THE WORLD-WIDE FUND FOR NATURE | THE HOLY SEE (VATICAN)



            The world wide fund for nature, simply referred to as the WWF is an international non-profit organization working on issues relating to conservation, research and restoration of the environment and natural habitats. It was formally called world wide life fund. It is the world’s largest independent conservation organization with over 5 million supporters around the world, cutting across 90 countries15. The WWF supports around 1300 conservation and environmental projects world wide. It is purely a charity organization with 60% of its finding coming from voluntary donations by private individuals. 45% of the income of the WWF came from the US, Canada and the Netherlands. The stated mission of the find is “to halt and reverse. The destruction of our environment”.

            Currently, much of the work of the WWF focuser on the conservation of three biomes that contain work of the world’s biodiversity: these are forests, freshwater ecosystems and oceans and coasts. Among other issues, it is also concerned with endangered protection of species, pollution, and climate change.
Historical origin:      The organization was formed as a charity trust in 1961 in Morges, Switzerland, modern the name world wild life fund. The Brain behind the formation of the WWF were Julian Huxley and Maxnicholson who had thirty big business interests through the political and economic planning think tank.
            The WWF has offices and operations around the world. At first, the WWF focused on fund raising, and providing grants to non-governmental organizations based on the best available scientific knowledge and with an initial focus on the protection of endangered species. As more resources become available, its operations expanded into other areas such as the preservation of biological diversity, sustainable use of natural resources the reduction of pollution and climate change. The organization also began to run its own conservation projects and campaigns and by the 1980s started to take   a move strategic approach to its conservation activities. In 1986, the organization changed its have to the world wide fund for nature, to better reflect the scope of its activities you retained the acronym WWF. In the US and Canada in continued to operate under the original name. in the 1990s, the WWF revised its mission to “stop the degradation of the planet’s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature”. This goal was to be achieved through:

1.         Conserving the world’s biological diversity.
2.         Ensuring that the use of removable natural resources is sustainable.
3.         Promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.
            WWF scientists and many other researchers identified 238 eco regions that represent the world’s most biologically outstanding terrestrial, freshwater and marine habits, based on a world wide biodiversity analysis which the organization says was the first of its kind. In the early 2005, the WWF’s work has focused on a freshwater and marine habitat conservation, endangered specie conservation, climate change and the elimination of the most toxic chemicals. In the words of Peter Scott, “re shall not save all the should like to, but we shall save a great deal move them if we had never tried17”

 Current conservation activities: This WWF’s current strategy for achieving its mission specifically focuses on restoring the population of 36 species or specie groups that are important for their ecosystems or to people. these include elephants, tunas, whales, dolphins and porpoises, and big leaf mahogany. The WWF is also concerned with conserving 35 globally important eco-regions around the wild. These include the Artic, the Amazon rain forest, the Congo Basin and the Coral Triangle. It also concentrates efforts on reducing peoples’ ecological footprints in 6 areas. These are carbon emissions, cropland, grazing land, fishing, forestry and water.
            The organization also marks on a number of global issues driving bio-diversity loss and unsustainable use of natural resources. These include finance. Business practices, laws and consumption choices.
            The WWF works with a large number of different groups to achieve its goals including other NGOS, national governments, businesses, investment banks, scientists, fishers, farmers and local communities. It also undertakes public campaigns to influence decision makers and seeks to educate people on how to live in a more environmentally friendly manner.
            The WWF collaborates with other environmental organizations and interests to publish  a wide range of article and indexes in order to created an impact on human activities world wide. The organization regularly publishers reports, fact sheets and other relevant information documents  on issues relating to its activities. It works hand to create awareness and provide information to policy formulations and decisions makers.
Criticisms of the WWF
1.         Accused by other environmental groups and campaigners off being too close to big business. They argue that this  closeness have watered down the ferocity and objectivity necessary to carry out a successful environmental campaign work. The WWF is largely seen by critics as a conformist.
2.         Most of its big donors are the most environmental polluters especially the oil companies. The argument here is, like the one mentioned above, that the WWF is a collaborator in environmental degradation despite its other stated goals and objectives.
PS        the former common wealth secretary general, Nigeria’s Emeka Anyaoku served as president of the WWF from 2001-2010.

