<html><head></head><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:times new roman, new york, times, serif;font-size:16px"><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26955"><span></span><br></div><div class="qtdSeparateBR" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26811"><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26946"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947">> Can somebody provide an example of a Board decision which would have benefitted from more diversity?</span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26953"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947"><br></span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26954"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947">I can't. <br></span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_27058"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947">But then, how would we know? There are different network architectures in small island nations than in large networks. Have we done anything that disadvantages those networks? At the Board level, are there differences in accounting, bookkeeping, or legal frameworks that make it hard for those organizations to participate or contribute or grow? <br></span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_27503"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947">Or community networks, WISPs, networks serving native populations, or other kinds of networks?</span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_27504"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947"><br></span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_27508"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947">Another direction of wonder is whether there's a style of debate, or collaboration, or contribution, that is missing, because people from different cultures work together differently. Might a different style of participation add richness (in the form of better-considered decisions) to Board work?</span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_27509"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947"><br></span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_27510"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947">Without someone at the table, it's hard to know what you might be missing.</span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_27511"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947"><br></span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_27512"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947">Lee</span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_27539"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26947"><br></span></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26878"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26853"><br></span></div></div><div class="yahoo_quoted" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26820" style="display: block;"> <div style="font-family: times new roman, new york, times, serif; font-size: 16px;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26819"> <div style="font-family: HelveticaNeue, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26818"> <div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26817"> <font id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26821" size="2" face="Arial"> <hr size="1"> <b><span style="font-weight:bold;">From:</span></b> Mike Burns <mike@iptrading.com><br> <b><span style="font-weight: bold;">To:</span></b> 'David Farmer' <farmer@umn.edu>; 'John Comfort' <john@comfortconsulting.com> <br><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Cc:</span></b> arin-consult@arin.net<br> <b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sent:</span></b> Tuesday, June 6, 2017 1:01 PM<br> <b id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26829"><span style="font-weight: bold;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26828">Subject:</span></b> Re: [ARIN-consult] Reminder: Consultation on Increasing the size of the ARIN Board of Trustees<br> </font> </div> <div class="y_msg_container" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26822"><br><div id="yiv6582195993"><style>#yiv6582195993 #yiv6582195993 --
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#yiv6582195993 </style><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26825"><div class="yiv6582195993WordSection1" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26824"><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26823"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Hello,</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26831"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26830">Can we talk about the problem this change is designed to address?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26839"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26838">Have there been decisions taken in the past by the ARIN board which could be said to be a result of lack of diversity on the board?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26833"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26832">For example, has the board corrected a mistake because a prior decision failed to include the input of a small business owner, or a resident of the Caribbean, or a lawyer?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26837"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26836"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26835">Do issues like gender or race even impact the decision-making ability of a board whose job revolves around number policy?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26834"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Or are we to assume that lack of diversity is itself the problem? </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">That even if the non-diverse board and a hypothetical diverse board reached the same conclusions, there is still a problem with the former?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Is this an optics problem? That is, are we addressing not a problem related to number policy, but a self-esteem problem of some community members?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Or are we saying the ARIN board doesn’t understand Caribbean legal issues or network peculiarities, resulting in bad decisions?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26886"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">The second case is much more interesting to me.