My name is Robert Hall and I am the Chair of the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) which will set policy for, and operate the .ca domain name. As well, I have been the vice-chair of the Canadian Association of Internet Providers (CAIP), Canada’s national association of ISP’s, for the last 4 years.
I have been involved in domain related activities since early 1994. I have participated in more recent activities such as the IFWP hearings, and the ICANN formation process. I have also had the pleasure of being invited to speak and offer opinion before the US Department of Commerce on what should be done with their .us domain, following a long process in Canada to determine how best to operate our own .ca domain.
Specifically in relation to ICANN, I have had the pleasure of working with Dennis Jennings on the creation of the DNSO. I also had the privilege of drafting the initial bylaws for our ccTLD constituency and submitting them to ICANN. These bylaws, together with Dennis’s and William’s documents, became the current set of bylaws we operate under today. I also currently sit on our constituencies administrative committee as the representative from North America and I am the regional rep on the wwTLD.
I believe that ICANN, and indeed the Internet, is at a very critical juncture. It is vitally important that the DNSO and the names council proceed with a mixture of both haste and caution. They must balance the need to move quickly with the necessity to carefully think through any recommendations. They must not simply allow a few special interests or loud voices to undo years of stability that the Internet has enjoyed.
As ccTLDer’s, we have been largely responsible for this stability. I feel it is important that we continue to have a strong voice in any recommendations or changes ICANN plans to make. Perhaps Dennis summed it up best with his statement “We are ICANN”. We must ensure that ICANN does what is both in the best interest of the entire Internet, as well as ccTLD’s, the backbone of the domain name system on the Internet.
If elected, I plan to do exactly this. I will represent the interests of ALL ccTLD’s on the names council. I will vigorously put fourth our comments and ideas and I will work hard within the constituency to formulate our consensus on any matters brought before the names council.
A more complete bio is available at www.echelon.ca/rob/bio.html . Should you ever have any questions for me, please feel free to direct them to me at rob@echelon.ca. I look forward to getting to know each one of you.
I respectfully ask for your support in the upcoming election.
Rob Hall.