Mission & Values

WRI’s mission is to move human society to live in ways that protect Earth’s environment and its capacity to provide for the needs and aspirations of current and future generations.

Impact

We are driven by our commitment to create positive and equitable change at scale, and we understand that this can take time. We strategically invest our efforts in activities that deliver the greatest impact for people, nature and climate.

• We are One WRI; aligning our individual and collective efforts with our strategy to achieve our shared priorities.
• We measure our progress to ensure that our work delivers tangible and equitable outcomes.
• We embrace innovation — continuously learning to improve our work and meet the evolving needs of our stakeholders (and organization). 

Integrity

Integrity is the foundation of our credibility and therefore key to our impact. Our actions are guided by our mission and our commitment to high standards of quality, transparency and accountability.

• We act with honesty and communicate openly, building trust through clarity and transparency.
• We uphold high standards of quality in our work, we invite peer examination, and we are committed to open science, data and methods.
• We take accountability, plan effectively and make timely decisions. We follow through on our commitments. 

Independence

We are proudly independent. Our work is free of political and corporate influence. We are courageous in the pursuit of change and speak with an impartial voice.

• We engage with stakeholders representing different views and make evidence-based decisions.
• We are transparent about our sources of funding and the stakeholders we engage in our work.
• We speak up on risks to WRI’s values, and we declare any potential conflicts of interest. 

Partnership

Collaboration is a cornerstone of our success. It’s what makes us One WRI and enables us to be a trusted partner for change. We work together both internally and externally to address the world’s most pressing challenges.

• We collaborate across functional and geographic boundaries, bringing together diverse expertise to drive our impact.
• We prioritize listening and humbly accept feedback, driving our actions toward the best possible outcomes.
• We recognize and celebrate the contributions of our colleagues and partners in meaningful everyday ways. 

Care

We care equitably for our planet and people. We put the needs of our colleagues, partners and stakeholders at the heart of our decisions and actions to ensure people feel respected, valued, and supported to succeed and to grow.

• We respect and value the diversity of experience, culture, ideas and opinions of our colleagues and partners.
• We act with empathy, balancing the needs of our partners and the communities we serve with the well-being of our people.
• We openly share knowledge and opportunities, supporting each other to learn, contribute and succeed. 

Our Intellectual Independence Policy addresses the imperative of WRI acting independently in all our undertakings when receiving funds from third parties and remaining independent through the entire gift fulfilment process. 

There can be no limitations or conditions on our independence in research, findings, conclusions or resulting publications. WRI retains final decision-making authority regarding the direction of program and project research methods, speakers, and participants in activities, contents of reports and most importantly research conclusions. WRI takes any allegation of undue donor influence seriously and will take active measures to investigate and resolve any such allegation.