b)        the formation of global ministries to manage the world affairs in several aspects of our lives: energy, agriculture, environment, health, Earth resources, Earth management, security and safety, emergencies and rescues, trade, banks, speculation on world markets, peace, family and human development, water resources protection, family and human development, water resources protection, youth, education, justice, science and technology, finance, human resources, ethics, human and Earth rights, sustainable development, industry, and manufacturing products, etc. Global ministries will be given power to rule themselves in harmony with each other. The WTO will not be the only global ministry that can rule on cases related to trade.      the formation of global ministries to manage the world affairs in several aspects of our lives: energy, agriculture, environment, health, Earth resources, Earth management, security and safety, emergencies and rescues, trade, banks, speculation on world markets, peace, family and human development, water resources protection, family and human development, water resources protection, youth, education, justice, science and technology, finance, human resources, ethics, human and Earth rights, sustainable development, industry, and manufacturing products, etc. Global ministries will be given power to rule themselves in harmony with each other. The WTO will not be the only global ministry that can rule on cases related to trade.The Earth Community Organization, the Human Family, is calling for the immediate formation of the Earth Ministry of Health. The globalization of trade, the extensive mouvement of people all over the world, the increase of poverty and diseases in developing countries and all over the world, have caused pathogens and exotic diseases to migrate over enormous distances and now, are an increasing threat to local ecosystems and communities, economies and health of every human being and all life. The Earth Community Organization, the Human Family, is calling this threat of the upmost importance and must be dealt with immediately by every nation. We must manage health in the world. We are calling for the immediate creation of the Earth Ministry of Health (see workshop session C, come supporting us) .

c)        the formation of the Earth Court of Justice to hear cases and to prosecute those nations, corporations, communities, individuals who commit crimes such as:

* nation states
* national political and military leaders accountable for violations of international humanitarian law
* 'core' crimes of genocide
* crimes against humanity and human and Earth rights
* war crimes
* crimes with significant impacts perpetuated against the life-support systems of the planet (for instance wars and use of weapons of widespread destruction are listed under this category)
* crimes related to the relentless misused of the Earth resources
* environmental crimes
* social crimes as the Court may see apply
* crimes stemming from the global ministries

The Court will also be asked to decide on

* the formation of a new nation in the world,
* on disputed lands between nations,
* the de-institutionalization of market speculation, and
* the annulment of the debt of poor or 'developing' nations as the loans are actually a form of global tax given by the rich nations to the poorer ones. The IMF and World Bank loans are called taxes from the rich nations paid to the 'developing' nations; these loans/taxes are really a method of raising global taxes, of redistributing incomes to the poorest communities, of providing debt-free technical assistance to non-industrial and 'developing' countries to help them out of poverty and to meet environmental and social standards. These loans/taxes are not to be paid back to the rich nations.

The Court decides in accordance with:

* the Scale of Human and Earth Rights,
* the belief, values, principles and aspirations of the New Age Civilization,
* international treaties and conventions in force,
* international custom,
* the general principles of law, and
* as subsidiary means, judicial decisions and the teachings of the most highly qualified publicists.

d)        the debt of the poor nations to the rich nations was in actuality a form of global tax and therefore the poor or 'developing' nations dont have to pay it back. In fact poor nations should expect way more money as tax by the rich nations and not as loans. The state of the world today is the result of a specific set of interlocking institutions: the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO. These institutions are designed to generate massive wealth for the few and poverty for the rest. The same people who make the decisions in government and corporation make the profit. They create a tight concentration of power. Together they are a form of anti-government whose only goal is profit. The IMF, through Structural Adjustment Programs, now directly runs the economies of over 70 countries. That means that about 1000 economists and bureaucrats control the economic policies for 1.4 billion people in these countries. That is a form of anti-government. The people that profit most from the global economy are white people. The people who are most oppressed by the global economy are people of colour. Racism and sexism have become the norm. The entire planet is in a state of low intensity civil war. The ruling elite profit off of the exploitation of the rest of the world. The Earth Community Organization was looking for a method of raising global taxes, of redistributing incomes to the poorest communities, of providing debt-free technical assistance to non-industrial and developing countries to help them out of poverty and to meet environmental and social standards, but there it was all along right on our eyes. The Earth Court of Justice will be asked to decide on the debt be changed into an actual tax to be paid by the rich nations to the poor nations, and to decide on the amount of tax to be paid. Developing nations will then be able to start rebuilding their communities as per the Scale of Human and Earth Rights and the Charter of the Earth Community. They will not have to satisfy the economic needs and wishes of the rich nations. The Earth Court of Justice will also be asked to rule illegal the activities of the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO unless they become a part of a greater whole such as the Earth Ministry of Financial Institutions, a part of the future Earth Government. These institutions will be controlled by the greater whole.

e)        reforming the structure and the voting system of the United Nations to reflect democracy. Democracy of the New Age Civilization will blossom out of the Scale of Human and Earth Rights.

f)        establishing the foundation of Earth Government to govern the world affairs and protect all life,

g)        the new and natural evolution of democracy towards a democracy based on the Scale of Human and Earth Rights and the Charter of the Earth Community,

h)        including moral responsibility and accountability in our ways of life; national governments and large corporations have taken the wrong direction by asserting that free trade in the world is about competing economically without any moral safeguards and accountability to peoples and the environment. The proper and only way is for free trade to become a global cooperation between all nations. ECO is proposing a solution that the process of trading within the planetary trading blocks be changed from a spirit of global competition to that of global economic cooperation. This is the new way of doing business, the new way of life. Earth management is about "a sound balance among the interactions of the impacts (positive and/or negative), or stresses, on the four major quality systems: People, Economic Development, Environment and Availability of Earth Resources" with the idea that free trade and the planetary trading blocks are serving the Human Family and not the other way around for self-interests and the benefits of a few people on Earth, and that is a sound SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT of the world.

i)        the spirit of global competition be changed to a spirit of global cooperation; over its long past history trade has never evolved to require from the trading partners to become legally and morally responsible and accountable for their products from beginning to end. Now trade must be given a new impetus to be in line with the global concepts of the New Age Civilization. You develop, manufacture, produce, mine, farm or create a product, you become legally and morally responsible and accountable of your product from beginning to end (to the point where it actually becomes a waste; you are also responsible for the proper disposable of the waste). This product may be anything and everything.

j)        prohibit the process of market speculation worldwide, abolish speculation altogether,

k)        religious leaders and their followers be acquainted and asked to participate in Earth management as per the Scale of Human and Earth Rights and the Charter of the Earth Community; how can you not participate knowing that life is the building block through which you can have a relationship with God, Allah. You must become an activist for the protection of life on Earth.

l)        promoting and establishing more new, diversified and meaningful symbiotical relationships between nations, communities,and people of the world. ECO has begun to establish the existence of the New Age Civilization, the age of symbiotical relationships and global cooperation. An economically base symbiotical relationship exists between nations of the European Union. Other types (geographical, economical, social, business-like, political, religious, and personal) may be created all over the world between communities, nations, and between people themselves. There has always been symbiotical relationships in Nature, and between Souls and the matter of the universe to help creating Earth and life on Earth to better serve God.

