Changes at the World Federalist Movement – Institute for Global Policy

The World Federalist Movement – Institute for Global Policy (WFM-IGP) is currently undergoing an internal restructuring of our programs and projects.  This Q & A is intended to address the questions most likely to arise among WFM-IGP’s members, associates, supporters and colleagues with regard to these changes.  If you have additional questions, please contact the International Secretariat in New York at info@wfm-igp.org or +1 (212) 599-1320. 

How is WFM-IGP changing?

The World Federalist Movement (WFM) evolved out of a series of organizations and efforts that started in the 1930s as a response to the failure of the League of Nations. At the end of the Second World War, numerous citizens’ groups formed across Europe and North America to address the need for effective mechanisms of ensuring international peace and stability. The groups started working independently of each other, publishing newsletters and pushing for reform and monitoring of the newly formed United Nations. By 1947 these independent groups recognized the need for unity in their movement if they were to achieve unity in the world. They agreed to meet in Montreux, Switzerland in August 1947 to work on forming a cohesive group, creating the World Federalist Movement. 

Since 1947, WFM has been dedicated to ensuring democratic global structures accountable to the citizens of the world, the division of international authority among separate agencies and a separation of powers among judicial, executive and parliamentary bodies. Only truly democratic and representative bodies can have legitimate authority over all levels of government. WFM is concerned with protecting the rights of every person on the planet and preserving the environment for the global community. 

The Institute for Global Policy (IGP) was founded in 1983 by four WFM leaders as the research and policy analysis arm of the World Federalist Movement. The Institute is the primary education mechanism of WFM and seeks to promote better understanding of the UN and other international organizations. IGP was also conceived of as a framework for WFM to promote debate on key issues of global governance in the media and other matters requiring a more neutral platform.

As a result of an increasing need to focus on its core mandate in the face of enormous challenges to the principles of world federalism, WFM will begin to concentrate its efforts more strategically and comprehensively on promoting the federalist democratic political philosophy through programs related to international democracy, the rule of law, and economic and environmental governance.  Over the past year, we have also begun the process of further developing the identity and profile of IGP, structuring it as the ‘neutral’ policy-analysis, research, program development, publications and media-friendly mechanism it was originally designed to be. Projects which are not as directly related to the world federalist agenda will now be placed under the IGP rubric. However, WFM-IGP will remain a single legal entity, with many common program objectives and some shared projects.

What are the reasons for these changes?

The primary reason for these changes is to allow WFM to focus on promoting world federalism at a time when the concept is increasingly misrepresented and misunderstood. WFM is being restructured in a way that allows its policies and programs to express clearly the world federalist ideal.  

Unfortunately, it has been the opponents of national, international and global federalism that have been defining the terms of our movement in recent years. In the USA, federalism has been ‘branded’ by those who are opposed to everything the movement has worked for over the past 60 years. The term has been appropriated by the Federalist Society, a group of self-described US conservatives and libertarians whose policies and actions promote extreme nationalism and states’ rights. Their principles are not in conformity with those of the original American federalists, the founders of the US Constitution, much less with WFM. They gravely undermine what could be achieved globally through the promotion of democratic federalism at the regional and international level. 

The increasing prominence of the Federalist Society in the US has led to many challenges for WFM staff and supporters. WFM’s Executive Committee Chair was warned recently by a high-level official at the United Nations of the risk our name runs of being misunderstood in the USA and at the UN. WFM staff have been increasingly confronted at meetings by government delegates, UN staff and NGO representatives who think WFM is a radical conservative US organization and, as a result, are reluctant to join our networks or otherwise be associated with our work.

Federalism has also developed negative connotations in much of Europe, although for different reasons.  In particular, there are many who view a stronger federal system for Europe as coinciding with the political and economic weakening of their national governments. As a result, the name “European Movement” has been adopted by European associates, dropping the reference to federalism.

Rather than taking a similar approach of dropping “federalist” from our name, the International Secretariat has decided to do the opposite: to redouble its efforts to promote the original conception of a federalist political philosophy and its relationship to peace, self-determination, democratic governance and the rule of law. 

At the same time, raising the profile of IGP will be helpful in the promotion of these goals by providing an affiliated, neutral forum for policy development, program development, publications and media outreach. Furthermore, IGP will take on some of the current WFM-IGP projects that do not relate as directly to the promotion of world federalism, allowing for further clarity.

How will this affect WFM’s mandate?

WFM’s mandate will remain unchanged. WFM’s global movement will remain dedicated to the realization of global justice, peace and sustainable prosperity, a federal international system with democratic multilateral institutions and the application of international law. 

How will this affect the current programs and projects?

The WFM International Secretariat’s current program areas will remain unchanged. We will continue to develop and implement projects in the following six areas: federalism and constitutional democracy; promoting the rule of law; working towards a lasting peace; international democracy; global economic governance; and global environmental governance. 

At the project level, the International Secretariat is consolidating within WFM those that truly reflect the application of constitutional democratic federalism to regional and global governance. These include, among others: 

At the same time, projects that indirectly promote federalism but that are not as clearly related to advancing the federalist political philosophy are being placed within the IGP framework. IGP’s projects will include:

As noted above, IGP will also conduct research, produce publications, develop new project areas for both WFM and IGP and engage the media. 

Given that some members of WFM would like a name change, is this what these changes are really about?

This is not a name change.  On the contrary, the intention is to allow WFM not only to remain an important and viable NGO but to strengthen its global networks and become an even more effective organization. The purpose of these changes is to allow WFM to sharpen its focus on ‘branding’ world federalism as a sophisticated, nuanced and extremely effective form of constitutional democracy – a philosophy that if applied to the development of democratic global governance could ensure global, regional and national structures that enhance international peace and justice.  Consolidating within WFM the projects that most directly relate to this goal will increase our ability to collaborate with other federalist organizations, reinforce our capacity to fulfill our  mandate and confront misunderstandings about the concept of world federalism.

Using the more neutral framework of the Institute for Global Policy for our projects that indirectly promote federalism will also have several benefits. First, it will facilitate our collaboration with NGOs that do not necessarily understand or want to promote federalist principles but whose mandate does relate to a particular project such as the Responsibility to Protect – Civil Society. As our role is often the development of networks on key issues, offering information services, support and coordination, it is important to remove any barriers to the full participation of as many global civil society groups as possible. This has been a particular challenge in recent years with the very public face of the Federalist Society, a group that many progressive organizations oppose, and for which WFM is increasingly confused. 

Second, WFM is an advocacy organization and achieves its goals through the effectiveness of this advocacy.  Having a more neutral, affiliated entity can provide additional opportunities for research, publications and media access that need not be linked to the advocacy work.

How will WFM members be affected by these changes?

WFM members will not be affected negatively by these changes. They will remain members of WFM. WFM’s International Executive Committee (or Board of Directors) will remain unchanged, and it has given its full support to this process. WFM’s Statutes, By-Laws and governance framework, including a WFM Congress every four years which elects a Council and the Executive Committee, will remain unchanged as well. 

The International Secretariat will continue to coordinate the efforts of the Movement by directing programs and ensuring communication between the various organizations, and will hopefully become even more effectual in this role as it focuses on the core mandate.   

How will donors be affected? 

As WFM-IGP will remain a single legal entity and WFM and IGP will share common goals and program areas, current donations from foundations, governments and individuals will not be affected by these changes. In the future, donors will have the option of contributing specifically to either WFM or IGP for projects being implemented by one entity or the other, or making a contribution jointly to WFM-IGP.