THE HOLY SEE (VATICAN)
             The holy see (Sancta Sedes) is the Episcopal jurisdiction of the catholic church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the pope. It is the pre-environment Episcopal see of the catholic church, forming the central government of the church. As such, diplomatically and in other spheres, the holy see acts and speaks for the whole catholic church. It is also recognized by other subjects of international law as a sovereign entity, headed by the pope, with which diplomatic relations can be maintained.
The sovereignty of the holy see has been recognized explicitly in many international agreements and is particularly emphasized in article 2 of the lateran treaty of February 11, 1929, in which Italy recognized the sovereignty of the holy see in the international field as an inherent attribute of its nature, in conformity with its tradition, and the requirements of its mission in the world.
             Although it is often referred to by the ambiguous term, “the Vatican”, the holy see is not the same entity as the Vatican city state which came into existence only in 1929, while the holy see dates back to early Christian times-the beginning of Christendom. Ambassadors are officially accredited not to the Vatican city state but to the holy see” and papal representatives to states and international organizations are recognized as representatives to the holy see. Not to the Vatican city state. In the words of Archbishop Jean-Lonis Tauran, former Holy See’s secretary for relations with states “Vatican city is a minuscule support-state that guarantees the spiritual freedom of the Pope with the minimum of territory36. All popes have resided in the area that became Vatican city since 1377. the site was given to pope militates in 313 AD by Emperor constant time.
             While all Episcopal sees are holy. The expression “holy see” is normally used in international relations as a metonym as well as in canon laws of the catholic church to refer to the see of Rome viewed as the central government of the catholic church. The holy see as a legal person bears many similarities with the crown in the legal secular Christian monarchies. 

Organization of the Holy See - The pope is the supreme authority of the catholic church. He governs the church through the  Roman curia. The roman curia consists of a complex of offices that administer church affairs at the highest levels the curia consists of the secretariat of state, mine congregations, three tribunals, eleven pontifical councils and seven pontifical commissions. The secretariat of state. Under the cardinal secretary of state directs and co-ordinates the curia. He is the equivalent of the prime minister of the Holy See and acts also as the minister for foreign affairs. The secretariat of state is the only body of the curia that is situated within Vatican city. The others are located in buildings in different parts of Rome that have extraterritorial rights similar to those of embassies. The cardinal secretary of state is the second most powerful figure in the church hierarchy after the pontiff.
             Among the most active of the major curial institutions are the congregation for the doctrine of the faith which oversees the doctrine of the catholic church the congregation of Bishops which co-ordinates the appointment of Bishop world wide, the congregation of the evangelization of peoples which oversees all missionary activities and the pontifical council for justice and peace, which deals with international peace and social issues outside the spiritual realm.

Three tribunals are responsible for judicial powers:
1.    The Sacra Rota is responsible for normal appeals, including decrees for the mollification of marriages, with the apostolic signature being the administrative court of appeal, and highest ecclesiastical court.
2.   The apostolic penitentiary is different from the above two. The AP deals with contention issues such as absolutions, dispensation and indulgencies.
3.    The prefecture for the economic affairs of the Holy See’s co-ordinate the finances of the Holy See’s departments and supervises the administration of all offices, whatever may be their degree of metonymy, that manages these finances. The most important of these is the administration of the patrimony of the Apostolic See.
     The prefecture of the papal household is responsible for the organization of the papal household, audiences and ceremonies. The Holy See does not dissolve upon the death or resignation of a pope. Instead, it operation under a different set of laws known as Seder Vacant. During this interregnum, the heads of the Dicasteries of the roman Curia such as the prefects of congregation lease to hold office. The only exceptions are the major penitentiary who continues his important role responding absolutions and dispensations and the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, who administers the temporalities, i.e. (properties and finances) of the Holy See of St Peter during this period. The government of the Holy See and therefore the Catholic Church, then falls on the College of Cardinals. Canonlaw prohibits the college and the Camerlengo from introducing any innovations or novelties in the government of the church during this period-until a new Pope is made.