m)        promote Peace in the world as a way of life and shelve the war industry forever from humanity, and

n)        In the light of the U.S.A., Canada, Japan and Russia refusal of taking actions to avert certain global calamity in regard to global warming, the Earth Community has decided to try these nations for their crimes against humanity. We have asked them to ratify the Kyoto Protocol as it is. Greenhouse gases are accumulating in the Earth's atmosphere as a result of human activities, and temperatures are rising globally due to these activities. There are plenty of observable effects of the global warming. And certainly this ridiculous and false solution of buying environmental credits from each other should not be considered as a way out of resolving the problem. The ratification is only a beginning to protect the global life-support systems. There is much more to do! But those four countries are not even coming close to a first start in resolving the problem. And they are amongst the worst polluters on the planet. The Earth Court of Justice has listed America as the first nation to be prosecuted for a global environmental crime. Because the leader of the USA was responsible for not ratifying the Kyoto Protocol, and because his leadership is questionably believed to be base on his religious believes, President George W. Bush will be first to appear in Court. The reality here is that every American is on trial here. Every consumer producing the deadly gas causing global warming is on trial. The same goes for every person on Earth producing the deadly gas. The gas is just as deadly as the gas that murdered millions of Jews during World War II. It is even more deadly as it is destroying the global life-support systems of all life on Earth. We are killing billions of human beings and countless life species. Americans have closed their conscience to the reality of life on Earth. They are showing a bad example to the other nations of the world. Even Canada is following in their steps. Justice must prevail to stop the "killing fields". And therefore they are guilty as charge. It is a crime against humanity and all life on Earth not to ratify the Kyoto Protocol. It is a terrible crime against the global life-support systems, against the very existence of the next generations. On the Scale of Human and Earth Rights, the crime is of maximum importance.

P)       The Global Community Assessment Centre (GCAC) is the assessment Centre for the Earth Community, the Human Family. It was created to give individuals or organizations help and/or advice about negative events happening in their communities which cause concern to people, resources, industry or the environment. GCAC is also the Centre of assessment of local/global indicators about the four major quality systems: Environment, People, Economic Development and the Availability of Resources. The assessment of these indicators will result in giving the Earth Community a sense of direction as to ensure a sound future for Earth.In order to do this GCAC will continue to amass a body of scientific information based on formal assessments such as those on Biodiversity, Climate Change, Human Development Report, World Development Report, struggle for Human and Earth Rights, life species Conservation, Health, Economic Analyses, Commission on Sustainable Development, etc., which have bridged the distance between incomplete science and contentious policy. Local and global indicators developed by the Earth Community will also be used as basic scientific information.Furthermore, no one really understands what assessment processes have been most effective in the past, or why others have failed. GCAC’s goal is to explore how assessment of local/global indicators can better link scientific understanding with the progressive implementation of effective policy solutions to global changes. Achieving this integration is fundamental. The Earth Community needs this annual assessment to effectively manage global changes.

Q)       During the past decades various changes have taken place in political, economic and social institutions. Economic reforms, changes in national policies, and global concerns have contributed to redefine the roles of these institutions for Sustainable Development. The 'New Age Movements' are social, political and religious movements in the sense of having a broad organizational structure and an ideology aimed at governing. The environmental movements within the New Age Movements express the concerns of groups of people regarding depletion of water, climate change aspects, degradation of land and other changes in ecosystems affecting traditional patterns of natural resource exploitation. The Earth Community has taken the role of helping these groups in protecting and managing the environment by coordinating efforts. Earth Environmental Governance is the most importance and urgent challenge of the Earth Community. The Earth Ministry of the Environment is proposing a meeting of all the Ministers of the Environment. Each country in the world will send their Minister of the Environment to meet during the global dialogue on Earth Management - all Peoples together. The roundtable discussion will also include experts from interested groups, environmental institutions, policy specialists from non-governmental organizations, and the public. There is a need to centralize and coordinate efforts into one Ministry of the Environment: the Earth Ministry of the Environment. Discussion about the financial support will be a priority. A comprehensive and reliable system will be proposed to coordinate efforts from all over the world. Anyone willing to participate in the discussion roundtable may send an abstract/research paper now. Other topics for discussion:

a)     Involvement of major groups in monitoring, assessment and early warning
b)     Major environmental challenges of the 21st Century
c)     Civil society involvement
d)     Responsibility and accountability of the private sector
e)     Global environmental policy-making

Earth Environmental Governance can only be achieved successfully within the larger context of Sustainable Developent and Earth Management. All aspects are inter-related and affect one another. A healthy environment is essential to long term prosperity and well-being, and citizens in Earth Community demand a high level of ecological protection. This is the 'raison d'etre' of the Scale of Human Rights. Primordial human rights are those human rights that individuals have by virtue of their very existence as human beings: to live, eat, drink fresh water, breath clean air, and have shelter. These rights are separate categories than ecological rights, the right of the greatest number of people, economic rights, social rights, cultural rights and religious rights. Ecological and primordial human rights are the only rights that have existed unchanged throughout the evolutionary origin of our species. Any major change would have threatened our very existence. All other human rights listed here are rights created by human beings and can be changed depending of new circumstances; they are not stagnant but are rather flexible and adaptive, and they can evolve. Ecological and primordial human rights of this generation and of future generations are therefore much more important than any other human rights existing now and in the future.
In this way the Scale of Human Rights gives us a sense of direction for future planning and managing of the Earth. Earth management is now well defined and becomes a goal to achieve. We no longer waste energy and resources in things that are absolutely unimportant.


Q)       Global consumption is a very important aspect of sustainable development. Consumers should be concerned with the impact of their decisions on the environment but also on the lives, human rights and well-being of other people. Since one of the key functions of families as a social institution is to engage in production (selling their labour in return for wages) and consumption (using those wages to buy goods and services), then the role of families has impacts on sustainable consumption and development.Just as corporations have social responsibilities and so do consumers in societies. Consumers are socialized to improve the quality of their lives. Quality of life is a multi-dimensional, complex and very subjective concept. For instance, someone who has changed their consumption habits to better ensure that their choices will make a better quality of life for themselves, the environment and future generations, may be seen by others as having a lower or inferior quality of life since they have removed themselves from the materialistic mainstream characteristic of our consumer society. Someone may feel that an absence of violence and abuse in their life leads to a higher quality of living even though they have fewer tangible resources, money, or shelter; peace of mind and freedom from abuse has increased the quality of their daily life relative to what it was like before. There are universal quality of life values which lead to "human betterment" or the improvement of the human condition. In addition to the value of species survival (human and other living organisms), they include: adequate resources, justice and equality, freedom, and peace or balance of power. A better quality of life for all people of  Earth Community is a goal for all of us and one of our universal values. The Earth Community Organization is recommending that global education of all consumers be a primary goal to Earth Environmental Governance.
 
  R)        reforming the structure and voting system of the United Nations; the annulment of the special privileges of the Five Permanent Members, and the establishment of a voting system that give to each nation one vote per million people.

Earth needs urgently a world system of governance. The United Nations fail to satisfy the needs of the people of the 21st Century. They have never improved upon the old ways and thinking of the middle of the 20th Century. Its voting system no longer satisfy the 6.157 billion people on Earth. The challenges are different and require a world organization up for dealing with the needs of all these people.

During the past several years, the Earth Community has been pleading the United Nations leaders to make changes in the UN organizational structure and ways of doing things. There has been an urgent need for fundamental changes in the United Nations organization. The world wants a true democratic world organization. The UN is not! Should we start from scratch? No! There are a lot of good things within the UN, and they need to be protected.

The Earth Community is requesting that the United Nations change its voting system to have one vote per million people. This way the rich North will have to deal with the poor in the South in order to obtain votes for decision-making. The eradication of poverty in the world will be achieved. Thousands of other good things will be achieved.

The most fundamental requirement of a world organization is a democratic voting system. Democracy must be a priority. The right that the greatest number of people has by virtue of its number (50% plus one) is a human right. It should be respected. Surely, no one believes that organizations such as the European Union and the Free Trade Area of the Americas, or the like, are a substitute to a democracy. They are driven by profits only and are a form of "world anti-government".

In the Preamble of the Charter of the United Nations, it says "WE THE PEOPLES OF THE UNITED NATIONS " but in fact any of the five permanent members of the UN has the power to overthrow a proposal brought forward by any member.

