[cctld-nominations] Peter de Blanc's acceptance of nomination for Names Council.

["Peter de Blanc" <pdeblanc@usvi.net>]

  1. Full name of the nominee: Peter de Blanc
  2. E-mail address of the nominee: pdeblanc@usvi.net
  3. Registry of the nominee: .VI
  4. Snail-mail address (street, city, country):PO Box 1678, St. Thomas,
Virgin 	Islands,  00804
  5. The region that includes the country of which you are a citizen: NA
  6. The region that includes the country in which you reside:NA
  7. A clear statement of acceptance of the nomination:
       "I accept the nomination for ICANN Names Council position extended by
Zita Wetzel, ccTLD Constituency Member (.US)

  8. A Curriculum Vitae (no more than 500 words long):

	I am a Senior Member if the Institute of Electrical and Electronic
Engineers (IEEE). <http://www.ieee.org/>
	1966: My professional career began at IBM Research Labs in New York. This
intensive introduction to the corporate world assisted me in my decision to
become an entrepreneur.
	1967: Founded a company to design specialized sound and lighting systems
for entertainment business. Spent 10 years in design and construction of
large multi-media nightclubs, production of theme events and audio-visuals,
and technical theatrical production.
	1977: Created a word processing system based on the Processor Technology
"SOL" computer, Xerox Diablo printers, and remote communication with a 300
baud modem. When technology advanced, we brought out our "second generation"
Multi-User system with an Altos 8000 running 4 user MP/M and WordStar.
	1979: Moved to the Caribbean, and continued integration and sales of
computer systems.
	1981: My business moved into consulting. Founded Octagon Consultants to
provide network and system design, installation and training. Contracted to
United Nations Industrial Development Organization <http://www.unido.org/>
for several missions. One mission completely computerized the Island of
Montserrat <http://encarta.msn.com/find/Concise.asp?ti=005E6000>, training
160 civil service employees and deploying computers in all government
departments.
	1989: Hurricane Hugo devastated the Virgin Islands <http://www.usvi.net/>.
Spent a full year assisting in restoring computer and communication systems,
and on data recovery, for both the Public and Private sector.
	1991: Seeing a need for cheaper communications in developing countries, I
consulted on uucp mail gateways, radio links, and other ways of reducing
comm. costs. The Internet seemed like a good vehicle, so I researched
Free-Net <http://www.lights.com/freenet/> systems. What seemed to be lacking
was an appropriate funding model.
	1994: Partnering with Virgin Islands Public Broadcast System
<http://www.wtjx.org/> and my Rotary Club <http://www.rotary.org/>, we
created a FreeNet, bringing public Internet access to our community. The
funding model worked, and the operation became self-sustaining. At its peak,
before commercial ISPs came on the scene, there were over 3,000 people using
the FreeNet.
	1994: My paper, "Networking the Caribbean
<http://www.usvi.net/cobex/inet95/> was accepted for presentation at the
ISOC <http://www.isoc.org/> annual Meeting.
	1994: Founded COBEX International, Inc <http://www.cobex.net/>.
	1994: Establish NIC.VI <http://www.nic.vi/> for registering Domain Names in
.VI ccTLD.
	1995 to Present: Continuing activities promoting Internet in developing
countries, with emphasis on funding models for public access by under
serviced populations.
	1999-2000 Serve on the AdCom of the ccTLD Constituency
<http://www.wwtld.org/>.
	Anytime: For relaxation, I play pop and classical music with friends on
baroque recorder <http://elsap1.unicaen.fr/~manguin/flutabec/index_eng.htm>.
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9. A statement indicating your ideas, intentions and/or the reason why you
consider you should be elected to serve on the Names Council:

The "ideas, intentions and/or the reasons" are the essentially the same as
my statement in connection with my unsuccessful bid for a seat on the ICANN
Board.

I will repeat that statement below, somewhat abbreviated and modified.

However, Based on the experiance of running for the ICANN board, and the
endorsements, comments, and feedback both before and after the election
results were announced, I feel it is CRITICAL that strong voices advance the
cause of ccTLD interests within ICANN. I am well aware of the issues,
political, financial, and technical involved in running a ccTLD and in
inter-relating with my fellow ccTLD managers, and with the local and global
Internet community.

I am also concerned over the fact that ccTLD's are asked to pay US $ 1,5
million or so- and really are not proportionally  represented in the entire
ICANN process. Some   changes are in order. Of course, any change must come
about only through "due process". I would seek more parity in the
relationship between ICANN, ccTLD, and the other constituencies. One way to
do this is to facilitate outreach to the other constituencies, and form more
common ground than that which exists now.

I have a strong voice, and a reputation for fairness, and I honestly feel
that I could provide viable leadership, diplomacy, and be a conduit for
information and outreach between the ICANN system and the ccTLDs I would be
representing.
------------------------
	I  will continue to champion the cause of outreach to under serviced
populations. Internet access multiplies educational opportunities through
formal methodologies, such as distance learning, and informal methodologies,
such as chat, newsgroups, bulletin boards, and instant messengers. More
simply, it advances globalization by providing low cost communications.
Internauts must be able to "reach out and touch someone" beyond any country’
s national borders at a price they can afford to pay. Access to information
and communication is on a par with the right to vote in a democracy.
	Ultimately, personal Internet access brings people into the realm of more
commercial activities, such as business communication and e-commerce.
Hopefully, the Business, ISP/CP and IP constituencies will come around to
seeing this, and support a broader initiative for the underserviced.
	It is also our responsibility to give more than lip service to the concepts
of "Open and transparent process" while we go about the work of Internet
governance. We need more outreach and encouragement of those "sitting on the
sidelines", so they become a part of the process. The process will be
completely open when all the stakeholders are present and participating, and
have equal "weight".
	I stand for "limited Internet governance, personal freedom and
responsibility, and a robust and interoperable DNS".
	Our work should encourage co-operation and consensus, while remaining
sensitive to the limited ability or desire of some of the members of each
constituency to pay a lot of money for what they are used to receiving
essentially free.
	I have extensive experience in funding models, especially for non-profits,
service organizations like Rotary Clubs and Chambers of Commerce. I believe
I can make a strong contribution in devising ways of getting funded that
would remove some of the burden from the members of the constituencies of
the DNSO, and which could result in a surplus of funds that could be used as
grants for training and development.
	If elected, while I serve on the NC I will do my utmost to relate
positively and productively with other constituencies, while acting as a
conduit for the expression and expansion of ccTLD issues and agendas.

Thank you for your attention.

Peter de Blanc

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