[Chapter-delegates] Honoring Vint's and Andrew's call for diversity and bringing to ISOC and IETF

[John More]

Dave

Thanks for this call for action. I will share.

John More
ISOC-DC

> On Jun 22, 2020, at 9:46 AM, Dave Burstein via Chapter-delegates <chapter-delegates at elists.isoc.org> wrote:
> 
> Folks
> It's great that Vint's back from COVID and tweeting things like "The choice in November should be obvious to any rational voter." He's also has called for diversity and praised his company's efforts.
> 
> Nearly all the major tech companies in the US are pledging to go beyond lip service. 
> https://www.politico.com/newsletters/morning-tech/2020/06/19/juneteenth-across-the-tech-world-788661 <https://www.politico.com/newsletters/morning-tech/2020/06/19/juneteenth-across-the-tech-world-788661>
> So should we. 2/3rds of the Internet, maybe 3/4ths, is in the global South. I believe similar is true of our membership.
> 
> Andrew Sullivan sees the problem
> If we are to have any hope of listening to and hearing the voices of people who are today excluded, the first thing we need to do is include them.  
> Let us make sure, together, that the Internet is for everyone.  
> 
> The challenge for Andrew and Gonzalo is how to make it so. 9 of 12 of our board are from Europe and North America. So are 5 of 6 of the staff at our new Foundation. I know many to be honorable and able. But they, and the Internet Society, have not spoken for those who are the majority of today's Internet.
> 
> It's imperative that we who have not been excluded lead the way. 
> 
> Andrew and Gonzalo should take the lead. If they don't have the right experience, we need to immediately bring in a team.
> 
> Our most important first step is to bring the people in ISOC who have been little represented. It's unconscionable that Gonzalo and the staff blocked even minimum funding at the discretion of the chapters. That should be done immediately. Anyone on the board who doesn't understand why this should be done - or doesn't have the time to get involved - should step aside.
> 
> The second step should be to work effectively to bring the Internet to everyone. I've volunteered for two community networks and support them. But community networks are highly unlikely to reach even 3% of those unserved in the foreseeable future.
> The only proven way to connect more people is to bring down the cost of service. Almost 400 million Indians now have a 4G connection because 4 years ago Jio brought the cost under $5. India and China each have more people connected than the US or Western Europe have people. (Other work, like education, is also worthwhile. But the evidence is we haven't found the way to use that to increase connectivity. We should keep experimenting.
> What I hear from people in Asian and African telecom is very different than what I hear in the West. We should learn from those who have connected most of the most recent two billion.
> 
> The third step is to deliver on our commitment to make ISOC and IETF truly global. The data is clear on where Internet users are and we aren't. It's time to go past rhetoric.
> ----------------------
> 
> I know how many of those committed to a better ISOC have burned out in the last few years as our policy change has been gradual at best. I don't have the answers here. I'm a network geek in New York, not an African or Latin American development leader. I can be supportive. I cannot be the leader.
> 
> Please as individuals speak up. Please, board members and other ISOC IETF leaders, find ways to get more people active. 
> 
> ----------------
> 
> Almost all of us are here because we want to bring the Internet to everyone. Less than 1% of ISOC is paid staff. Let's work together to deliver what we believe in.
> 
> Dave Burstein
> 
> 
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