Internet DRAFT - draft-moonesamy-diversity-attracting-people
draft-moonesamy-diversity-attracting-people
Internet Engineering Task Force S. Moonesamy
Internet-Draft 5 October 2023
Intended status: Informational
Expires: 7 April 2024
Attracting people from emerging regions into the IETF
draft-moonesamy-diversity-attracting-people-00
Abstract
In 2013 the IETF Chair set up a Diversity Design Team to determine
how to address issues such as geographic diversity. This document
attempted to address the challenge of attracting people from emerging
regions who can contribute to IETF work into the IETF.
Status of This Memo
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Table of Contents
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2. Support for participants from emerging regions . . . . . . . 2
2.1. Objectives of the ISOC Fellowship programme . . . . . . . 3
2.2. Selection criteria for the ISOC Fellowship programme . . 3
3. Expectations of the IETF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
4. Suggestions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
4.1. Selection criteria for the fellowship . . . . . . . . . . 5
4.2. Evaluation panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
4.3. Guidance for applicants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
4.4. Effectiveness of the fellowship . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
5. Open Issue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
6. IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
7. Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
8. Informative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Author's Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1. Introduction
The IETF Chair set up a Diversity Design Team in July, 2013 to
determine how to address issues such as geographic diversity. There
was already an ISOC Fellowship programme to the IETF for participants
from emerging regions. This document attempted to address the
challenge of attracting people from emerging regions who could
contribute to IETF work into the IETF.
Section 2 lists the objectives of the ISOC Fellowship programme and
the selection criteria. The programme did help new participants to
establish an initial face-to-face contact. However, long-term
benefit required helping these participants to engage in the full
range of IETF interactions. The most effective way to contribute to
the IETF was through on-going active participation and by reviewing
and commenting about working group drafts. There are suggestions in
Section 4 to align the ISOC Fellowship programme with the
expectations of the IETF by having selection criteria that encouraged
active IETF participation, and by having an evaluation panel with the
expertise to evaluate IETF contributions.
The ISOC Fellowship programme to the IETF ended around 2019.
2. Support for participants from emerging regions
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2.1. Objectives of the ISOC Fellowship programme
The Internet Society's efforts were encompassed by a basic Fellowship
Programme and a Returning Fellowship Programme. The Internet Society
has provided significant financial support given that attendance by
technologists from emerging and developing economies was limited
[FEL]. It was considered that actually attending a face-to- face
IETF meeting promoted a stronger understanding of the standards
process, laid the foundation for active involvement in IETF work, and
facilitated personal networking with others that had similar
technical interests [FEL].
The main purpose [FEL] of the ISOC Fellowship programme was to:
* Raise global awareness about the IETF and its work.
* Foster greater understanding of, and participation in, the work of
the IETF by technologists from emerging and developing economies.
* Provide an opportunity for networking with individuals from around
the world with similar technical interests.
* Identify and foster potential future leaders from emerging and
developing economies.
* Demonstrate the Internet community's commitment to fostering
greater global participation in Internet Forums such as the IETF.
The goals of the ISOC Returning fellowship programme [RET] were to
* Provide an opportunity for highly committed former Fellows to
return to the IETF to advance specific standards work.
* More fully integrate technologists from emerging and developing
economies into the IETF.
* Advance the technical leadership potential of individuals from
emerging and developing economies.
* Provide immediate value to a working group by participating in
scribing the working group meeting and contributing to the meeting
minutes.
2.2. Selection criteria for the ISOC Fellowship programme
Some of the requirements [SEL] for qualifying for ISOC Fellowship
programme were:
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* Hold a university-level computer science, information technology,
or similar degree, or can demonstrate similar and relevant work
experience.
* Be employed in a technical or technical management capacity with a
data network provider (including university networks), a
technology vendor, a local technical association, or other similar
organisation OR be a university-level computer science/information
technology professor, lecturer, or student currently undertaking
research in one or more areas of current IETF standardisation
work. Students must be enrolled in a graduate-level program
(Masters or Ph.D).
* Possess a strong understanding of how the IETF relates to and
impacts their work or area of study and demonstrate how specific
areas of current IETF work are relevant to their pursuits.
Some of the attributes [SEL] that reflect favorably on the
application were:
* Involvement in one or more regional data networking organisations,
such as regional operators groups
* Having actively participated in the work of an IETF Working Group
through the mailing lists.
3. Expectations of the IETF
The ISOC Fellowship Programme was primarily useful for initial
introductions to IETF activities and culture. However the goal in
the IETF, itself, was for continuing and active participation, which
went considerably beyond introductions. Moving from introduction to
participation required additional effort.. Although attending IETF
meetings fostered an understanding of the work of the IETF it did not
ensure active participation. Active participation in the work of an
IETF Working Group was listed as an advantage instead of a
requirement for the fellowship "[SEL].
The selection criteria put an emphasis on university-level
qualifications and the academic interests of the applicant "[SEL].
It has been mentioned in discussions about academic participation
that the IETF filters out proposals from researchers simply because
they just do not fit in standardization work [DIN].
The Returning Fellowship programme was a laudable initiative by the
Internet Society to further encourage IETF participation from an
under-represented sector. It was unclear how an ISOC Fellow could
build upon the initial -- but limited -- experiences of the basic
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Programme and Returning Fellow Programme, to achieve the Fellow's
technical leadership potential, through on-going, active
participation in the IETF.
4. Suggestions
4.1. Selection criteria for the fellowship
The most effective way to contribute to the IETF was through active
participation and by reviewing and commenting about working group
drafts [FAA]. It was proposed that the applicant fulfilled the
following criteria:
* Be proficient in English.
* Can be objectively said to have actively participated in IETF
activities for more than six months, and subjectively, such that
those contributions are considered useful.
* For example, reviewing drafts, commenting on IETF Last Calls,
writing code for drafts or taking part in interop testing were
fine ways to be seen to have participated. Candidates whose
contributions were considered more useful should be preferred over
those who are less useful. Judging utility for contributions
requires knowledge of the specific field.
* Resident of a country in an emerging region.
4.2. Evaluation panel
It was suggested to include Area Directors or Working Group Chairs on
the evaluation panel [FAS]. These people will bring in the expertise
to evaluate the reviews performed by the applicant. They can also
determine whether the applicant has an understanding of the work done
in the IETF. It was suggested that the evaluation panel prioritize
people who have been contributing over time to real IETF work.
4.3. Guidance for applicants
The fellowship was about people who can demonstrate commitment and
could collaborate with other IETF participants to perform IETF work.
Applicants could familiarize themselves with the technologies being
discussed by, for example, implementing the relevant specifications
or evaluating implementations [ACS]. Applicants could ask for advice
on the edu-discuss@ietf.org mailing list [EDU].
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4.4. Effectiveness of the fellowship
The effectiveness of the fellowship could be assessed by tracking the
IETF activities of the fellows and doing a follow-up to find out why
fellows drop out.
5. Open Issue
The following was left open as it might require broader feedback.
There were comments to remove the "resident of a country in an
emerging region" suggestion (Section 4.1) so that people from
"developed" regions who would not ordinarily have the means to attend
an IETF meeting were included in the programme.
6. IANA Considerations
This memo includes no request to IANA.
7. Security Considerations
This document should not affect the security of the Internet.
8. Informative References
[FEL] "About the Fellowship", <http://www.internetsociety.org/
what-we-do/education-and-leadership-programmes/ietf-and-
ois-programmes/internet-society-fellowship-0>.
[RET] "Returning Programme", <http://www.internetsociety.org/
what-we-do/education-and-leadership-programmes/ietf-and-
ois-programmes/internet-society-fellowship-4>.
[SEL] "Selection Criteria for Fellowships to the IETF",
<http://www.internetsociety.org/what-we-do/education-and-
leadership-programmes/ietf-and-ois-programmes/internet-
society-fellowship/selection-criteria>.
[DIN] "ietf networking research", <http://www.ietf.org/mail-
archive/web/diversity/current/msg00344.html>.
[FAA] "ISOC fellowship - Attracting new people and work into the
IETF", <http://www.ietf.org/mail-
archive/web/diversity/current/msg00339.html>.
[FAS] "ISOC fellowship - Attracting new people and work into the
IETF", <http://www.ietf.org/mail-
archive/web/diversity/current/msg00337.html>.
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[ACS] "Attracting people from emerging regions into the IETF",
<http://www.ietf.org/mail-archive/web/diversity/current/
msg00355.html>.
[EDU] "edu-discuss mailing list",
<https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/edu-discuss>.
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Alejandro Acosta, Dave Crocker, Adrian
Farrel, Stephen Farrell, Roque Gagliano, Vinayak Hegde and Kathleen
Moriarty for contributing to the discussions about participation from
emerging countries.
Author's Address
S. Moonesamy
Email: sm+ietf@elandsys.com
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