The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is honored to announce Donna Austin, a long-time member of the ICANN community, as the recipient of the 2023 ICANN Community Excellence Award.
A selection panel of representatives from ICANN Supporting Organizations and Advisory Committees recognized Austin's commitment to ICANN's multistakeholder model and her consensus building skills. ICANN Interim President and CEO Sally Costerton presented the award to Donna Austin during the ICANN77 Community Networking Cocktail on 14 June 2023.
The ICANN Community Excellence Award honors members of the ICANN community who have invested deeply in consensus-based solutions and contributed in a substantive way to policymaking within the ICANN ecosystem.
Austin has been an active member of the ICANN community since 2001. She has collaborated with many ICANN community groups and committees over the past 22 years. During her service, Donna served as the chair of the Registries Stakeholder Group and the vice chair of the Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO) Council. During her tenure as the GNSO Council vice chair, Austin served on the Community Excellence Award Selection Panel in 2016 and 2017. She also managed the secretariat function for the Governmental Advisory Committee in the early years of ICANN.
Spearheading the development of "Policy Forum" format, Austin contributed to the effectiveness of ICANN public meetings. The selection panel also commended the instrumental role Austin played in the development and design of the Customer Standing Committee.
Austin is currently chairing the Internationalized Domain Names Expedited Policy Development Process Team. She is a former ICANN organization employee where she served in several roles between 2005 and 2010.