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Multistakeholder Internet Governance

Internet governance (IG) is a term first coined by the 2005 meeting of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). In short, IG is the ongoing development and application of procedures, norms, rules, and shared principles that guide the use and development of the internet. IG is especially challenging because – as several of my classmates have explained – the internet isn’t owned or controlled by any one nation but is extremely transnational in nature reaching every corner of the globe. The anarchic nature of the internet provides a unique set of challenges and opportunities for the international community.

One solution to internet governance is Multistakeholder Internet Governance put forth by the Internet Society (ISOC). In brief, the internet has a wide variety of stakeholders ranging from governments and corporations to non-profit organizations, students, and individuals. This approach attempts to leverage the unique perspectives of each group to create an “accountable, sustainable, and effective” solution to internet governance.  The multistakeholder approach – it must be noted – is not an end-all be-all solution to the challenges of internet governance in anarchy. Instead, the multistakeholder approach is a tool box of ideas based on the basis that individuals and organizations can and must participate alongside each other to create consensus based policy for the global community. By bringing together different groups from all over the world, any solutions are guaranteed to be flexible but yet strong if built upon a global consensus.

A great example of the multistakeholder model at work is NETmundial, a high level meeting on IG that was convened in Sao Paulo, Brazil in 2014. The focus of this meeting was to create a road map for future development of global IG principles and best practices. This meeting focused on bringing together civil society, the private sector, academia, and the technical community to a platform built on participatory plurality. In short, NETmundial furthered the belief that internet governance shouldn’t exclude individuals and states but instead promote universal access, equal opportunity, and high quality internet access. This will then feed into and spark development and inclusion across the globe.

Even though the internet can be a powerful tool for development, the most notable criticism is that the global north tends to control IG institutions. For example, the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), run by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), is currently under contract and funded by the US government. The IANA is responsible for administering some unique internet identifiers (top-level domains like .uk and .com, Internet Protocol (IP) numbers, etc.). Because the internet is a transnational resource, it can be extremely problematic if one nation – the United States – controls an institution and has the power to exclude smaller national and non-government stakeholder groups.

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Efficacy of Global Frameworks

Many internationally agreed upon frameworks, projects, and development goals all went through a process of evaluation to determine whether or not they were efficient and capable to follow through on on their implementation tactics. High-level meetings are an example of how these developed ideas can be assured an opportunity to prove their efficacy. In this case, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and issues/strategies dealing with Persons with Disability were at the focal point of developing actions to improve the international community, both developing and developed countries. It is unfortunate that persons with disabilities still have to face obstacles in different aspects of their life.

The MDGs focus on a wide range of goals, from poverty rates, to health and education, and much more. However, a number of relevant stakeholders have not ensured that developing policies take into consideration the needs and benefits of all persons with disabilities. These people can include: women, children, indigenous people and the elderly. It is important to develop plans that are relevant to the changes that must occur by 2015 and beyond, but all of this should also take into consideration the numerous inhabitants that are around the world who suffer from certain disadvantages.

It is possible to do as much as we can for others, but, like many things in the world, certain limitations don’t allow for progress to occur. For example, poor, developing countries might not have the voice or effective government to carry out the essential tools to implement development goals. The MDGs faced shortcomings as well. They were able to catch the popular imagination of national governments, a wide range of institutions, and the international community that sought to reduce the amount of poverty around the globe, which was the main focus of the MDGs. The CRPD came up as a result of the international community and national governments not taking accountability for those that did not have the means to be heard (poor countries/people). There was so little attention in regards to their development that policies had to be made and implemented to assure this community the rights they have and deserve.

Human development is a valuable purpose to focus on. As Deepak Nayyar stated in the Post-2015 Development Agenda: people are not just beneficiaries of development. They are the ones that can empower the people to facilitate the implementation of policies and goals. That is why it is necessary to rethink, redesign and reformulate everything that has to do with international development to maintain the efficacy that it deserves.

Welcome to the Complex Problems Seminar on Disability Inclusive Development, where we highlight the global “Grand Challenge” of disability and inclusion in sustainable development

In September 2000, world Leaders gathered at United Nations Headquarters in New York for the Millennium Summit.  At this summit, they adopted the United Nations Millennium Declaration, which included 8 time-bound targets called the Millennium Development Goals (or MDGs).  These MDGs were aimed at developing a new global partnership to reduce poverty by the year 2015.  Unfortunately, disability issues were completely absent from the MDGs.  Subsequently, on 13 December 2006, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) was adopted, and became the first human rights treaty of the 21st century. This seminar will enable you to explore these policy developments and focus on enhancing your understanding of disability-inclusive development.

Weekly Blog Posts

Throughout the semester each seminar participant will submit at least ten (10) blog posts. Blog posts should address your thoughts and reflections on any issue being discussed that week. Each blog post should be around 400 words, and will be organized under one of ten pre-determined categories: 1. Grand Challenges; 2. Development Theory; 3. SDGs and HLPF; 4. Efficacy of Global Frameworks; 5. ICTs and Sustainable Development; 6. Digital Divide(s); 7. Multistakeholder Global Governance; 8. Smart Cities and Employment; 9. Inclusive Education; and, 10. Intersectionality in Sustainable Development.