PIR Officially Files for .NGO and .ONG.

Sent! Yesterday marked the official submission of our applications for .NGO and .ONG to ICANN (download press release). It’s been a lengthy and arduous process up to this point, but one well worth the effort, as we believe that we submitted extremely strong applications for both domains. We appreciate the guidance and feedback that we received from you over the past year. Without the community’s involvement, our applications wouldn’t be possible. We also know that our own work does not end here; this is just another milestone in a long but important journey.

Starting today, we are moving into a new phase of the application process – one that will require not only our participation but also the support of the NGO community at large. It presents a unique opportunity to you to participate in ICANN’s "bottom-up, consensus-driven, multi-stakeholder model." For an overview of ICANN’s timeline, see the abbreviated chart below, but please keep in mind that these days may shift slightly:

This timeline is an overview of the major activities and deadlines during the application process. However, there are other factors not mentioned here that could affect our application, such as the new "batching process." ICANN plans to review applications in “batches” if the total number of new gTLD applications significantly exceeds 500. We will learn more about this process in the coming weeks and will certainly keep you informed of when our .NGO and .ONG applications will be up for review. We will also update you on any other significant events that may affect our applications’ timing and status.

Help Us Build .NGO/.ONG, Share Your Thoughts.

As an extension of our outreach efforts, we are launching a series of surveys for the NGO community to understand your needs and challenges moving forward. Here’s the first question:

Q: Are you collecting donations online today? Whether you are collecting donations online or offline, please tell us what challenges you are facing when trying to implement this feature. For example, is it a technical challenge, finding the right tool/partners, or having the funds to build an online presence?

Click here to respond.

.NGO/.ONG Seminars in Ecuador and Guatemala.

Over the past nine months, PIR along with AMGlobal Consulting connected with NGO leaders worldwide via a series of sponsored events in Africa, Latin America and South Asia. Recently, on 19 March, our outreach team conducted a workshop for local NGOs in Ecuador and Guatemala. The events were designed to build awareness of the .NGO/.ONG initiative as well as to strengthen ties between PIR and the global NGO community. While topics varied from one region to the next, commonalities emerged:

• Everyone is looking for an opportunity to learn and to build modern skills;
• Most participants want a trusted online venue where they can connect with others in the NGO community; and
• Many hope to find new ways to expand global fundraising.

As an integral part of each event, we encouraged participating NGOs to offer advice on the initiative’s structure including: who can and cannot register for .NGO/.ONG, what PIR should provide in addition to a domain name to help NGOs worldwide address some of their concerns, and how the NGO community can remain involved in the future.

For more updates, please visit www.ngotld.org.

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