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">The problems which will inevitably arise out of this effort should be considered, and I haven’t really heard them all addressed.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">First, who decides what groups should be included in the sought-after diversity? We have suggestions for gender and regional membership already.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">What about LBTQ, black, Hispanic, physically-challenged or poor community members?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Can those groups be left out of consideration? What is the process of review and revision of these selections? A free-for-all on the ARIN-consult list? I am not looking forward to the debate over the last reserved seat- does it go to the poor or the Caribbean? What if a gay, poor Caribbean runs for that seat, does he/she check three boxes or only one? Are these appropriate discussions for numbers-stewards? It’s a quagmire.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Second, once the groups are defined, then what is the mechanism to ensure actual membership in the group? How are we sure who is a woman, who is poor, who is physically handicapped, or who is gay? Do we have surplus Election committee members itching to verify this information?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26921"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26920">Third, this would further the implicit assumption that even members of a small group whose aegis extends only to regional number policy vote tribally, and the only solution is to ensure participation of every tribe on the board. I think we should instead be focusing on the open-ness of the stakeholder model, with open and meritocratic elections being a foundational principle.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Fourth, restricting qualified members from running from some board seats due to immutable characteristics like skin color or gender or ethnicity could potentially reduce the overall quality of the board.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Fifth, intra-ARIN tribalism will naturally drive discourse in ways that tend to exacerbate differences so as to justify current diversity preferences, in my opinion, and that includes introducing non-numbers-related issues where we should only care about the numbers.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Sixth, a larger board makes meetings and communications among board members more difficult.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Seventh, quota-seat members could feel (and be perceived as) inferior or junior members.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26909"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26908">I don’t support any change to the number of seats on the board, and I don’t think the language that existed which allowed for the appointment of an additional member was designed for increasing bland and generic diversity. I think it was put there to address any particular unusual eventuality which required missing expertise. Maybe expertise in large public accounting, or expertise in law enforcement, or in private investigation or legislative compliance. The use of the seat to address a lack of representation of any particular GROUP removes the intended ability of use for a particular EXPERTISE should that be needed.</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26910"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26912"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26911">As it stands today, the community is free to nominate and vote for any member who is qualified. Before that right is removed from the community, can we please understand the severity of the problem?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26913"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26914"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1496846679863_26915">Can somebody provide an example of a Board decision which would have benefitted from more diversity?</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Regards,</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">Mike Burns</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> </span></div><div class="yiv6582195993yqt3563832994" id="yiv6582195993yqt11254"><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;">From:</span></b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;"> ARIN-consult [mailto:arin-consult-bounces@arin.net] <b>On Behalf Of </b>David Farmer<br clear="none"><b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, June 06, 2017 3:54 PM<br clear="none"><b>To:</b> John Comfort <john@comfortconsulting.com><br clear="none"><b>Cc:</b> <arin-consult@arin.net> <arin-consult@arin.net><br clear="none"><b>Subject:</b> Re: [ARIN-consult] Reminder: Consultation on Increasing the size of the ARIN Board of Trustees</span></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">I debated using the word "underrepresented", I couldn't find a better word, the english language is lacking, or at least my vocabulary is.</div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">On Tue, Jun 6, 2017 at 2:17 PM, John Comfort <<a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:john@comfortconsulting.com" target="_blank" href="mailto:john@comfortconsulting.com">john@comfortconsulting.com</a>> wrote:</div><blockquote style="border:none;border-left:solid #CCCCCC 1.0pt;padding:0in 0in 0in 6.0pt;margin-left:4.8pt;margin-right:0in;"><div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt;">To state that women are underrepresented because the board currently has no women is a misnomer and only perpetuates the political propaganda without any substantive data to confirm the situation even exists. If a particular woman has the appropriate credentials and experience necessary to become a member of the board, then there is no reason why she wouldn't be elected except that a male or another female candidate has better credentials and/or more relevant experience.</div></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt;">The election requirements should be based on merit only. Do not give prejudicial treatment to any person whether male or female to further external, irrelevant agendas.