Progress on Internet Governance

This report advocates for the renewal of the Internet Governance Forum's (IGF) mandate, highlighting its success as a multi-stakeholder, bottom-up model for global technology governance. It argues that the IGF has effectively defused tensions over U.S. oversight of ICANN and provided a space for developing countries to address issues like universal access and open standards. The authors suggest that the 'Internet model' of shared ownership and collaborative engagement could be applied to other critical global challenges, including climate change and sustainable development.

• The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) acted as a critical diplomatic tool by creating a "ceasefire" in international disputes regarding the United States' oversight of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). This allowed the global community to move beyond narrow debates over the domain name system and address broader policy issues affecting developing countries and global sustainability.
• The IGF employs a multi-stakeholder, bottom-up model that differs from traditional UN intergovernmental processes. This model is based on pillars of shared ownership, collaborative engagement, and open standards, which the report suggests could provide valuable lessons for other global governance forums and the management of other technologies, such as biotechnology, nanotechnology, and geo-engineering.

APA

Vetter, T., Andjelkovic, M., & Creech, H. (2009). Progress on Internet Governance. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/innovation_tech_governance.pdf

Chicago

Vetter, Tony, Maja Andjelkovic, and Heather Creech. Progress on Internet Governance. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2009. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/innovation_tech_governance.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Vetter |first1=Tony |last2=Andjelkovic |first2=Maja |last3=Creech |first3=Heather |title=Progress on Internet Governance |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=July 2009 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/innovation_tech_governance.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{vetter2009progress, author = {Vetter, Tony and Andjelkovic, Maja and Creech, Heather}, title = {{Progress on Internet Governance}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2009}, month = jul, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/innovation_tech_governance.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }