As 2026 gets underway, the RIPE Chair Team shares updates on RIPE 92 preparations, active WG discussions, the new fellowship programme, governance document revisions, and key industry developments and events on the horizon.
The first month of 2026 is behind us. I hope the new year started well for you. Here is a short update of what the RIPE Chair Team and the RIPE community have been up to since our last report.
RIPE 92
The RIPE 92 Meeting in May seems far away, but preparations are in full swing. The call for presentations - both for the plenary and the WG sessions - is open. The deadline for plenary talks ends on 9 March. You can submit proposals for WG topics up until the RIPE meeting.
Please note the questionnaire related to providing childcare at RIPE Meetings. You can still fill it in until 6 February. This will help us to better understand the demand and needs.
RIPE WG activities
- Database WG: There is a discussion on the Reuse of AS numbers and if more is needed to clean up the database.
- Cooperation WG: Please note the updates regularly sent to the Cooperation WG regarding various upcoming EU regulations that might have an effect on your operations, most recently the Proposed Digital Networks Act (DNA). While the RIPE NCC keeps an eye on these developments, we also need engagement from the community. It is good to see that a number of experienced community members and RIPE NCC staff participate in the NIS2 Multi-Stakeholder Forum.
RIPE Fellowship
The deadline for our new fellowship programme ended and we received a good number of applications. As mentioned before, this new programme will require a lot more involvement not only of the fellows but also the mentors (or coaches as they are called to distinguish them from the meeting mentors we will continue to have). The interaction between the coaches and the fellows will begin soon and I am looking forward to welcoming a number of well-prepared new community members.
RIPE governance
We are in the process of updating a number of RIPE governance documents:
RIPE Programme Committee Charter
There was consensus on the updated RIPE Programme Committee charter which will soon be published as a ripe-doc. The main changes were made to the composition of the PC to ensure the Central Asia Peering and Interconnection Forum (CAPIF community) has a seat on the RIPE PC.
RIPE WG Chair job description
The deadline for comments for the new version of the RIPE WG job description is over. We received a number of comments and suggestions to improve the clarity of the document in certain places. Following feedback we received at the RIPE 91 community plenary, we will also strengthen the language of the section that describes the WG chairs selection process. You can expect a new version of the document in the coming weeks.
RIPE document store
We continue to improve the consistency of the metadata in the RIPE Document Store. After a presentation by the RIPE NCC at RIPE 91, it was clear that the community agrees that the integrity of this document series is important and that there is support to put resources into this activity. We will keep you posted.
Industry events
WSIS+20: I followed a number of online sessions organised by the IGF-NL and the IGD-D. Those who participated in the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS+20) meeting in New York in December updated us on the outcomes and next steps. Everyone is excited that the IGF got a permanent mandate. Remaining challenges are financial support (the German government was proud to report that they already donated 1 million EUR for the IGF) and the role of governments in this multistakeholder forum.
Upcoming Industry Events
APRICOT 2026: I will participate in the APRICOT 2026 conference and I am very much looking forward to reconnect with colleagues in this region.
Roundtable: On 3 March, I will be at the Government Roundtable, a yearly event the RIPE NCC organises for government representatives in Brussels. The topics this time will be the WSIS+20 outcomes and the importance of open standards.
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