, and part of the project we’ve been involved in has been formulating this data-centric digital rights framework, as well as other projects to support the technical community in what we regard as their role as next generation of rights defenders. Thank you.

Carlos Rey Moreno:
Thank you very much. Here with Eric Huerta from Raisomatica. My name is Carlos Rey Moreno from APC, and together we coordinate the LockNet initiative. We do a lot of regranting, as Chad was mentioning before, in particular in relation to community-centered connectivity initiatives and creating an enabling environment that goes from strengthening organizations that are involved in the topic, building their capacity through national schools of community networks, and supporting policy and regulatory analysis or research on the topic to organizations at the national level, technology development, as well as creating skills or building skills and creating safe spaces for women to upskill their knowledge in technology as well as in regulation that has to do with the Internet. Thank you.

Hirochika Asai:
Good afternoon, everybody. I’m Hirochika Asai from White Project. Everyone calls me Panda because it’s easier to pronounce. I’m from White Project. White Project was founded 37 years ago by Professor Jim Ryan. The White Project is a kind of research consortium among the industry and academia. We are more focusing on the research and educational activities. We are now operating the ArenaPAC that is mentioned by Paul. That is their high-capacity submarine cable infrastructure for the research and education. I think the research and education is becoming more important for the future global acceleration for the human activities, including the scientific research. I want to contribute to that activity. Thank you very much. Nice to meet you.

Yoshiki Uchida:
Hello, everyone. I’m Yoshiki Uchida. People call me Uchiyoshi. Please call me Uchiyoshi. Now I’m studying the Internet at Keio University and the White Project. I’m interested in the APNIC Foundation. I want to support the APNIC Foundation in the near future. Thank you.

Audience:
Hello. We’re in the back row. I wasn’t expecting to say anything. My name is Gonaleia Sprink. I’m the chair of the Internet Society Accessibility Standing Group. I’m a partner with the Dynamic Coalition on Accessibility and Disability. and DCAD, as it’s called, has received funding through Vint Cerf to have travel support for persons with disability to be able to participate at the IGF, and I’m playing a mentoring role in doing that, because we feel that there needs to be more of a disability voice at the IGF. Thank you. Hello, everybody. My name is Amjad. I work for an NGO in North Africa, we are focusing mainly on digital rights and policies. I’m based in Tripoli, Libya, but we are working in the whole region, advocating on digital rights issues and trying to support activists on the ground, and also working on the policy level. Thank you. Hi, good afternoon, everyone. I am Glyndel Montarde. I am from CivisNet Foundation. CivisNet is an NGO. It focuses on serving the government through providing digital transformation through software and system development using open source systems, or open source softwares. However, we want to serve our country through our social corporate responsibility, and we’re looking for funds so that we could also empower the underserved and unconnected islands in the Philippines, knowing that we have more than 7,000 islands. And presently, we actually have a project with APNIC Foundation. Thank you. Hi, everyone. I’m Yuka Shori-Kataoka. Currently, I’m here today as a representative of APNG, Asia Pacific Next Generation. And also to train and develop a young leader in AP region. So I’ve been working as a language instructor and also educational practitioner. So currently, I graduated Keio University from Junmurai Laboratory. And also, I had a collaboration with WIDO Project and the Soy Asia Internet Project. So I’m really interested in this discussion during this APNIC meeting. So yeah, nice to talk to you. So yeah, nice meeting you. Thank you. Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Elsa Odron from CBSNet Foundation, Philippines, together with my colleague, Glenda. I think she already mentioned about the foundation. Are we introducing ourselves? Yes. Okay. Especially if you’re donors, if you are recipients. No, you don’t. You don’t. But say your name. I’m Heidi Rogers, and I work with the Tool Project. Thank you. Hello, everyone. My name is Zoe Thong-Bakhelemi. I work at Internews. We are both a funder and a recipient of funder in this space. I am on the platform accountabilities team. And this year, we actually launched a very small grant pool for APNIC Foundation. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. And I’m very happy to be here. So, welcome, everyone. My name is Zoe Thong-Bakhelemi. I’m a donor. I’m a recipient of funder in this space. I am on the platform accountabilities team. And this year, we actually launched a very small grant pool that I’m overseeing called a platform impacts fund, where we’re funding micro-grants to independent researchers based in the majority world researching and collecting mostly evidence-based collections on platform impacts within their communities. I’m especially interested in funding independent researchers or journalists or human rights defenders who are not affiliated with classic institutions, who have difficulty accessing funding for this specific type of work. So please, if you’re working in this area, I will be really happy to connect with you. Okay, I’m Nenad Orlic. I’m from Serbian registry. And basically, registry supports different projects, mainly in the scope of research and market development in Serbia. Thank you very much. Do you have, sorry, you can start over there. And if you, I know we have a few more people on the back, and that will be the end of the initial introductions. Okay. If you could. Hi, everyone. My name is Carla, and I am helping my friend Raimundo to tell about what he works in the Amazon region. I come from the Amazon region as well. Let me see, friend. But Raimundo is a Quilombola person who comes from the Maranhão, that is a state located in Brazil region. And he’s come from the radio and the TV Quilombo organization about communication that comes from popular demand in the Brazil, who fights against, who fights with the digital rights and against the violations in the communities using the internet as a tool to face this challenge. And me, I am Carla Braga. I am executive director from the Amazonia Youth Corporation for Sustainable Development, that is the COJOVEN. And we work with education, research, and advocacy in the Amazon region. And we developed this agenda, who is agenda about public policies, projects, and programs to face the challenge about climate change in Amazon region. And we are working with misinformation and disinformation in the Amazon region, because the deforestation and forest degradation are totally connected with this problem. And right now, we are empowering the youth to face this challenge. And we are trying to build a wave of voice that comes from the Amazon territory to talk about our own realities and face the challenge. And we are here, looking for funding and connections that can support us in this challenge. And thank you so much. Thank you. I’m Rebecca Papillo. I’m from OUDA, the .au domain administration, so we run the .au in Australia. Through the OUDA Foundation, we run a community grants program. So, the objective of the program is to deliver grants to community programs that promote digital inclusion and digital innovation and drive benefits through the internet for particular groups of people, including regional and remote Australians, Australians living with disabilities, and Australia’s First Nations people. We’re also working on a broader grants program that we’re hoping to launch next year with longer-term partnerships. So, yeah, interested to hear what everyone else is doing. Thank you. You’re very new to your job, so welcome to this community. I’m a communications manager at OUDA, so, yeah, just here in a capacity to learn and take it back. Thank you. Good afternoon, everybody. My name is Christian Leon. I’m the secretariat of ARSUR, that is a consortium of 11 organizations working in digital rights in Latin America, and I’m also the executive director of Internet Bolivia Foundation that works in data protection, digital violences, and digital inclusion. Hi, my name is Al Smith. I’m with the TOR Project. We build privacy and anti-censorship tech. Hi, I’m Brett Solomon. I’m the executive director of Access Now. Hi, everyone. My name is Carolyn Teckett. I’m the director of campaigns and rapid response at Access Now. So Access Now is an organization focusing on defending and extending digital rights for people and communities at risk around the world. As part of that body of work, we have the Access Now grants program, which over the last five years has been able to deliver about $8 million to 120 organizations working at the very grassroots level. I think a really important aspect of that is supporting organizations that are working in digital rights, but also at the intersection of other human rights issues, whether that be gender, LGBTQ, indigenous, environmental issues, and that is a sub-granting program, so our primary funder for that grants program is SIDA, the Swedish development organization, but we’re also open to conversations about other donors that are interested in talking about sub-granting and have the opportunity to channel those resources to grassroots organizations. So yeah, nice to meet you all, and we’re happy to talk more. Yeah, good afternoon. My name is Chuck Brackett. I work for a USAID program, so I don’t give money, and I can’t take your money, but if you’re interested in working with USAID and you’re not sure how to get started, my colleague and I can talk with you about that, so if there’s anybody who doesn’t know how to approach AID. Good afternoon, everyone. I’m George Washington, also with Vistant. We’re a private US-based firm that has this contract with USAID called Digital Apex, so looking forward to speaking with you all, and we can sort of explain how the mechanism works. Thank you. Catherine Townsend, I’m wearing two hats. I work with the World Wide Web Foundation on human rights, preventing and countering online gender-based violence. Joining this session today, representing Measurement Lab, which measures the speed and quality of the internet around the world and provides the largest open data set about that. I think we do provide grants for both those organizations. My question also for this group and for those