We are far too hesitant to bring up mandate creep as civil society and public interest advocates in technology. The proliferation of multilateral and multistakeholder spaces is not inevitable. We should think of lockdown as an elimination diet and be wary of what we add back in.

@mehwishaansari can give a masterclass in how to do this consistently in the ITU, making sure they stay within mandate and not include issues that are being handled elsewhere.

In general the technical community does this well, with mandated liaisons between bodies to ensure that issues aren't being duplicated, proper communication channels remain open.

2020 was predicted to be "the year of the advisory board", mostly as private sector led initiatives. But I'm not seeing consistent and clear criticism of norms proliferation, commitments to synergy, nor the use of cross-body liaisons.

Ask people who advocate in global trade. This proliferation does not go well over the long term: https://poseidon01.ssrn.com/delivery.php?ID=174093090115101064030068089081107027052072023065091036126124066087082102005127007086061123008063054013023107080097070104010009041010074040047002110025079127030031046064063083099006099120087116074066113003080076006030082019015031026113016099124021113&EXT=pdf