Mirjam Kühne, who earned a degree in Computer Science from TU Berlin and has participated in RIPE for more than two decades, currently holds the position of Chair of the RIPE Community.

As RIPE 93 draws near, the Chair Team is providing an overview of recent developments in policy work, Working Group progress, updates to the Code of Conduct framework, and participation in key Internet industry conferences.

RIPE 93

Sofia will host RIPE 93 in the coming weeks. Although the window for submitting plenary session proposals has closed, contributors can still propose talks for individual working groups. Several working groups are actively recruiting new co-chairs; interested parties should monitor the relevant mailing lists. Registration remains open.

Applications for fellowships to attend RIPE 94 and RIPE 95, both scheduled for 2027, are now being accepted. The application deadline is set for 23 November 2026.

Code of Conduct document update

The original RIPE document outlining the selection process and responsibilities for the RIPE Code of Conduct Team (ripe-793) included provisions for an initial bootstrap phase that can now be refined based on practical experience accumulated over several years. A revised draft has been circulated to the RIPE List, with feedback accepted until 24 October 2026.

The leadership team plans to host an open forum to share lessons learned from implementing the code of conduct within RIPE. The session is designed primarily for network operator groups and comparable organizations seeking to establish their own code of conduct frameworks and looking for practical guidance.

Policy update and Working Group activities

  • Policy proposal 2026-01 Simplify Assignment of first ASN has advanced to Review Phase, with the RIPE NCC scheduled to conduct an Impact Analysis.
  • Proposal 2024-01 Revised IPv6 PI Assignment Policy has also progressed to Review Phase. Concerns have emerged regarding the proposal's complexity, and stakeholders have recommended dividing it into separate proposals.
  • The RIPE NCC is developing a policy proposal to clarify the IPv6 Assignment and Allocation Policy (ripe-738).

A comprehensive overview of all active policy proposals is available on the RIPE website.

The Routing WG mailing list has featured an extensive debate regarding the combination of remote triggered blackhole routing (RTBH) with RPKI. Concurrently, the DNS WG mailing list is hosting discussions about potential consequences of United States sanctions on Top Level Domains.

Industry events

IETF 126

In late July, the Chair attended IETF Meeting 126 in Vienna. Despite initial worries that the venue capacity might prove insufficient, the well-attended gathering proceeded smoothly and proved highly productive. The Sunday IEPG session, which typically addresses operational concerns, featured several noteworthy presentations this year, including a contribution from Tim Bruijnzeels, RPKI specialist at the RIPE NCC.

The IETF TIPTOP WG continued examining IP address requirements. Members raised objections to IETF involvement in IP address policy matters, noting that this responsibility belongs to the RIR communities.

Artificial intelligence received heightened focus throughout the IETF, particularly regarding whether it represents a fundamental threat to the standards-development process. Traditional approaches such as "reaching rough consensus and running code" were designed for human participation. Participants questioned how consensus can be determined when AI agents take part in discussions, how such agents can be identified, and what value independent implementations retain if AI generates the code.

The Research and Analysis of Standard-Setting Processes Research Group (RASP RG) hosted multiple engaging presentations and conversations, including remarks by Ilke Ihan examining the evolution of RIPE mailing list engagement. The IETF 126 proceedings contain all presentations, video recordings, and meeting notes.

NLNOG 2026

The Dutch Network Operators Group held its 2026 gathering at an expanded venue designed to accommodate growing participation. The event offered valuable presentations and provided an opportunity to reconnect with members of the RIPE community.

RIPE NCC EB Meeting #195

The Chair participated in the RIPE NCC Executive Board meeting, providing an update on RIPE community developments. The agenda included several matters of relevance to the RIPE community. Meeting minutes will be released within the coming weeks.

INEX

Anna Wilson represented the community at the INEX Meeting, which commemorated the 30th anniversary of Ireland's Internet Exchange Point. Given the meeting's focus on resilience, she presented insights from other engineering sectors on how they approach safety, resilience, and disruption management. The complete agenda is available on the INEX website.

Forum Standaardisatie

The Chair attended the 20th anniversary celebration of this organization dedicated to advancing open standards adoption, primarily among government bodies. The program examined digital sovereignty, the opportunities and dangers associated with artificial intelligence, and the advantages of open standards and open source software.