who are supporting the development of the internet is the role that Measurement Lab provides is an independent assessment of how the internet is performing and makes that public. How do we sustain that, and how do we expand that more widely? Is that a service that a nonprofit chasing funds and chasing private donations from tech platforms should be pursuing, or is that a role that a coalition of governments should be setting up who actually gets to monitor the internet? Thank you. Hello, everyone. I’m Pranav. I work with the Internet Society Foundation, and I oversee the empowerment work, and here we train youth ambassadors, early and mid-career professionals, and many of them are also at this IGF, so you can also engage with them and hear more about our work and how we do it. We also have our training and e-learning courses, where multiple courses on aspects of technical aspects of the internet and policy are available for free, and we also train them in person as well. So, happy to engage with you, understand how we can collaborate and work together. Hi, everybody. My name is Jeroen. I look after the Asia Pacific region for this organization called ICANN. We are a platform that discusses domain name policy, and we do have a grant program, which we’re going to go into three, and Dave and Alicia Marcos will facilitate the groups and

Moderator – Silvia Cadena:
take notes, and we have another group for the remote participation, but I believe it’s only one person. Two people from remote participation, so Kathleen will take care of the remote participation, and after this, the idea is that we will share our notes with you, organize a database of what we found out, also with consent of those that have agreed to share e-mails with the rest, so don’t worry, no blast spam going anywhere, and we will try to collect some additional information about your organizations and provide some additional details moving forward. So we will break. It’s just for a 15-minute conversation, and we will reconvene before the end of the hour, and I hope just you don’t run away and go to the next session just yet, just to stay for these short conversations, and we’ll see how it goes. Thank you very much. So one group in this side and one group on this side, which is easier to move.

Audience:
So this is a volunteer community to develop and train the young leaders in BP regions, so I am currently facing the financial problem to maintain and operate this group. It’s a voluntary base, but we are providing seminars and webinars throughout the year to provide educational opportunities to young generation people, and of course, senior people are also allowed to join this group and the webinar. However, we would like to meet in person, so every year, so we would like to provide some more interactive sessions such as ideas on and topics on for young generation people, so we need a certain amount of budget to have the in-person meeting. So the webinar seminar is easy to conduct, so without a budget, so only voluntary, so people’s effort, so but conducting the in-person meeting, so it needs real, yeah, real care among the budget preparation, currently, I am facing the financial challenges. So I am talking to the foundation, because like a previous meeting, foundation from this region, so but after some years, so recently I joined, and so however, the first generation of participants, so we are motivated to regenerate this group, so they got the opportunity to get a fellowship programme, they got the opportunity to study abroad and work abroad, so they would like to, the first generation of participants have the motivation to contribute, to train and develop, providing skills to the next generation of people. So I also need financial support, financial motivation, so that’s why we are trying to provide activities and activities, so however, we are talking about, I am supporting the first generation, so and also this is a good opportunity for companies and industrial areas people, because industrials have new members, so they also have, so they can also have an opportunity to discuss about the multiregional and diverse people in the region, so I think not only North Africa and Asia and maybe in the country, industrial and academia collaboration can be also facilitated. Yes, I am facing this difficulty, so we need some like a collaboration, yeah I’m talking to companies, so that’s why I am here to hear from what country, I’m from Japan, yeah but this, the AAPNG members are diverse people from other, yes other countries, majority is Asia-Pacific people, so but yeah. including the west side India, Nepal, and China, Thailand, Myanmar, and everyone is actively participating in this. Yeah, currently online meeting, but we would like to shift back to the in-person activity. So, yes, now we are trying to persuade some, yeah, to come and take a second to have a discussion, so we’re going to have a meeting. So is Chuck mentioning me, or is it actually Chuck? We’re sharing that. He said there are many other teams who would like to share the challenges, maybe related to what you’re covering. Let me just share. I’m Linda, I’m here from CPSN from Philadelphia. So since we are working as an on-the-job organization, the main problem we have since we are trying to traffic in employees who are supporting our monetary, our core operational needs. So right now, since