The Earth Community is proposing a voting system based on democracy: one vote per million people. In total there are 6104 votes. Taken apart the actual five permanent UN members would have a total of 1810 votes i.e., less than 30% of the total number of votes of 6104 votes. A basic democracy requires a 50% plus one vote for ruling.

The above calculations were counting all five permanent members together but in fact any of the five members has the power to overthrow a decision brought forward by any of the 190 Member States of the United Nations. This means 1/190 or 0.5% of the membership is more powerful than the remaining 99.5%. If that is not a dictatorship, what is it? It does not say much about democracy at the UN. More like a dictatorship of the five permanent members.

In actual fact, the general philosophy of the UN indicates that the more money a country has the more power that country has at the UN. Basically it is all about money.

The disrespect of democracy by the United Nations reflects on other worldwide organizations and their thinking with regard to Earth Management. For instance, leaders of the 34 member nations of the Organization of American States (all the independent nations in North and South Americas and the Caribbean, except Cuba) have met in Quebec City, Canada, to discuss hemispheric free trade which would eliminate trade and investment barriers on goods and services between member countries by 2005. They proposed to create the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) which would represent the world’s largest common market. Again here profit is the goal to achieve at the expense of democracy. And that is a form of world 'anti-government'.


To give you another good start for the Johannesburg Summit 2002, have a look at our agenda for the Global Dialogue on Earth Management.

May the DIVINE WILL come into our lives and show us the way.
May our higher purpose in life bring us closer to the Soul of Humanity and God.

Cordially,

Germain

Germain Dufour
President and Chairman
Earth Management - all Peoples together
Earth Community Organization

6.0    Articles

A)    Governance of the Earth in the true colour of the purple
B)    The Earth Community Organization is asking the nations of the world not repay their debt to the IMF and World Bank as the debt is considered a global tax to be paid by the rich nations of the world to the poorer ones.
C)    On the creation of a new nation through the process of the Earth Court of Justice
D)    Settling of disputes between nations through the process of the Earth Court of Justice
E)    The new religion makes it possible to all religions to coexist in harmony
F)    The immediate formation of the Earth Ministry of Health
G)    Symbiotical relationships of the 3rd millennium

We have the responsibility of managing Earth. The partnership of government, civil society, and business is essential for an effective global governance based on global concepts, the Scale of Human and Earth Rights and the Charter of the Earth Community. One cannot talk about the governance of the Earth without talking about the most influential bodies or institutions of the world that actually govern or rule the world today, or have the power to change it and actually do change the world in many different ways. So we will talk about the United Nations, the major global economies or planetary economic blocks, the richest people and corporations on the planet, the IMF, the World Bank, the WTO, religions, the debt of the poor nations, the restoration of the planet and the global life-support systems. And of course we will also talk about sound solutions to the world problems.

The most important sound solutions proposed to the world by the Earth Community Organization for the governance of the Earth are:

a)        the establishment of the Scale of Human and Earth Rights as a replacement to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

b)        the formation of global ministries to manage the world affairs in several aspects of our lives: energy, agriculture, environment, health, Earth resources, Earth management, security and safety, emergencies and rescues, trade, banks, speculation on world markets, peace, family and human development, water resources protection, family and human development, water resources protection, youth, education, justice, science and technology, finance, human resources, ethics, human and Earth rights, sustainable development, industry, and manufacturing products, etc. Global ministries will be given power to rule themselves in harmony with each other. The WTO will not be the only global ministry that can rule on cases related to trade.

c)       The Earth Community Organization, the Human Family, is calling for the immediate formation of the Earth Ministry of Health (see workshop session C, come supporting us). The globalization of trade, the extensive mouvement of people all over the world, the increase of poverty and diseases in developing countries and all over the world, have caused pathogens and exotic diseases to migrate over enormous distances and now, are an increasing threat to local ecosystems and communities, economies and health of every human being and all life. The Earth Community Organization, the Human Family, is calling this threat of the upmost importance and must be dealt with immediately by every nation. We must manage health in the world. We are calling for the immediate creation of the Earth Ministry of Health.

d)        the formation of the Earth Court of Justice to hear cases and to prosecute those nations, corporations, communities, individuals who commit crimes such as:

* nation states
* national political and military leaders accountable for violations of international humanitarian law
* 'core' crimes of genocide
* crimes against humanity and human and Earth rights
* war crimes
* crimes with significant impacts perpetuated against the life-support systems of the planet (for instance wars and use of weapons of widespread destruction are listed under this category)
* crimes related to the relentless misused of the Earth resources
* environmental crimes
* social crimes as the Court may see apply
* crimes stemming from the global ministries

The Court will also be asked to decide on

* the formation of a new nation in the world,
* on disputed lands between nations,
* the de-institutionalization of market speculation, and
* the annulment of the debt of poor or 'developing' nations as the loans are actually a form of global tax given by the rich nations to the poorer ones. The IMF and World Bank loans are called taxes from the rich nations paid to the 'developing' nations; these loans/taxes are really a method of raising global taxes, of redistributing incomes to the poorest communities, of providing debt-free technical assistance to non-industrial and 'developing' countries to help them out of poverty and to meet environmental and social standards. These loans/taxes are not to be paid back to the rich nations.

The Court decides in accordance with:

* the Scale of Human and Earth Rights,
* the belief, values, principles and aspirations of the New Age Civilization,
* international treaties and conventions in force,
* international custom,
* the general principles of law, and
* as subsidiary means, judicial decisions and the teachings of the most highly qualified publicists.

e)        the debt of the poor nations to the rich nations was in actuality a form of global tax and therefore the poor or 'developing' nations dont have to pay it back. In fact poor nations should expect way more money as tax by the rich nations and not as loans. The state of the world today is the result of a specific set of interlocking institutions: the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO. These institutions are designed to generate massive wealth for the few and poverty for the rest. The same people who make the decisions in government and corporation make the profit. They create a tight concentration of power. Together they are a form of anti-government whose only goal is profit. The IMF, through Structural Adjustment Programs, now directly runs the economies of over 70 countries. That means that about 1000 economists and bureaucrats control the economic policies for 1.4 billion people in these countries. That is a form of anti-government. The people that profit most from the global economy are white people. The people who are most oppressed by the global economy are people of colour. Racism and sexism have become the norm. The entire planet is in a state of low intensity civil war. The ruling elite profit off of the exploitation of the rest of the world. The Earth Community Organization was looking for a method of raising global taxes, of redistributing incomes to the poorest communities, of providing debt-free technical assistance to non-industrial and developing countries to help them out of poverty and to meet environmental and social standards, but there it was all along right on our eyes. The Earth Court of Justice will be asked to decide on the debt be changed into an actual tax to be paid by the rich nations to the poor nations, and to decide on the amount of tax to be paid. Developing nations will then be able to start rebuilding their communities as per the Scale of Human and Earth Rights and the Charter of the Earth Community. They will not have to satisfy the economic needs and wishes of the rich nations. The Earth Court of Justice will also be asked to rule illegal the activities of the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO unless they become a part of a greater whole such as the Earth Ministry of Financial Institutions, a part of the future Earth Government. These institutions will be controlled by the greater whole.

f)        reforming the structure and the voting system of the United Nations to reflect democracy. Democracy of the New Age Civilization will blossom out of the Scale of Human and Earth Rights.

g)        establishing the foundation of Earth Government to govern the world affairs and protect all life,

h)        the new and natural evolution of democracy towards a democracy based on the Scale of Human and Earth Rights and the Charter of the Earth Community,

i)        including moral responsibility and accountability in our ways of life; national governments and large corporations have taken the wrong direction by asserting that free trade in the world is about competing economically without any moral safeguards and accountability to peoples and the environment. The proper and only way is for free trade to become a global cooperation between all nations. ECO is proposing a solution that the process of trading within the planetary trading blocks be changed from a spirit of global competition to that of global economic cooperation. This is the new way of doing business, the new way of life. Earth management is about "a sound balance among the interactions of the impacts (positive and/or negative), or stresses, on the four major quality systems: People, Economic Development, Environment and Availability of Earth Resources" with the idea that free trade and the planetary trading blocks are serving the Human Family and not the other way around for self-interests and the benefits of a few people on Earth, and that is a sound SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT of the world.

j)        the spirit of global competition be changed to a spirit of global cooperation; over its long past history trade has never evolved to require from the trading partners to become legally and morally responsible and accountable for their products from beginning to end. Now trade must be given a new impetus to be in line with the global concepts of the New Age Civilization. You develop, manufacture, produce, mine, farm or create a product, you become legally and morally responsible and accountable of your product from beginning to end (to the point where it actually becomes a waste; you are also responsible for the proper disposable of the waste). This product may be anything and everything.

k)        prohibit the process of market speculation worldwide, abolish speculation altogether,

l)        religious leaders and their followers be acquainted and asked to participate in Earth management as per the Scale of Human and Earth Rights and the Charter of the Earth Community; how can you not participate knowing that life is the building block through which you can have a relationship with God, Allah. You must become an activist for the protection of life on Earth.

m)        promoting and establishing more new, diversified and meaningful symbiotical relationships between nations, communities,and people of the world. ECO has begun to establish the existence of the New Age Civilization, the age of symbiotical relationships and global cooperation. An economically base symbiotical relationship exists between nations of the European Union. Other types (geographical, economical, social, business-like, political, religious, and personal) may be created all over the world between communities, nations, and between people themselves. There has always been symbiotical relationships in Nature, and between Souls and the matter of the universe to help creating Earth and life on Earth to better serve God.

n)        promote Peace in the world as a way of life and shelve the war industry forever from humanity, and


O)        In the light of the U.S.A., Canada, Japan and Russia refusal of taking actions to avert certain global calamity in regard to global warming, the Earth Community has decided to try these nations for their crimes against humanity. We have asked them to ratify the Kyoto Protocol as it is. Greenhouse gases are accumulating in the Earth's atmosphere as a result of human activities, and temperatures are rising globally due to these activities. There are plenty of observable effects of the global warming. And certainly this ridiculous and false solution of buying environmental credits from each other should not be considered as a way out of resolving the problem. The ratification is only a beginning to protect the global life-support systems. There is much more to do! But those four countries are not even coming close to a first start in resolving the problem. And they are amongst the worst polluters on the planet. The Earth Court of Justice has listed America as the first nation to be prosecuted for a global environmental crime. Because the leader of the USA was responsible for not ratifying the Kyoto Protocol, and because his leadership is questionably believed to be base on his religious believes, President George W. Bush will be first to appear in Court. The reality here is that every American is on trial here. Every consumer producing the deadly gas causing global warming is on trial. The same goes for every person on Earth producing the deadly gas. The gas is just as deadly as the gas that murdered millions of Jews during World War II. It is even more deadly as it is destroying the global life-support systems of all life on Earth. We are killing billions of human beings and countless life species. Americans have closed their conscience to the reality of life on Earth. They are showing a bad example to the other nations of the world. Even Canada is following in their steps. Justice must prevail to stop the "killing fields". And therefore they are guilty as charge. It is a crime against humanity and all life on Earth not to ratify the Kyoto Protocol. It is a terrible crime against the global life-support systems, against the very existence of the next generations. On the Scale of Human and Earth Rights, the crime is of maximum importance.

P)       The Global Community Assessment Centre (GCAC) is the assessment Centre for the Earth Community, the Human Family. It was created to give individuals or organizations help and/or advice about negative events happening in their communities which cause concern to people, resources, industry or the environment. GCAC is also the Centre of assessment of local/global indicators about the four major quality systems: Environment, People, Economic Development and the Availability of Resources. The assessment of these indicators will result in giving the Earth Community a sense of direction as to ensure a sound future for Earth.In order to do this GCAC will continue to amass a body of scientific information based on formal assessments such as those on Biodiversity, Climate Change, Human Development Report, World Development Report, struggle for Human and Earth Rights, life species Conservation, Health, Economic Analyses, Commission on Sustainable Development, etc., which have bridged the distance between incomplete science and contentious policy. Local and global indicators developed by the Earth Community will also be used as basic scientific information.Furthermore, no one really understands what assessment processes have been most effective in the past, or why others have failed. GCAC’s goal is to explore how assessment of local/global indicators can better link scientific understanding with the progressive implementation of effective policy solutions to global changes. Achieving this integration is fundamental. The Earth Community needs this annual assessment to effectively manage global changes.

Q)       During the past decades various changes have taken place in political, economic and social institutions. Economic reforms, changes in national policies, and global concerns have contributed to redefine the roles of these institutions for Sustainable Development. The 'New Age Movements' are social, political and religious movements in the sense of having a broad organizational structure and an ideology aimed at governing. The environmental movements within the New Age Movements express the concerns of groups of people regarding depletion of water, climate change aspects, degradation of land and other changes in ecosystems affecting traditional patterns of natural resource exploitation. The Earth Community has taken the role of helping these groups in protecting and managing the environment by coordinating efforts. Earth Environmental Governance is the most importance and urgent challenge of the Earth Community. The Earth Ministry of the Environment is proposing a meeting of all the Ministers of the Environment. Each country in the world will send their Minister of the Environment to meet during the global dialogue on Earth Management - all Peoples together. The roundtable discussion will also include experts from interested groups, environmental institutions, policy specialists from non-governmental organizations, and the public. There is a need to centralize and coordinate efforts into one Ministry of the Environment: the Earth Ministry of the Environment. Discussion about the financial support will be a priority. A comprehensive and reliable system will be proposed to coordinate efforts from all over the world. Anyone willing to participate in the discussion roundtable may send an abstract/research paper now. Other topics for discussion:

a)     Involvement of major groups in monitoring, assessment and early warning
b)     Major environmental challenges of the 21st Century
c)     Civil society involvement
d)     Responsibility and accountability of the private sector
e)     Global environmental policy-making

Earth Environmental Governance can only be achieved successfully within the larger context of Sustainable Developent and Earth Management. All aspects are inter-related and affect one another. A healthy environment is essential to long term prosperity and well-being, and citizens in Earth Community demand a high level of ecological protection. This is the 'raison d'etre' of the Scale of Human Rights. Primordial human rights are those human rights that individuals have by virtue of their very existence as human beings: to live, eat, drink fresh water, breath clean air, and have shelter. These rights are separate categories than ecological rights, the right of the greatest number of people, economic rights, social rights, cultural rights and religious rights. Ecological and primordial human rights are the only rights that have existed unchanged throughout the evolutionary origin of our species. Any major change would have threatened our very existence. All other human rights listed here are rights created by human beings and can be changed depending of new circumstances; they are not stagnant but are rather flexible and adaptive, and they can evolve. Ecological and primordial human rights of this generation and of future generations are therefore much more important than any other human rights existing now and in the future.
In this way the Scale of Human Rights gives us a sense of direction for future planning and managing of the Earth. Earth management is now well defined and becomes a goal to achieve. We no longer waste energy and resources in things that are absolutely unimportant.

R)       Global consumption is a very important aspect of sustainable development. Consumers should be concerned with the impact of their decisions on the environment but also on the lives, human rights and well-being of other people. Since one of the key functions of families as a social institution is to engage in production (selling their labour in return for wages) and consumption (using those wages to buy goods and services), then the role of families has impacts on sustainable consumption and development.Just as corporations have social responsibilities and so do consumers in societies. Consumers are socialized to improve the quality of their lives. Quality of life is a multi-dimensional, complex and very subjective concept. For instance, someone who has changed their consumption habits to better ensure that their choices will make a better quality of life for themselves, the environment and future generations, may be seen by others as having a lower or inferior quality of life since they have removed themselves from the materialistic mainstream characteristic of our consumer society. Someone may feel that an absence of violence and abuse in their life leads to a higher quality of living even though they have fewer tangible resources, money, or shelter; peace of mind and freedom from abuse has increased the quality of their daily life relative to what it was like before. There are universal quality of life values which lead to "human betterment" or the improvement of the human condition. In addition to the value of species survival (human and other living organisms), they include: adequate resources, justice and equality, freedom, and peace or balance of power. A better quality of life for all people of  Earth Community is a goal for all of us and one of our universal values. The Earth Community Organization is recommending that global education of all consumers be a primary goal to Earth Environmental Governance.
 
  S)        reforming the structure and voting system of the United Nations; the annulment of the special privileges of the Five Permanent Members, and the establishment of a voting system that give to each nation one vote per million people.

Earth needs urgently a world system of governance. The United Nations fail to satisfy the needs of the people of the 21st Century. They have never improved upon the old ways and thinking of the middle of the 20th Century. Its voting system no longer satisfy the 6.157 billion people on Earth. The challenges are different and require a world organization up for dealing with the needs of all these people.

During the past several years, the Earth Community has been pleading the United Nations leaders to make changes in the UN organizational structure and ways of doing things. There has been an urgent need for fundamental changes in the United Nations organization. The world wants a true democratic world organization. The UN is not! Should we start from scratch? No! There are a lot of good things within the UN, and they need to be protected.

The Earth Community is requesting that the United Nations change its voting system to have one vote per million people. This way the rich North will have to deal with the poor in the South in order to obtain votes for decision-making. The eradication of poverty in the world will be achieved. Thousands of other good things will be achieved.

The most fundamental requirement of a world organization is a democratic voting system. Democracy must be a priority. The right that the greatest number of people has by virtue of its number (50% plus one) is a human right. It should be respected. Surely, no one believes that organizations such as the European Union and the Free Trade Area of the Americas, or the like, are a substitute to a democracy. They are driven by profits only and are a form of "world anti-government".

In the Preamble of the Charter of the United Nations, it says "WE THE PEOPLES OF THE UNITED NATIONS " but in fact any of the five permanent members of the UN has the power to overthrow a proposal brought forward by any member.

The Earth Community is proposing a voting system based on democracy: one vote per million people. In total there are 6104 votes. Taken apart the actual five permanent UN members would have a total of 1810 votes i.e., less than 30% of the total number of votes of 6104 votes. A basic democracy requires a 50% plus one vote for ruling.

The above calculations were counting all five permanent members together but in fact any of the five members has the power to overthrow a decision brought forward by any of the 190 Member States of the United Nations. This means 1/190 or 0.5% of the membership is more powerful than the remaining 99.5%. If that is not a dictatorship, what is it? It does not say much about democracy at the UN. More like a dictatorship of the five permanent members.

In actual fact, the general philosophy of the UN indicates that the more money a country has the more power that country has at the UN. Basically it is all about money.

The disrespect of democracy by the United Nations reflects on other worldwide organizations and their thinking with regard to Earth Management. For instance, leaders of the 34 member nations of the Organization of American States (all the independent nations in North and South Americas and the Caribbean, except Cuba) have met in Quebec City, Canada, to discuss hemispheric free trade which would eliminate trade and investment barriers on goods and services between member countries by 2005. They proposed to create the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) which would represent the world’s largest common market. Again here profit is the goal to achieve at the expense of democracy. And that is a form of world 'anti-government'.




We define governance as the traditions and institutions by which authority in a country is exercised for the common good. This includes:

(i) the process by which those in authority are selected, monitored and replaced,
(ii) the capacity of the government to effectively manage its resources and implement sound policies with respect to the Scale of Human and Earth Rights and the belief, values, principles and aspirations of the New Age Civilization,
(iii) the respect of citizens and the state for the institutions that govern economic, environment, Earth resources, and social interactions among them,
(iv) the freedom of citizens to find new ways for the common good, and
(v) the acceptance of responsibility and accountability for our ways.

The work done by the Earth Community Organization has relevance with sustainable development, Earth management and governance of the Earth. It is a remarkable coincidence that the United Nations have chosen to organize the World Summit shortly after the same days we are organizing the Global Dialogue on Earth Management - all Peoples together, on August 17-22, year 2002, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Our global dialogue will last to the end of August on Internet. The theme of the Global Dialogue is Earth Government for Earth Community and was decided two years ago after the World Congress on Managing and Measuring Sustainable Development - Global Community Action 1 held in August 2000. Over the past 14 years the Earth Community Organization was able to give to all nations of the world, heads of State and Government, and leaders from non-governmental organizations (NGOs), businesses and other major groups, and to the public, the thinking and insights to local and global problems that all Peoples are in such desperate need. The Proceedings of the World Congress have made it possible to the world to reflect on itself and to see the need of the World Summit. The new ideas, reflections and recommendations published in our Newsletters, along with our research work, have given the world a good start for the World Summit, and we should be thank to God for having allowed us to be the leaders in the field, and be the Earth Community, the Human Family, the Global Community. We will continue our work. We may never get credit for our work in this world but the Soul of Humanity is aware of what we have done. Our new thoughts are the source of major changes in the world. We have given to humanity a sense of direction and a new impetus to better itself to live through the millennium.



In July 22 of 1944, representatives from 44 governments met in the town of Bretton Woods. The global economy was in ruins and needed rebuilding. European countries planned together to save their way of life by creating a system of fixed currency exchanges with the United States dollar (gold as a support for it) as the dominant international currency. To achieve their goal, the same group of representatives have created the

a) International Monetary Fund (IMF),
b) General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the
c) International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (the World Bank).

The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) was first signed in 1947. The agreement was designed to provide an international forum that encouraged free trade between member states by regulating and reducing tariffs on traded goods and by providing a common mechanism for resolving trade disputes. GATT membership now includes more than 110 countries. GATT is really the watchdog, the 'enforcer' that makes trade a law, a way of life, a way of doing business between nations. It is a form of world anti-government that do not respect life and the environment. GATT (now replaced by the WTO), along with bedfellows such as the IMF and the World Bank, are actually a small class of about 1000 people (bureaucrats, technocrats, economists, government officials) who rule over one billion people in the world.

Over the years, the IMF and World Bank interacted with one another and still do today. The IMF looked after the new systems of fixed exchange rates by making exchange easy between different currencies thus making trade easy between countries. The IMF provided short-term emergency loans (5 years maximum to repay) to governments. The World Bank was to focus on long-term loans at low interest rates to allow European nations to rebuild and restore. Later on in the 1950s, after European nations had recovered from the war, the World Bank continued to exist by lending to the governments of poor nations especially in Latin America, Africa and Asia.

