Trust and the WWF in the Arctic

• Main Author: Burke, Danita Catherine
• Other Authors: Castro Pereira, Joana, Saramago, André
• Format: Book Part
• Language: English
• Published: Springer 2020
• Subjects: Arctic; Arctic Council
• Online Access: https://portal.findresearcher.sdu.dk/da/publications/b5535e5a-9888-45dd-9e80-1d3b66a7246b; https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-49496-4_13

• The perception of international non-governmental organisations (INGO), particularly environmentally focused ones, is mixed throughout the North and the Arctic. In the North American North and Arctic, the legacy of the anti-sealing campaign has left an indelible mark that reinforces local views that protection of non-human nature is the environmental INGO priority. This chapter explores the questions: how do you develop a trusted reputation as an INGO operating in the North and how does perceived trustworthiness influence organisational capacity? It argues that balancing the human and non-human aspects of the Arctic and North are central to INGO ability to be trusted and seen as trustworthy in those parts of the world. The ability of an INGO to demonstrate that it accounts for both dimensions is reinforced by its brand. Lying at the heart of the brand, and trust in it, are organisational legacy and networks. Using the case study of the World Wide Fund for Nature/World Wildlife Fund (WWF), this chapter demonstrates that legacy and networks, with the access they can provide, are essential to INGOs ability to demonstrate to different audiences in the North and Arctic that they can work with them. The primary audience for INGO work used in this piece is the Arctic states and their representatives to the Arctic Council, the Arctic region’s pre-eminent forum for environmental protection and sustainable development discourse.