IGF 2014 sub theme that this workshop fall under

IGF & The Future of the Internet Ecosystem

Description

The multi‐stakeholder model has been an important factor for the success of the Internet. However it is necessary to recognize that the Internet governance dynamics have changed. The new dynamics among stakeholders is associated with an overall increase of complexity and differentiation and suggests that it is increasingly difficult for one single governance regime to address the broad range of concerns associated with today’s Internet. What is needed is to allow for a better match between discrete governance issues and the suitable institutions available.
The panel addresses this situation by advancing an innovative model. It asks whether it is feasible to consider an evolution of the current system to allow for a better interplay among the different actors of the governance process towards a multi‐stakeholder model with variable geometry.

While all stakeholders need to participate in the multi-stakeholder model on equal footing when different governance issues and institutions are envisaged and discussed, then in the implementation of the governance process one stakeholder or a coalition of stakeholders (variable geometry) could take the lead according to the nature of the governance issue at stake: e.g. standards (the private sector), Internet issues relevant to particular communities (civil society), human rights (government).
The variable geometry approach has been discussed in the WTO negotiations to take into account differences among countries participating in the agreement (for instance developing countries) and to reduce the perennial tension between depth and width of the treaties.
The workshop will explore what can be learnt from these experiences for the Internet governance context.

Name(s) and stakeholder and organizational affiliation(s) of institutional co-organizer(s)

Lorenzo Pupillo
Private Sector
Telecom Italia

Mira Burri
Civil Society
World Trade Institute, University of Bern

Has the proposer, or any of the co-organizers, organized an IGF workshop before?

yes

The link to the workshop report

http://www.intgovforum.org/cms/wks2013/Telecom%20Italia%20IGF%20Workshop%20329%20_report.pdf

Type of session

Panel

Duration of proposed session

90 minutes

Subject matter #tags that describe the workshop

#Internet governance, #variable geometry, #WTO, #governance issues, #governance institutions

Names and affiliations (stakeholder group, organization) of speakers the proposer is planning to invite

Giovanni Battista Amendola, Vice President Public & Regulatory Affairs,
Private Sector
Telecom Italia
Speaker contacted YES
Speaker confirmed YES

Mira Burri, Senior Research Fellow, World Trade Institute,
Civil Society
World Trade Institute, University of Bern
Speaker contacted YES
Speaker Confirmed YES

Olga Cavalli, Advisor
Government
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Argentina
Speaker contacted YES
Speaker confirmed YES

Sally Costerton, VP Global Stakeholder Engagement
Techical Community
ICANN
Speaker contacted YES
Speaker confirmed YES

Christopher Yoo, Professor of Law and Communication
Civil Society
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Speaker contacted YES
Speaker confirmed YES

Nii Quaynor, Professor
Technical Community
Speaker contacted YES
Speaker confirmed YES

Antonio Preto
Commissioner AGCOM
Government
Speaker Contacted Yes
Speaker Confirmed YES

Name of Moderator(s)

Megan Richards, Principal Adviser in DG

Name of Remote Moderator(s)

Michele Bellavite

Description of how the proposer plan to facilitate discussion amongst speakers, audience members and remote participants

The Moderator will make opening, background remarks on the workshop main subject . Afterwards, he will invite each of the speakers to make approximately 7 minutes of remarks, aimed at presenting each panelist’s view on the workshop main issues.
The remaining 44 minutes will be reserved for open dialogue between the invited panelists and the session attendees. Invited panelists have been asked to focus on the session's themes, rather than their organizations' programs or policy agendas , and to enable speakers' discussions among themselves as well as engagement with both on-site participants and remote participants.

Description of the proposer's plans for remote participation

Creation of an hub in Telecom Italia’s headquarter in Rome and at the World Trade Institute at the University of Bern

Background paper

No background paper provided