In 1973, US President R. Nixon decided to take America off the gold standard to devalue the US dollar. This US policy destroyed the system of fixed currency exchange rate. After this action, the effect on the global economy was felt positively by the rich nations of the world, currencies could no longer 'float' relative to each other and the debt of the poor nations increased as they were all created in US dollars. Then the World Bank loaned more dollars to the poor nations. Often the money was used for war purposes such as in the Philippines and Argentina. War equipment was bought from America, and this had a positive effect on the US economy. Poor nations saw their debt grow astronomically and were forced to make new loans just to pay for the interests. The IMF supplied more loans under the condition that the poor nations undergo "Structural Adjustment Programs". This had the effect that a poor nation's economic policy would be dictated by the IMF. The IMF simply said to the poor nations: do all you can to attract business and pay off your debts. The IMF and the World Bank are a form of anti-government gone bad as their policies brought poverty to more than half the population on Earth and are causing a major threat to the global life-support systems. Poor nations started to privatize many services and reduce spending on others so that they would have more money available for debt repayment. The overall effect was that governments were cutting on education, healthcare and subsidies to keep food prices affordable. Governments had to promote 'free trade' and to devalue their currency. Now in a nation whose currency is worth less, all the costs of doing business are less and prices for imported goods increase. The IMF basically forced poor nations to focus their economy toward exports, especially cash crops such as coffee, sugar, cotton, etc. and raw materials such as copper and timber. In consequence of this, several nations produced the same products all at the same time and thus prices for those products went down enormously. The overall effect of the US policy within the IMF and the World Bank was to increase poverty and ecological destruction in the poor nations while the rich nations got richer.

The effect of IMF and World Bank policies in the world caused the destruction of the economies of the poor nations (now we call them 'developing' countries). They impoverished the people by taking away basic services and devaluating their currency. They opened up the national economy to be ravaged by competition with richer nations. Poverty lead to other problems causing the ecological destruction of a poor nation. Environmental spending was diminished under a Structural Adjustment Program. More rainforest land had to be cleared to grow crops just to survive. The overall effect of the US policy within the IMF caused the famine in Somalia, the war in Rwanda, and many other international catastrophes. In the mean time the debt of the poor nation increased enormously. The longer a nation was under a Structural Adjustment Program, the more its debt increased. In 1999, the debt of the poor nations has reached $3 trillion dollars. While 'developing' countries receive loans and aid from sources such as the World Bank, the IMF and other banks in 'developed' countries, they pay back much more just to pay off the interest on their debts. The banks in 'developed' countries are doing very well and cashing in at the detriment of the poor nations. And so are the multinational corporations as the cost of doing business in poor nations gets even cheaper. Governments of rich nations benefit from what is happening as they gain power over governments of poor nations. The elite in poor nations benefit as well. Today, the personal wealth of Ferdinand Marcos, the former dictator of the Philippines, is estimated at $10 billion. All around the world there is a small elite class of officials, bureaucrats, technocrats and economists who make the decisions about the economic policy for most of the world, and they are also the ones who benefit from those policies at the expense of the rest of the world. The effect of IMF and World Bank policies created poverty and inequality in the world. Since 1950, the total dollar value of the world economy has increased 5-fold, while the number of people in absolute poverty has doubled. The 3 wealthiest people on the planet are now wealthier than 48 poorest countries. The total wealth of the 200 richest people in the world has more than doubled to a $1 trillion. Today about 1.3 billion people survive on less than a dollar a day, and about the same number do not have access to clean drinking water. Approximately 3 billion people live on less than 2 dollar a day; and 2 billion people are suffering from anaemia. The state of the world today is the result of a specific set of interlocking institutions: the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO. These institutions are designed to generate massive wealth for the few and poverty for the rest. The same people who make the decisions in government and corporation make the profit. They create a tight concentration of power. Together they are a form of anti-government whose only goal is profit. The IMF, through Structural Adjustment Programs, now directly runs the economies of over 70 countries. That means that about 1000 economists and bureaucrats control the economic policies for 1.4 billion people in these countries. That is a form of anti-government. The people that profit most from the global economy are white people. The people who are most oppressed by the global economy are people of colour. Racism and sexism have become the norm. The entire planet is in a state of low intensity civil war. The ruling elite profit off of the exploitation of the rest of the world.

Because governments of poor nations had to promote 'free trade', this situation cause barriers to trade to be eliminated and now we are seeing the globalization of 'free trade'. Poor nations are now asked to produce only the products they are good at producing and buy from other countries the products they are not as good at producing. This way the economy of a nation will function at maximum efficiency. So now governments are told to open up their borders and to stop meddling in markets, so that competition will be free internationally. Often what is called trade is really moving of resources across borders between subsidiaries of the same corporation. Nothing to do with free competition. Economic activity is centrally-managed and planned by the corporate elite. Capital move freely across borders as restrictions on the flow of money have been removed. Corporations can relocate their operations to the countries with the lowest wages, the least active unions and the lowest environmental standards. The reality is that more polluting industries are encouraged to relocate to poorer countries. A polluting industry tends to increase the chances that people in the surrounding area will have health problems. If pollution kills someone or makes them unable to work, the cost to the economy, or to the industry in the case of a law-suit, would be roughly equal to the projected wages that the person would have earned in the rest of their life. In a country with low life expectancy and low wages, this cost will be lessened. It costs less to dump a load of toxic waste in the lowest wage country.

'Free trade' now means the removal of:

a) tariffs and similar restrictions on the easy flow of capital (and that includes no global tax on transactions stemming from speculation), and
b) non-tariffs barriers to trade.

Today the watchdog, the 'enforcer' for 'free trade', and also the bedfellow of both the IMF and the World Bank, is the World Trade Organization (WTO). The WTO is responsible for monitoring national trading policies, handling trade disputes, and enforcing the GATT agreements. The World Trade Organization (WTO), the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) encourage the privatization of public services and the settling of international disputes their own way. Any government, acting on behalf of a corporation, can challenge the acts of another government if they "interfere with trade." Complaints are taken to a WTO dispute resolution body which then make a binding decision. The WTO has forced governments to lower their environmental standards in favour of a corporation to allow more pollution into the environment, and that is a form of anti-government gone bad with absolute no respect or care for life and the global-life support systems. Corporations can sue governments if they harm their profits through any unfair barriers to trade. NAFTA and WTO tribunals usually rule in favor of corporations. So now we really have a new definition for the word 'property' to mean both what is currently owned and profits that could potentially be made. To compensate, we propose a new definition for 'pollution' and 'human destruction' to mean the pollution and human destruction that the policies of the IMF, World Bank and WTO are causing now in the world plus the pollution and human destruction that they will cause in the future to the next generations. By providing corporations with a mean to override governmental decisions, NAFTA and the WTO (and the proposed FTAA) shift power even more into the hands of the elite. And that is also a form of anti-government.

The global economy can be affected by the deregulation in the movement of capital and thus by speculation. Money is made off tiny fluctuations in the relative prices of currencies. Speculation makes it possible for huge amounts of money to be transferred half-way around the world in a matter of seconds. Whereas world trade associated with actual goods and services is estimated at $7 trillion a year, speculation is estimated at $1.5 trillion a day. If a country's economy starts to slow, billions of dollars can be transferred out of the country instantaneously, which can significantly affect its economy and the people. This has been the case in 1997 of a number of East Asia countries. They were bankrupted by speculation. The people were enormously affected for the worst. Speculation can exert tremendous pressure on the internal politics of a country. It can bankrupt a country's economy. Speculation should be de-institutionalized. Humanity has no real need for speculation, and it does way more damage than good.

Rich countries manipulate trade agreements in order to ensure profitability. Their governments insist on tariffs and protectionism in areas in which they are weak. For instance, Canada and the USA are now going through the process of an economic war in the softwood industry. The imposition of a 29 percent tariff on softwood lumber by the U.S. Commerce Department shows that Canadians were duped by the Free Trade Agreement(FTA) and NAFTA. The U.S. Government protectionism is itself aimed at reducing the value of the Canadian companies just long enough for American competitors to acquire them. Many Canadian industries have already been bought by US competitors. The energy sector is one of them. Free trade opens up a poor country's economy to competition with strong, developed, well-financed, multinational corporations. In consequence, most of the local producers and manufacturers go out of business thus leaving a poor country's economy entirely in the hands of the transnational elite. It is a form of colonization and of world anti-government. Rich countries force poorer countries to open up their markets, and then take them over.

