Who gains from saving nature
Ledger 1 : 33 — For each dollar financing nature-based solutions in 2023, about $33 financed activities harmful to nature. (UNEP)
Cases / Protected area / relocation · Russia · 2023

Russia labels WWF Russia a foreign agent, then an undesirable organisation

Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.

Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
What the record lacks: 2 none on record · 1 not measured · 1 unclear See the gaps

Russia designated WWF Russia a foreign agent in March 2023 and an undesirable organisation on 22 June 2023, citing what it called biased assessments that restrain economic development. The organisation had a 2021 budget of 1.1 billion roubles, about two-thirds of it from abroad, and had helped create more than 150 protected areas.

What?
Russia designated WWF Russia a foreign agent in March 2023 and an undesirable organisation on 22 June 2023. Novaya Gazeta Europe
Where?
Russia Novaya Gazeta Europe
When?
Foreign agent designation in March 2023; undesirable designation on 22 June 2023. Greenpeace was declared undesirable on 19 May 2023. Novaya Gazeta Europe
Who?
Gained
Lost
Harmed
  • Russian protected areas — WWF Russia had helped create more than 150 protected areas; the sources do not say how their status changed Novaya Gazeta Europe
Why?
The authorities cited what they called biased assessments that restrain Russia's economic development. Novaya Gazeta Europe
How?
The sources reviewed do not describe the legal procedure used for either designation.
6 of 6 questions answered from the record

What happened

The record, in order.

Novaya Gazeta Europe reported that Russia designated WWF Russia a foreign agent in March 2023 and an undesirable organisation on 22 June 2023, citing what it called biased assessments aimed at restraining the country's economic development.

According to the same report, WWF Russia's 2021 budget was 1.1 billion roubles, about EUR 12.6 million, and about two-thirds of it came from abroad.

The report also says the organisation had contributed to creating more than 150 protected areas, and that after the designation it dropped the panda logo and left the international WWF network.

    In court and with insurers

    Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.

    Lawsuits and rulings

    No court case on record. No court has ruled on this case.

    Insurers

    No insurer decision on record.

    What we don't know

    Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.

    Nature

    • Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.

    Record

    • None on record The sources reviewed do not describe the legal procedure, the appeal options, or any court review of either designation.
    • None on record The sources reviewed do not say what the Kompas fund finances, or how its work compares with WWF Russia's.
    • Unclear The sources reviewed do not say whether the 2021 budget figure reflects WWF Russia's spending in 2023.

    Did the harm stop?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Who paid?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Sources

    Voices on record: — Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations— Communities and civil society— Researchers

    Press and investigations

    Connected cases

    Related matters, and cases linked to this one through the same organisations, with the role each played in both.
    Terms used on this page

    Science and environment

    Hectare (ha)
    A unit of area equal to 10,000 square metres, about 2.5 acres. 100 hectares make one square kilometre.
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