The RIPE NCC Executive Board Election Task Force
The RIPE NCC Executive Board Election task force has now completed its final report.
The RIPE NCC Executive Board fully supports all of the recommendations laid out in the report.
RIPE NCC Executive Board Election Task Force Report
Rationale
The process by which members of the RIPE NCC Executive Board are nominated and elected is defined in Article 18 of the RIPE NCC Articles of Association and further described on the General Meeting (GM) Executive Board Election pages provided for each May GM.
Following events that occurred in the lead up to the May 2020 GM, the board called for a review of the election process. To carry out this work, the board assembled a task force comprised of a diverse set of RIPE NCC members whose goal has been to carry out an evaluation of the nomination and election process. Particular issues that were addressed in the course of this evaluation include:
- Measures for the qualification and verification of candidates
- Issues around the representation of candidates in terms of biographies and statements of support published on the RIPE NCC website
- Possibilities for allowing members greater opportunity to engage with and question candidates prior to the election
Charter
The RIPE NCC Executive Board Election Task Force has operated under the following charter:
The RIPE NCC Executive Board Election Task Force will evaluate the nomination and election process with the aim of ensuring that those who stand for the board have the right expertise and background. In support of this, the task force will produce a draft report outlining a set of recommendations for the board to consider at its September meeting, a final version of which will be presented to the RIPE NCC membership at the October 2020 General Meeting. This will ensure that any necessary actions that need to be put to members for voting can be carried out before the next election takes place.
In addition to the above, after the report has been presented at the October GM, the task force will reconvene to assess whether there are any pertinent issues that require their further attention at that point.
Scope of the Task Force Report
The report lists a set of recommended changes to the existing nomination and election process. It gives a clear indication of the rationale behind the proposed changes and describes, where needed, how those changes will affect current practice for all relevant parties, i.e. voting members, nominees and candidates, and the GM Organisation Team (RIPE NCC staff).
Method
The board appointed the task force after a call for volunteers. Task force members attended a set of meetings during which they came up with a list of recommendations, all of which were included in the draft report. After the report was passed to the board for consideration, the board provided input, and the final version will be presented at the October GM. All task force meetings were held remotely and facilitated by RIPE NCC staff.
Timeline
The task force was formed in July 2020. Its initial meetings took place from the end of July up until 21 August. The draft report was submitted to the board ahead of the Executive Board meeting that took place on 8 September. The final report has now been prepared and submitted as one of the supporting documents for the October GM. The GM will take place on 28 October.
Task Force Members
- Erik Bais (Netherlands)
- Randy Bush (Estonia)
- Carlos Friaças (Portugal)
- Toma Gavrichenkov (Russia)
- Sergey Myasoedov (Czech Republic) Task Force Chair
- Arnold Nipper (Germany)
- Cynthia Revström (Sweden)
- Jan Žorž (Slovenia)
RIPE NCC Executive Board Representative
- Remco van Mook
The RIPE NCC has provided secretarial and legal support.
Mailing List Archives
Emails to the RIPE NCC Executive Board Election Task Force mailing list were archived.