Governments can try to improve the economy by given:

a) governments funds to rich corporations to bail them out when they are in trouble, and
b) massive amounts of money to the military; this money goes to big corporations in the form of defence contracts.

The military is used against domestic dissidents, like a police force. It is also used to expand markets and keep international dissidents in line. Governments of poor countries that try to take control of their own resources and develop their own economies (instead of remaining areas of cheap labour and raw materials for rich countries) are declared enemies, terrorists, and attacked, officially or otherwise. Nicaragua and Yugoslavia are examples. U.S. military is "to protect U.S. interests and investments" and that includes making other nations safe for U.S multinational corporations. And that exactly what is happening in the Middle East where the U.S. military is protecting its strategic interests especially the continue flow of oil. How will the military be part of the FTAA? Are we seeing here in the Americas a scenario that has occurred in Europe before the Second World War when the German Nazis try to take over the world? The FTAA should entrench a strong statement that says that military should not be an option as a solution to any situation arising in the hemisphere. The Earth Court of Justice was created to deal with any situation and, therefore, the military is not needed. The military should also be subjected to the Earth Court of Justice for any violation of human rights including environmental rights as defined by the Scale of Human and Earth Rights.


The argument for 'free trade' states that countries should specialize in certain products that they are good at producing and buy from other countries what they are not good at producing, so that the economy is more efficient. What kind of efficiency is it, when the pieces of a product are sent half way around the world to be assembled in a country with cheap labour, then shipped back to be sold? It may be profitable, but it is a waste of time and energy as well as resources, and moving products this way is not environmentally friendly and is a threat to the global life-support systems. What kind of efficiency is that? Huge amounts of money are spent on marketing to get people to buy things that they don't need. Where is the efficiency in that?



The Bretton Woods Project works as a networker, information-provider, media informant and watchdog to scrutinise and influence the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF). Through briefings, reports and the bimonthly digest Bretton Woods Update, it monitors projects, policy reforms and the overall management of the Bretton Woods institutions with special emphasis on environmental and social concerns.



The World Trade Organization(WTO), is an international organization established in 1995 as a result of the final round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations, called the Uruguay Round. The WTO is headquartered in Geneva and also holds international ministerial conferences; it has 144 members. The WTO is responsible for monitoring national trading policies, handling trade disputes, and enforcing the GATT agreements, which are designed to reduce tariffs and other barriers to international trade and to eliminate discriminatory treatment in international commerce. In an effort to promote international agreements, WTO negotiations are conducted in closed sessions; many outsiders have strongly criticized such meetings as antidemocratic. Unlike GATT, the WTO is a permanent body but not a specialized agency of the United Nations ; it has far greater power to mediate trade disputes between member countries and assess penalties. In the Uruguay Round, agreement was reached to reduce tariffs on manufactured goods by one third. Under the WTO, subsidies and quotas are to be reduced on imported farm products, automobiles, and textiles, which were not covered by GATT; there is also freer trade in banking and other services and greater worldwide protection of intellectual property. Negotiations to eliminate subsidies and protections for agricultural products, however, have proved to be a stumbling block.



The IMF is an international organization of 183 member countries, established to promote international monetary cooperation, exchange stability, and orderly exchange arrangements; to foster economic growth and high levels of employment; and to provide temporary financial assistance to countries to help ease balance of payments adjustment. Since the IMF was established in 1946, its purposes have remained unchanged but its operations which involve surveillance, financial assistance, and technical assistance have developed to meet the changing needs of its member countries in an evolving world economy.

The IMF receives its resources from its member countries. Each country's subscription, or quota, is determined broadly on the basis of the economic size of the country, and taking into account quotas of similar countries. Upon joining the IMF, a country must pay 25 percent of its quota in widely accepted foreign currencies or SDRs, and the remaining 75 percent in its own currency. The IMF's total resources (excluding, however, resources for lending to poor countries), currently amount to SDR 217.5 billion ($270 billion as of end-February 2002), but its ability to make loans is smaller than that. If necessary, the IMF supplements its resources by borrowing from member countries.

The IMF is one of the largest official holders of gold in the world. Valued at market prices, its holdings of gold amount to about SDR 24.7 billion. However, strict limitations apply to the use of this gold. For instance, it cannot be used to finance new loans.

The financial assistance provided by the IMF enables countries to rebuild their international reserves, stabilize their currencies, and continue paying for imports without having to impose trade restrictions or capital controls. Unlike development banks, the IMF does not lend for specific projects.

The IMF was created to promote international monetary cooperation; to facilitate the expansion and balanced growth of international trade; to promote exchange stability; to assist in the establishment of a multilateral system of payments; to make its general resources temporarily available to its members experiencing balance of payments difficulties under adequate safeguards; and to shorten the duration and lessen the degree of disequilibrium in the international balances of payments of members.


Since foreign trade affects the standard of life of every people, all countries have a vital interest in the system of exchange of national currencies and the regulations and conditions which govern its working. Because these monetary transactions are international exchanges, the nations must agree on the basic rules which govern the exchanges if the system is to work smoothly. When they do not agree, and when single nations and small groups of nations attempt by special and different regulations of the foreign exchanges to gain trade advantages, the result is instability, a reduced volume of foreign trade, and damage to national economies. This course of action is likely to lead to economic warfare and to endanger the world's peace.

During an international conference member nations have agreed to the following.

The Conference has therefore agreed that broad international action is necessary to maintain an international monetary system which will promote foreign trade. The nations should consult and agree on international monetary changes which affect each other. They should outlaw practices which are agreed to be harmful to world prosperity, and they should assist each other to overcome short-term exchange difficulties.

The Conference has agreed that the nations here represented should establish for these purposes a permanent international body, The International Monetary Fund, with powers and resources adequate to perform the tasks assigned to it. Agreement has been reached concerning these powers and resources and the additional obligations which the member countries should undertake. Draft Articles of Agreement on these points have been prepared.

It is in the interest of all nations that post-war reconstruction should be rapid. Likewise, the development of the resources of particular regions is in the general economic interest. Programs of reconstruction and development will speed economic progress everywhere, will aid political stability and foster peace.

The Conference has agreed that expanded international investment is essential to provide a portion of the capital necessary for reconstruction and development.

The Conference has further agreed that the nations should cooperate to increase the volume of foreign investment for these purposes, made through normal business channels. It is especially important that the nations should cooperate to share the risks of such foreign investment, since the benefits are general.

The Conference has agreed that the nations should establish a permanent international body to perform these functions, to be called The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. It has been agreed that the Bank should assist in providing capital through normal channels at reasonable rates of interest and for long periods for projects which will raise the productivity of the borrowing country. There is agreement that the Bank should guarantee loans made by others and that through their subscriptions of capital in all countries should share with the borrowing country in guaranteeing such loans. The Conference has agreed on the powers and resources which the Bank must have and on the obligations which the member countries must assume, and has prepared draft Articles of Agreement accordingly.

The Rethinking Bretton Woods (RBW) project promotes reforms within the international financial institutions (IFIs) that enhance sustainable development. The RBW project engages US policymakers, NGOs, grassroots activists, and the public through education and advocacy. It works with partner organizations in the US, Europe, and the Global South.

Through its Governance for Development initiative, the RBW project will focus on trade liberalization. It will analyze and monitor the extent to which the IFIs and the World Trade Organization (WTO) are coordinating their economic policies around trade and whether these policies effectively promote sustainable development. It will assess whether this changing relationship allows for new opportunities for dialogue and participation by civil society.

