LACNIC XVII: An Event to Remember
24/05/2012
By Ernesto Majó, Communications Manager at LACNIC
LACNIC XVII: An Event to Remember
The LACNIC XVII meeting held in Quito, Ecuador will remain in the memory of those of us who had the privilege of participating. It was a demonstration of the growth and maturity achieved by the regional community that has integrated all stakeholders in the critical discussions on Internet development and stability in Latin America and the Caribbean.
This meeting was special in more than one sense. First, because of the quality of the panel and forum presentations and discussions that each year bring us new topics that are relevant to Internet development and stability. Second, because of the important level of participation and attendance: more than 500 participants (including a large number of operators) from 32 different countries attended the 25 sessions that took place during 6 days of intense work. To this we must add remote participation via webcasting and the hundreds of tweets with the #LACNIC_XVII hashtag. The treatment of new topics and issues that are central to the region’s development, such as the Strategies for Broadband Deployment in Latin America and the Caribbean panel, which was made up by renown specialists representing governments, private companies, and international organizations (ECLAC, ITU) was another highlight. In addition, there were many parallel meetings and agreements, where participants witnessed and joined the quest for the benefits of the Internet to reach every sector of society in each of our countries.
A special mention goes to SUPERTEL, the organization that hosted the event, who contributed its expertise to ensure that the meeting could be conducted with the level of excellence and human warmth required to receive and serve all participants, and also for its convening power, which directly benefitted the Ecuadorean community and thus incorporated new stakeholders to regional processes.
LACNIC’s visit to Ecuador has been a major step. A new Internet generation has opened its way, one that will promote and expand the work started ten years ago by early Internet pioneers.