<br clear="none"><br clear="none"><br clear="none"><br clear="none"><br clear="none"></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">On Tue, Jun 6, 2017 at 11:58 AM, David Farmer <<a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:farmer@umn.edu" target="_blank" href="mailto:farmer@umn.edu">farmer@umn.edu</a>> wrote:</div><blockquote style="border:none;border-left:solid #CCCCCC 1.0pt;padding:0in 0in 0in 6.0pt;margin-left:4.8pt;margin-right:0in;"><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">I agree with Jason and Rob, simply expanding the number of board seats without some mechanism to ensure that the new seats actually expand diversity is not helpful, and I can not support such a change. I will note it is theoretically possible that, the membership will fill the new Board seats with a more diverse set of board members, but it is equally, if not more, likely that they will not, and the board will look much as it does today but slightly larger. A slightly larger board that has more diversity is a fair trade-off and I support such a change if it includes a mechanism to ensure that the new seats actually expand diversity.</div><div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">I don't think a regional representation system would be helpful over all, it wouldn't necessarily help increasing the number of women on the board, and it would formalize a constituency for some board members that isn't the whole membership, and I'm not sure that would be a healthy change either.</div></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">As an alternative, I would propose that the board earmark the additional seat in each class for candidates with particular divers properties that are underrepresented on the board. Currently, I see the most pressing lack of diversity being women in general and anyone from the Caribbean. So I would propose that the extra seat for the 1st and 3rd class of broad members be earmarked for women, and the extra seat in the 2nd class be earmarked for someone from the Caribbean. Overtime if the make up of the board changes the earmarks could be changed to select candidates with other divers properties or if in the future it is felt that sufficient diversity can be maintained without earmarks, the earmarks could be eliminated. </div></div></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">Under this proposal, there would be two(2) general seats with the current qualifications, and one special diversity seat per class with the current qualifications plus additional diversity qualifications specified by the board, maybe with input from the community and/or the nomcom.</div></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">Thanks.</div></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="color:#888888;"><br clear="all"><span class="yiv6582195993gmail-m7698638463637073985hoenzb"></span></span></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span class="yiv6582195993gmail-m7698638463637073985hoenzb"><span style="color:#888888;">-- </span></span></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><span style="color:#888888;">===============================================<br clear="none">David Farmer <a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:Email%3Afarmer@umn.edu" target="_blank" href="mailto:Email%3Afarmer@umn.edu">Email:farmer@umn.edu</a><br clear="none">Networking & Telecommunication Services<br clear="none">Office of Information Technology<br clear="none">University of Minnesota <br clear="none">2218 University Ave SE Phone: <a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" href="">612-626-0815</a><br clear="none">Minneapolis, MN 55414-3029 Cell: <a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" href="">612-812-9952</a><br clear="none">=============================================== </span></div></div></div></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><br clear="none">_______________________________________________<br clear="none">ARIN-Consult<br clear="none">You are receiving this message because you are subscribed to the ARIN Consult Mailing<br clear="none">List (<a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:ARIN-consult@arin.net" target="_blank" href="mailto:ARIN-consult@arin.net">ARIN-consult@arin.net</a>).<br clear="none">Unsubscribe or manage your mailing list subscription at:<br clear="none"><a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" target="_blank" href="http://lists.arin.net/mailman/listinfo/arin-consult">http://lists.arin.net/mailman/listinfo/arin-consult</a> Please contact the ARIN Member Services<br clear="none">Help Desk at <a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:info@arin.net" target="_blank" href="mailto:info@arin.net">info@arin.net</a> if you experience any issues.</div></blockquote></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div></div></div></blockquote></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"><br clear="none"><br clear="all"></div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal"> </div></div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">-- </div><div><div class="yiv6582195993MsoNormal">===============================================<br clear="none">David Farmer <a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:Email%3Afarmer@umn.edu" target="_blank" href="mailto:Email%3Afarmer@umn.edu">Email:farmer@umn.edu</a><br clear="none">Networking & Telecommunication Services<br clear="none">Office of Information Technology<br clear="none">University of Minnesota <br clear="none">2218 University Ave SE Phone: 612-626-0815<br clear="none">Minneapolis, MN 55414-3029 Cell: 612-812-9952<br clear="none">=============================================== </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="yqt3563832994" id="yqt17927">_______________________________________________<br clear="none">ARIN-Consult<br clear="none">You are receiving this message because you are subscribed to the ARIN Consult Mailing<br clear="none">List (<a shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:ARIN-consult@arin.net" href="mailto:ARIN-consult@arin.net">ARIN-consult@arin.net</a>).<br clear="none">Unsubscribe or manage your mailing list subscription at:<br clear="none"><a shape="rect" href="http://lists.arin.net/mailman/listinfo/arin-consult" target="_blank">http://lists.arin.net/mailman/listinfo/arin-consult </a>Please contact the ARIN Member Services<br clear="none">Help Desk at <a shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:info@arin.net" href="mailto:info@arin.net">info@arin.net</a> if you experience any issues.</div><br><br></div> </div> </div> </div></div></body></html>