PUBLIC INTEREST REGISTRY MEDIA ALERT
Date: May 2, 2003
Contact: Julie Williams
Phone: (703) 464-7005, x111 Cell: 703-402-6715
E-mail: JWilliams@xxxxxxx
PUBLIC INTEREST REGISTRY ANNOUNCES GLOBAL COMMITTEE STRUCTURE
Committees will set priorities to advance .ORG as a global noncommercial
Internet community
Reston, VA - May 2, 2003 - The Public Interest Registry (PIR) announced
during a global Webcast with its Advisory Council yesterday, the
establishment of five committees charged with setting priorities to advance
.ORG as a thriving international noncommercial Internet community. The
primary mission of the Council, which is made up of leaders in the
noncommercial and Internet communities throughout the world, is to ensure
that PIR is responsive to the needs, concerns, and views of the global
noncommercial Internet community.
The Committee chairs are noted experts in their respective fields. For
complete biographies, go to www.pir.org/about/council.html.
S.S. Kshatriy (India) is Chair of the Editorial Committee. The goal of the
Committee is to develop editorial priorities, publish and make
recommendations for articles. He is a scientist and writer who pioneered
Net Journalism in India and spent most of his career as a scientist in the
India Space Research Organization.
Sylvia Cadena (Columbia) is Chair of the New Services Committee, which will
review new services and recommend a timeline for introduction. She has
worked with hundreds of nonprofit organizations to establish a Web presence
and communication strategy.
Michael Geist (Ottawa, Canada) is Chairman of the Policy Committee. That
Committee's priority is to develop policy statements for the Council and the
PIR Board for consideration. Dr. Geist is an Associate Professor of Law at
the University of Ottawa specializing in Internet and e-commerce law. He is
widely published and considered an expert in Internet law.
Pierre Dandjinou (residing Senegal - Benin citizenship) is Chairman of the
Research and Outreach Committee. The goal of the Committee is to explore
ways to reach out to noncommercials and grow .ORG. Pierre Dandjinou
currently holds the position of Policy Specialist, Information and
Communication Technology (ICT) with the United Nations Development Program
in Dakar.
Michael Gilbert (Seattle, Washington) is Chair of the Web-based Resources
Committee. His priority is to make recommendations for enhancement of PIR's
Web-based mechanisms to serve the noncommercial community. Michael is an
internationally known consultant to foundations and nonprofits.
EDITORIAL COMMITTEE
S.S. Kshatriy (India), Chair
Adam Peake (Japan)
Clement Dzidnou (Ghana)
Mark H. Moore (US)
NEW SERVICES COMMITTEE
Sylvia Cadena (Columbia), Chair
Calvin Browne (UK)
Ben Laurie (UK) Vice-Chair
Vany Martinez (Panama)
POLICY COMMITTEE
Michael Geist (Canada), Chair
Pavan Duggal (India)
Ian Peter (Australia)
Barbara Simons (US)
RESEARCH & OUTREACH COMMITTEE
Pierre Dandjinou (residing in Senegal - Benin citizenship), Chair
Walter Morton (Palau)
YJ Park (Korea)
Eric Tomson (Belgium)
WEB-BASED RESOURCES COMMITTEE
Michael Gilbert (USA), Chair
Nadia McLaren (residing in Belgium - UK/Australian citizenship)
Lori Schulman (USA)
Klaus Stoll (Ecuador)
James Cronin (UK)
ABOUT .ORG
The .ORG domain, which has come to be associated with noncommercial
activities, is the Internet's third largest "generic" or non-country
specific top-level domain (behind .COM and .NET), housing over 2.7 million
domain names worldwide. Late last year, the Internet Corporation for
Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) Board of Directors selected ISOC's
proposal from among 11 organizations bidding to operate the .ORG top-level
domain. VeriSign Global Registry Services' contract as registry operator
for .ORG expired on December 31, 2002. PIR assumed control of the registry
on January 1, 2003.
ABOUT PIR
Public Interest Registry (www.pir.org) is a not-for-profit corporation
created by the Internet Society to manage the .ORG domain. PIR's mission is
to manage the .ORG domain in a way that supports the continuing evolution of
the Internet as a research, education and communications infrastructure, and
educates and empowers the noncommercial community to most effectively
utilize the Internet. PIR is based in Reston, Virginia.
PIR was created by the Internet Society (www.ISOC.org). ISOC is a
not-for-profit, open membership organization founded in 1991 and is
dedicated to ensuring the open evolution, development and use of the
Internet for the benefit of all people. It provides leadership in
addressing issues that confront the future of the Internet, and is the
organizational home for many of the groups responsible for Internet
standards.
For additional information on PIR and the .ORG registry please visit
www.pir.org.