we actually have, we presently have a grant from the Internet Foundation, which is, we run it for 12 months, one year, and we cannot just wait for that one year to finish without having our senior teams and clients involved, so I do it first. So, right now, our companies are into using digital connections and are sort of eye-opening. So, mostly, those IADs don’t even have their positions. So what we provide for our present project is we provide internet connections, and of course they should be supported. And so we want to communicate initiatives to other IADs, but we are still looking for additional funds so that that can be realized. And we are also into providing, we plan to provide education and training to out-of-the-school people who are not going to even go to school, and we want to give them the opportunity to learn system administration work so that they can get a better job. And to operate their project, we also need the internet. So there are many initiatives that we’re thinking of, and same as her program. Yeah, I think that’s most of the problems for non-staff non-profit organizations. Yeah, that’s right. Adele. Thanks, Adele, for sharing that. Is there any other who would like to share something additional to what they said already? I’m going to ask Greg, I said it before. We are, when I say we, the Internet Society Accessibility and Understanding Group, focusing on disability-based training for advocates in internet governance and digital rights. And so we are planning in our mind, of course, in relation to these elements, we want to provide some sort of face-to-face workshops. We started last year in Bangladesh, and we want to continue this in the coming months. As a part of that, we have a partnership with the Asia Pacific School of Internet Governance, and that will be held in Nong at the end of November, and we’re keen to involve those with disability education. But after that, we’re very interested in any contact with disability-free organizations. It’s basically building that voice in disability, because we know that people with disabilities have an opportunity, and we are under the guidelines of the National Forum on Disability. And so we want more training in that area. And so we have a company in Bangladesh, and we also are trying to be able to develop our programs. I come from the Amazon region, and the Amazon North Cooperation for Sustainable Development is an NGO founded by the Amazon North Cooperation. What happened in my territory is that we have a lot of problems. For example, my state, that is the state of Pará, is the state who will receive the capital in 2025. And we have a lot of problems, and one of these problems is that the state of Pará is two times larger than France, for example. And we don’t have public policies to face the challenges of the region in our territory. And in the same moment, we are facing a lot of problems that come from the impacts of the climate change. So one of these problems that is starting to correlate to the climate change is the problem about misinformation and disinformation in our territories. And for example, the problem about misinformation and disinformation are causing a big mess in our democracy. And we are using capacities of the youth to try to build public policies that can be sensitive to our reality and when I develop this agenda, as I told you before. And one of the impacts of this agenda, for example, is that right now in the state of Pará, we have a public policy that is about the digital inclusion. And this comes from a hard process of advocacy. This is the agenda, it’s been important as an organization for the Amazon region. And our main problem is also about funding, and it’s about the people who know about our existence. We have a historical problem about the Amazon, that when we saw people talking about the Amazon, usually it’s not talking about the Amazon region, but it comes from our voices. And this is because there is no crystallized situation about what we are living in our territory, about our challenge. And right now we are empowering these voices to build the challenge and to try to build confidence to the people about where we are living and that we need to work on the policies and projects about education to bring us here, like I’m here right now, telling everybody about the problems that we are facing. And… I’m sorry for the bad English. It’s very well explained. So, is there anyone from the industry, from the funders here, I’d like to hear a little bit about what kind of approach and what do they need to apply or at least know a little bit more about those challenges? I think it depends on what kind of foundation or organization or some organization that are more open for the application process. Through the intermediary goals, I don’t believe that they are just receiving applications let’s say like once a year, and once a year and just look through and decide the pace of their planning. But I think in many other foundations, like us, it’s also having our own strategic priorities and in many cases, we kind of already have a number of standards and we just approach them and or we know that they are the organization having a very interesting idea and we can see that. So, in many occasions, we just approach them. I mean, of course, in some cases, you know, like confidence like this and we still have a very interesting