Blogs

ICANN held its second international meeting of 2012 last week in Prague, Czech Republic.  While the agenda focused heavily on issues related to new gTLDs and on welcoming incoming CEO Fadi Chehade, ICANN also conducted a community consultation on its accountability and transparency reviews.  That session’s transcript and presentations are available here.

• Paul
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The 2012 U.S. Olympic Swim Team Trials are underway! Did you know you can stream the trials live at usaswimming.org?  What is it that compels all of us to be absorbed by the Olympics? Perhaps, it’s watching mere mortals with nothing more than the passion and commitment to excellence, pushing themselves to be their very best before our eyes, and that is something truly magical to witness.

• Bonnie
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Yesterday was the 8th annual running of the Prelude To The Dream race to raise awareness and funding for Feed The Children, an outstanding organization that provides food to families in need.  PIR is proud and honored to sponsor this amazing race featuring 25 superstars of NASCAR, NHRA, and INDYCAR, including Kenny Wallace, Danica Patrick, Tony Stewart, and Jimmie Johnson.

• Lauren
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I am thrilled to introduce to you PIR's new Director of Channel Management, Ulrich Retzlaff.  Ulrich, or Uli, will be covering the EMEA territory for .ORG.  We are extremely excited to have Uli on board to provide each of you with the highest level of service.
 
Uli is a proven sales and marketing professional, having co-founded Adarkus GmbH, a company delivering project management solutions focusing on the development of commercial real estate.   Prior to Adarkus, Uli spent three years at Melbourne IT as a Product Manager for Digital Brand Services.  At Melbourne IT DBS Uli managed three product lines: DNS name server, SSL, and Web Traffic Services (SEO).  He was also instrumental in developing innovative enterprise technical and business development initiatives.  And prior to Melbourne IT, as Project Manager and Client Manager Supervisor for VeriSign DBMS, Uli managed internal data projects and integrated processes in the domain name and DNS administration functions while also enhancing the company’s client relationships.

• Nancy
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Over the weekend, I participated in the "Tough Mudder," an obstacle course spanning 12 miles over rocky and hilly terrain in Pocono, Pa.   Among other challenges, it involved numerous dunks in ice cold water pits -- usually for failing to manage an obstacle properly or sometimes just because they were part of the course.

Months ago when I was originally invited to participate, I seriously debated whether or not to take part in this grueling event. One factor that sealed my decision to participate was learning that proceeds from the Tough Mudder are donated to the Wounded Warrior project, an organization that strives "to honor and empower wounded warriors" with community support and unique services that enable them to readjust successfully to civilian life. Thinking of the men and women who make unfathomable sacrifices for their country, and knowing that my registration for the Tough Mudder would benefit an organization that supports this courageous group of individuals gave me just the motivation I needed to commit to this challenge.

• Brian
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It has always been interesting to me how the various parts of my world intersect, and true to form, I’m finding that intersection especially true here at the Public Interest Registry.  As predicted by my staff, I find myself especially attuned to people and organizations using .ORG to tell their stories. Sure enough, last week while on my way to ICANN Costa Rica, I became engrossed in an article about ToGetHerThere.ORG  --one of the newest members of our .ORG family. 

• Nancy
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In a world of overhyped sporting events, extravagant halftime celebrations and gloried, high-priced athletes, there comes a 73–year-old annual basketball tournament that needs no hype or halftime show. Instead, its magic lies in the fact that families, colleagues, alumni and bar flies stop and watch hundreds of amateur athletes participate in what I dare say might be America’s most thrilling and beloved sporting event of all times. Yes, I’m talking about March Madness, a term first coined by Bob Walsh of the Seattle Organizing Committee for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) back in 1984.

• Thuy
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ICANN held its first international meeting of 2012 last week in San Jose, Costa Rica, and kicked off the week on a high note with an inspired speech by Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla. If you missed it, we strongly recommend that you read or listen to it here. 

PIR shares many of the public interest values and policy positions that President Chinchilla expressed, including the assertion that:

“The legitimate concerns [related to] privacy, security and protection of intellectual property should not become an excuse to justify trends seeking to exercise highly restrictive controls on cyberspace.”

• Paul
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Like many office water cooler chats, we at PIR talk a lot about celebrities. But in addition to bantering about Angelina’s right leg or the latest Dancing with the Stars cast, we often discuss celebrities who use their influence to establish nonprofits and foundations, and who in turn look to .ORG to mobilize support for their causes. Today’s topic of conversation? Lady Gaga’s the Born this Way Foundation (www.bornthiswayfoundation.org).  Even before her organization’s launch, Lady Gaga has been an unwavering advocate of the anti-bullying movement that has heated up in the past year (heck, she wrote her hit song, “Born this Way,” about these very issues). So it’s no surprise that the Born this Way Foundation’s mission is to “foster a more accepting society, where differences are embraced and individuality is celebrated.” Ultimately, the foundation aims to cultivate a safe community where young people can obtain the skills and opportunities necessary to encourage a kinder, braver world.

• Nancy
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Last month, I joined the Public Interest Registry as chief operating officer, and while it’s been a busy month getting up-to-speed on all things PIR, .ORG and our key priorities, I couldn’t be more thrilled to be here. Working closely with PIR’s CEO, Brian Cute, I’ll oversee operations, marketing, sales, and product strategy to expand PIR’s global presence during what I believe will be a pivotal time in PIR’s history. In addition to spearheading the growth of the .ORG domain, we will also be preparing to launch the new .NGO domain (pending approval from ICANN) in the year ahead.

• Nancy
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