Our Mission

Our planet is in crisis, suffering grave problems unable to be managed by nations acting unilaterally in a chaotic world. There is an urgent need for the world’s people and governments to join in achieving a new level of global cooperation that can only be sustained by a commitment to the planet as a genuine community.

WFM is a global movement dedicated to the realization of global justice, peace and sustainable prosperity through the development of democratic international institutions and the global application of international law. WFM believes that federalism applied on an international level, inspired by the experiences of the federal political systems worldwide that represent 40% of the world’s citizens, is the best way to accomplish these goals. Our vision is of a world where people have a sense of citizenship beyond national borders, to include their region and the global community.

World federalism is based on the principle of subsidiarity, which confers power to the most appropriate and local levels of government possible. This allows the preservation of national and local identities as well as legitimate sovereign rights, while promoting collective action on regional or global issues such as the prevention of war, the eradication of poverty and the preservation of the environment. WFM’s vision of federalism also includes a vibrant civil society, active throughout all layers of government.

OUR MOVEMENT

Founded shortly after the creation of the United Nations in the Swiss city of Montreux as an international peace movement, WFM is an international non-governmental organization with UN consultative status. A committed network of 28 member organizations and individual members in more than 80 countries is coordinated by WFM’s International Secretariat, co-located in The Hague and New York.

OUR APPROACH

WFM has a long history of leadership and innovation in promoting international democracy, justice and the rule of law. Our primary focus is on strengthening the structures and capacities of international organizations to work effectively in these areas, while promoting the development of norms, policies and practices that allow meaningful global action on specific issues. To achieve our goals, WFM works with and helps to develop international civil society networks, and partners with like-minded governments and international organizations. Located near the United Nations headquarters in New York, WFM often serves as a hub of information and collective action on UN-related issues.