conversation with many of the companies or the organization and that’s really kind of an opportunity. It’s quite rare for the organization which we do not know. You know, you just have soldiers and materializing funding. This is just kind of confidence. My challenge is I spend a lot of time with people especially because Asia is big. This is a confidence in a global scale. So, yeah, and I mean, I’m from a variety of countries, mainly working on like authoritarian regimes. So, I mean, let’s say we have to make this particular decision. I would just like to talk about the challenge that it is solving for the organization. I think that it’s like a very classical which organization like us are facing. And also, the other thing is, I mean, I’m not criticizing my organization but many other organizations also are now increasingly focusing on the impact of the peaceful outcome. So, that makes it quite difficult to work on authoritarian regimes. And actually, many, you know, this side is the theme for authoritarian regimes. So, let’s say, take myself, for example, like China because, you know, they are restricting all the funding for foreign donors and so on. And now, this kind of situation is happening all over the world, you know, in India now, and also in Thailand as well. So, I mean, it’s a really difficult situation because it doesn’t have circumstances that donors should be in a, and should be committed to continuing their support because they are now in a more difficult situation. But at the same time, donors also want to show, I mean, it’s more like the ego of the donor organization that shows the impact or what kind of outcome you can make through their fund. And actually, many syndicates show that, you know, our government is authoritarian regimes. So, yeah. So, that may be one of the very difficult and I think it’s very important. That’s why I think we promote society positive. You know, yeah. It’s kind of a big topic. Yeah, I also want to hear, you know, if any of you are working in a authoritarian regime, and how you, you know, how you kind of manage and present your impact. Yeah, let’s say, like, I think that’s a very good idea. It’s interesting that you bring up impact because one of our biggest challenges is getting funding to be able to measure impact, right? Donors want to see the impact, but for a technology tool, we need to build other tools to measure those things, and we need to build tools that will display that data easily. We need to build tools that will allow us to digest that information and make it accessible. So, that’s one of, actually, one of our longest-running challenges is measuring the impact of the Tor network, like, in a meaningful way that is updated and the pipelines are, you know, sustainable from a programming perspective. Because our donors really want that information, and we want to provide it to them, but we haven’t been able to find the donor that wants to help us build the pipeline that gets in between. And I really don’t know what the answer to that question is. And I’ve been with Tor for five years doing fundraising, and I’ve still never been able to really figure out how to answer that. And I also know that measuring impact and writing reports is a burden on a lot of organizations, especially small ones. I’m lucky that I get to partner with a grants manager and a project manager who write our reports, but not every organization has that. Yes, exactly. I just know that that’s a burden. But I understand the reasoning for wanting such information. Yeah, well, I think in our case, we mainly want to support the community networks. So community networks are self-sustainable. And so the first part of that is quite good. So the thing is that we have to bring them together, like supporting, actually bringing new technologies and developing new sorts of technologies. So that’s one of the challenges. But also, we have realized that most of the communities need some small grants. Because sometimes they just want the things that are at the local level, and it’s not expensive for them, so they can’t do much. But most of the grants for the big organizations are… Well, I’ve started bringing that to some organizations that have big communities. So that sometimes is a challenge. So we do some sub-granting, small granting. But we have a lot of demand for them, but we have not much money. So that’s definitely been very successful because it’s directly given to the people who work in the ground, in the projects that they want, and they have very nice projects. And it’s a variety of different things, not exactly in favor of the community, but sometimes for content development, sometimes for research. And I think that’s something that we should probably work on and think about how to get these grants and do sub-granting and small sub-granting. Sorry. Please feel free to keep the conversation. Hope you will still be able to communicate after. Yeah? You can have a directory, right? So you can still be able to exchange ideas. Did you write your name under there? It was not given to us yet. Just ask. Yes. That’s it. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Moderator – Silvia Cadena:
Thank you, everyone. We ran out of time, and they are going to kick us out of the room. So we promised to take the notes and bring them to you, but thank you very much for attending. Thank you. Thank you.