The IMF has a mandate under its Articles of Agreement to exercise firm surveillance over the exchange rate policies of members in order to oversee the international monetary system and ensure its effective operation. To this end, the IMF assesses whether a country's economic developments and policies are consistent with the achievement of sustainable growth and domestic and external stability. In this way, the IMF seeks to provide a preventive mechanism that is capable of signaling dangers on the economic horizon and anticipating the need for policy action.

The purposes of the International Monetary Fund are:

(i) To promote international monetary cooperation through a permanent institution which provides the machinery for consultation and collaboration on international monetary problems.

(ii) To facilitate the expansion and balanced growth of international trade, and to contribute thereby to the promotion and maintenance of high levels of employment and real income and to the development of the productive resources of all members as primary objectives of economic policy.

(iii) To promote exchange stability, to maintain orderly exchange arrangements among members, and to avoid competitive exchange depreciation.

(iv) To assist in the establishment of a multilateral system of payments in respect of current transactions between members and in the elimination of foreign exchange restrictions which hamper the growth of world trade.

(v) To give confidence to members by making the general resources of the Fund temporarily available to them under adequate safeguards, thus providing them with opportunity to correct maladjustments in their balance of payments without resorting to measures destructive of national or international prosperity.

(vi) In accordance with the above, to shorten the duration and lessen the degree of disequilibrium in the international balances of payments of members.

The original members of the Fund shall be those of the countries represented at the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference whose governments accept membership before December 31, 1945.

The IMF and the World Bank have approved debt-reduction packages for 26 countries, 22 of them in Africa, under the enhanced Initiative for the Heavily-Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC). These packages will lift $40 billion in debt—about half of what they owe—from the shoulders of these countries. Together with other initiatives, these countries will see their debts fall, on average, by about two thirds.



The World Bank Group is one of the world's largest sources of development assistance. In Fiscal Year 2001, the institution provided more than US$17 billion in loans to its client countries. It works in more than 100 developing economies with the primary focus of helping the poorest people and the poorest countries.

The World Bank helps developing countries fight poverty and establish economic growth that is stable, sustainable, and equitable. The Bank pursues this work in the following ways. Conceived during World War II at Bretton Woods, the World Bank initially helped rebuild Europe after the war. Its first loan of $250 million was to France in 1947 for post-war reconstruction. Reconstruction has remained an important focus of the Bank's work, given the natural disasters, humanitarian emergencies, and post­conflict rehabilitation needs that affect developing and transition economies.

Today's Bank, however, has sharpened its focus on poverty reduction as the overarching goal of all its work. It once had a homogeneous staff of engineers and financial analysts, based solely in Washington, D.C. Today, it has a multidisciplinary and diverse staff including economists, public policy experts, sectoral experts, and social scientists. 40 percent of staff are now based in country offices. The Bank itself is bigger, broader, and far more complex. It has become a Group, encompassing five closely associated development institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). During the 1980s, the Bank was pushed in many directions: early in the decade, the Bank was brought face to face with macroeconomic and debt rescheduling issues; later in the decade, social and environmental issues assumed center stage, and an increasingly vocal civil society accused the Bank of not observing its own policies in some high­profile projects. To address concerns about the quality of Bank operations, the Wapenhans Report was released and soon after, steps toward reform were taken, including the creation of an Inspection Panel to investigate claims against the Bank. However, criticism increased, reaching a peak in 1994 at the Annual Meetings in Madrid. Since then, the Bank Group has made much progress. All five institutions have been working - separately and in collaboration - to improve internal efficiency and external effectiveness. Clients report to be broadly pleased with the changes they see in Bank Group service levels, commitment, deliveries, and quality.

More than ever before, the Bank is playing an important role in the global policy arena. It has effectively engaged with partners and clients in complex emergencies from post-conflict work in Bosnia to post-crisis assistance in East Asia to post-hurricane clean-up in central America to post-earthquake support in Turkey and in Kosovo and East Timor. Notwithstanding these considerable progress, the Bank Group's agenda is not yet complete, nor can it ever be, while the challenges of development continue to grow. Founded in 1944, the World Bank Group is one of the world's largest sources of development assistance. The Bank, which provided US$17.3 billion in loans to its client countries in fiscal year 2001, is now working in more than 100 developing economies, bringing a mix of finance and ideas to improve living standards and eliminate the worst forms of poverty. For each of its clients, the Bank works with government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector to formulate assistance strategies. Its country offices worldwide deliver the Bank's program in countries, liaise with government and civil society, and work to increase understanding of development issues.

The World Bank is owned by more than 183 member countries whose views and interests are represented by a Board of Governors and a Washington-based Board of Directors. Member countries are shareholders who carry ultimate decision-making power in the World Bank. The Bank uses its financial resources, its highly trained staff, and its extensive knowledge base to individually help each developing country onto a path of stable, sustainable, and equitable growth. The main focus is on helping the poorest people and the poorest countries, but for all its clients the Bank emphasizes the need for:

* Investing in people, particularly through basic health and education
* Focusing on social development, inclusion, governance, and institution-building as key elements of poverty reduction
* Strengthening the ability of the governments to deliver quality services, efficiently and transparently
* Protecting the environment
* Supporting and encouraging private business development
* Promoting reforms to create a stable macroeconomic environment, conducive to investment and long-term planning.

Through its loans, policy advice and technical assistance, the World Bank supports a broad range of programs aimed at reducing poverty and improving living standards in the developing world. The global fight against poverty is aimed at ensuring that people everywhere in this world have a chance for a better life for themselves and for their children. Of the 4.7 billion people who live in the 100 countries that are World Bank clients:

* 3 billion live on less than $2 a day and 1.2 billion on less than $1 a day
* Nearly 3 million children in developing countries die each year from vaccine-preventable diseases
* 113 million children are not in school
* 1.5 billion do not have clean water to drink

Effective poverty reduction strategies and poverty-focused lending are central to achieving the Bank's objectives. Bank programs give high priority to sustainable, social, and human development and strengthened economic management, with a growing emphasis on inclusion, governance and institution-building.

The Bank is also helping countries to strengthen and sustain the fundamental conditions they need to attract and retain private investment. With Bank support—both lending and advice—governments are reforming their overall economies and strengthening banking systems. They are investing in human resources, infrastructure, and environmental protection, which enhances the attractiveness and productivity of private investment.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC). IFC promotes private sector investment, both foreign and domestic, in developing member countries. Its investment and advisory activities are designed to reduce poverty and improve people's lives in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. Its work includes activities in some of the riskiest sectors and countries. IFC serves as an investor and an honest broker to balance each party's interest in a transaction, reassuring foreign investors, local partners, other creditors, and government authorities. IFC advises businesses entering new markets and governments trying to provide a more hospitable business environment, to create effective and stable financial markets, or to privatize inefficient state enterprises.

The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA). Foreign direct investment is an important driver of growth in emerging economies. MIGA's mandate is to promote foreign direct investment by offering political risk insurance (guarantees) to investors and lenders, and by providing skills and resources to help emerging economies attract and retain this investment. Projects MIGA supports typically convey many direct benefits to host countries, including jobs created for local workers; accompanying and enduring investments in skills and training for employees; and a general impact on the national economy as a whole, as provided by tax revenues and foreign exchange earnings through exports.

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). ICSID provides facilities for the settlement—by conciliation or arbitration—of investment disputes between foreign investors and their host countries.

Mission Statement of the World Bank

* Our dream is a world free of poverty
* To fight poverty with passion and professionalism for lasting results.
* To help people help themselves and their environment by providing resources, sharing knowledge, building capacity, and forging partnerships in the public and private sectors.
* To be an excellent institution able to attract, excite, and nurture diverse and committed staff with exceptional skills who know how to listen and learn.