Relevant Links
Meetings, Mailing Lists, and Contact Information
International Community
Internet Community Organizations
ARIN is active in the international Internet community, working in close coordination with such open Internet community organizations as ICANN, ISOC, IETF, and NANOG. ARIN enjoys a comprehensive relationship with each of these bodies and ARIN staff members participate in community meetings throughout the year.
ARIN is also active in Internet governance activities, including the Internet Governance Forum.
Regional Internet Registries
Regional Internet Registries (RIRs) are nonprofit corporations established for the purpose of administration and registration of Internet Protocol (IP) address space and Autonomous System (AS) numbers. RIRs also work together on joint projects. A list of all RIRs is provided below with links to lists of countries within each region.
Number Resource Organization
In 2003, the Regional Internet Registries formed the Number Resource Organization (NRO) to formalize their cooperative efforts. The NRO exists to protect the unallocated number resource pool, to promote and protect the bottom-up policy development process, and to act as a focal point for Internet community input into the RIR system.
More information on the NRO can be found on its website at http://www.nro.net.
Internet Governance Activities
ARIN and the other RIRs, primarily speaking collectively as the NRO, have participated in meetings and monitored discussions on Internet governance since 2001, when the United Nations General Assembly proposed the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) to discuss issues surrounding the digital divide. Other U.N. activities include the Working Group on Internet Governance, called for during WSIS Phase I, and the Internet Governance Forum, called for during WSIS Phase II.
ARIN, the NRO, and the entire Internet community will monitor future Internet governance activities and will participate where appropriate as the process continues.
Internet Governance Forum
One major outcome of WSIS Phase II was a call to convene an Internet Governance Forum (IGF). The IGF, which will operate for five years, is a global forum to discuss public policy matters and other issues related to the worldwide deployment of the Internet. The IGF is multilateral and multi-stakeholder and represents governments, the private sector, and civil society, including members of the academic and technical communities.
The first meeting of the IGF was held 30 October - 2 November 2006, in Athens, Greece. The second event was held 12-15 November 2007 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Future meetings will take place in India (2008) and Egypt (2009), with the location of the fifth IGF yet to be determined.
Two members of the NRO Executive Council, Raul Echeberria (LACNIC) and Adiel Akplogan (AfriNIC), are part of the Advisory Group responsible for planning the meetings. IGF 2007 explored five broad themes of access, diversity, openness, security, and critical Internet resources.
How You Can Participate in the IGFThe next meeting of the IGF will take place in Hyderabad, India, from 3-6 December 2008.
- Follow the announcements and calls for comment at http://www.intgovforum.org/.
- Monitor the ARIN homepage and NRO websites for updates on their activities.
- Attend meetings where possible, either in-person or via remote participation. Check ARIN Community Meeting Calendar for upcoming events.
- Many organizations participate in Internet governance activities. See these websites for more information on how to participate:
Past Activities:
| Event | Dates | |
|---|---|---|
| Internet Governance Forum 2007 | 12-15 November 2007 | |
| Internet Governance Forum 2006 | 30 October - 2 November 2006 | |
| Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG) | December 2003 - June 2005 | |
| World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) | ||
| WSIS Phase I | 10-13 December 2003 | |
| WSIS Phase II | 16-18 November 2005 | |