Tatsuya Igarashi

AB Meet the Candidates Responses

What priorities should the AB take on in the next year? How will you help accomplish them?

... I am interested in the New Meeting Format. The engagement of AC representatives is important for W3C to become an even more member-driven and lead standards body. The biannual AC meetings should not only focus on strategic issues, but should also be a place where AC representatives can bring back the activities of the W3C technical groups and use them in their standardization strategy, and where horizontal communication among members and technical groups is encouraged to build the W3C as a community. From this perspective, we would like more AC representatives to participate in the annual meetings (aka. AC and TPAC) and discuss in the AB to make the meetings beneficial for the members.

The AB positions are unpaid but require regular meetings at inconvenient times/locations, preparation for said meetings, and collaboration with people you might disagree with. Why do you personally wish to take this on?

... I have been involved in standards activities of industrial forums for over 30 years, and for the past 15 years, I have felt honored and rewarded to participate in the W3C, which develops technical standards for the Web that benefit people around the world. Fortunately, my company supports my contribution to W3C as an AB, and I will take on this position.

How do you think W3C should build consensus in large groups, and can you speak to your ability & experience building consensus (at W3C or elsewhere)?

... In general, the larger the group, the more difficult it is to reach a consensus, especially with pepole as diverse and its multistakeholder structure as the W3C. In W3C, the Advisory Board has the responsibility to listen to the views of W3C members and the web community and reflect them in the discussions of the Advisory Board. AB members have to respect the opinions of each other and reach a consensus with mutual understanding. I have long experience in global cross-industries standardization forums and believe I have the skills to build consensus with people of diverse values and interests.

How can W3C improve its diversity and inclusion, and what is the role of the AB in improving those?

... We have been discussing improving diversity and inclusion at AB. The issues have diverse aspects and varying degrees of individual value. For example, I prioritize diversity and inclusion from geological and industrial perspectives. To improve diversity and inclusion, AB members must discuss improvement measures based on the views of many people, not just individuals.

The AB has been working on the Vision for W3C, as a member of the AB how would you put the Vision into practice? How might it impact our decision making or priorities?

... I appreciate the vision of the W3C as published as an AB note and agree with the statements. AB expects that it will be published as a W3C statement in the future and the member-agreed vision will also guide the AB in its discussions. On the other hand, there are many aspects of AB's agenda items and it may not be possible to satisfy all statements in some cases; what is important for AB members is to explain why its views are important in light of the W3C vision in each discussion and to reach consensus with mutual understandings.