States in International Law: The Holy See has been recognized, both in the state practice and in the writings of modern legal scholars, as a subject of public international law, with rights and duties analogous to those of states. Although the Holy See, as distinct from the Vatican city state, does not fulfill the long-established criteria in international law of statehood Vis having a permanent population, a defined territory. A of stable government and the capacity to enter into independent relations with other states37, its possession of full legal personality in international law is shown by the fact that it maintains diplomatic relations with 177 countries, that it is a member state of various inter-governmental organizations, and that it is….respected by the international community of sovereign states and treated as a subject of international law having the capacity to engage in diplomatic relations and to enter into binding agreements with one, several or many states under international law that are largely geared to establishing and preserving peace in the world…38 .

Diplomacy and Foreign Relations: 
Since the medieval period. The Episcopal See of Rome has been recognized as a sovereign entity. The Holy See maintains diplomatic relations with 178 sovereign states and also with the EU and the sovereign military order of Malta. The Holy See also have relations of a special character with the PLO.69 of the diplomatic missions accredited to the Holy See are situated in Rome. The See maintain 180 permanent diplomatic missions abroad, of which 74 are non residentials so that many of its 106 concrete missions are accredited to two or more countries or international organizations.
            The diplomatic activities of the Holy See are directed by the secretary of state headed by the cardinal secretary of state, through the section for relation with states. There are 16 internationally recognized states which the Holy See does not have relations with. These are Afghanistan, Bhutan, Brunei, Comoros,, Laos, Malaysia, the Maldives, Mauritania, Myanmar, Tuvalu and Vietnam. The Holy See is the only European subject of international law that has official diplomatic relations with Taiwan. The Holy See is a member of various international organizations and groups including the IAEA, the international telecommunications union, OSCE, and the UNHCR. The Holy See is also a permanent observer in various international organizations including the UN General Assembly, Council of Europe, UNESCO, WHO and FAO.

The Lateran Treaty:  
Lateran Treating is one of the Lateran parts of 1929 made between the kingdom of Italy and the Holy See. It consisted of three documents
1.         A political treating recognizing the full sovereignty of the Holy See in the state of Vatican City which was thereby established. The Pope was pledged to perpetual neutrality in international relations and abstention from mediation in a controversy unless specifically requested by all parties.
2.         A concordat regulating the position of the Catholic Church and the catholic religion in the Italian state effectively establishing catholic as a state religion in Italy.
3.         A financial convention was agreed upon as a definitive settlement of the claims of the Holy See following the losses of its territories and properties with its loss of temporal power in 1870. This settlement in effect created the modern wealth of the church.
            The negotiation which began in 1926 culminated in the agreements of the three Lateran accords mentioned above. He Accord was signed by Prime Minister, Benito Mussolini on behalf of King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy and by cardinal Secretary of state, Pictro Gaspari for Pope Pius XI. The agreements were signed in the Lateran Palace hence the name by which they are known. The treating also ended the “Prisoner in the Vatican” states of the Popes between 1870 and 1926.
            Despite the loss of its temporal powers, and the Lateran treat which restricts its interference in non-spiritual matters, the Holy See has remained a potent force, albeit moral one, in global affairs. As the spiritual leader of close to a quarter of the world population, the Pope, no doubt, wields enormous power. He is briefed on major issues and events that affect the world on a daily baries and some of these he reacts to, others he does not. Again the involvement of the Holy See in political issues is largely determined by the character and personality of the Pope, his perception of his mission on earth and the direction in which he desired to take the church at a particular point in history.
            The present concerns of the Holy See include religions freedom, international development, the environment, the middle cast, China and Taiwan, terrorison, the decline of religion in Europe, inter-religious dialogue, reconciliation and tolerance and the application of church doctrine in an era of rapid change and globalization.
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