Forum of Federations
History
History
-------

The Forum was established as an ongoing organization in 2000, following the September 1999 [First International Conference on Federalism](/wiki/Clarity_Act%23Conference "Clarity Act#Conference") in [Mont\-Tremblant](/wiki/Mont-Tremblant "Mont-Tremblant"), [Quebec](/wiki/Quebec "Quebec"). The event drew then world leaders such as U.S. President [Bill Clinton](/wiki/Bill_Clinton "Bill Clinton"), Canadian Prime Minister [Jean Chrétien](/wiki/Jean_Chr%C3%A9tien "Jean Chrétien") and Mexican President [Ernesto Zedillo](/wiki/Ernesto_Zedillo "Ernesto Zedillo"). Four consecutive International Conferences were organized in Switzerland, Belgium, India, and Ethiopia. Following the 2005 Conference held in Brussels, a number of countries joined the Forum as funding partners, establishing it as a membership\-based international organization.

Over the years, the Forum has expanded the focus of its work to include not only established federal countries but also countries in post\-conflict situations adopting federal forms of governance and those involved in processes of devolution and decentralization. As of 2017, ten governments, [Australia](/wiki/Government_of_Australia "Government of Australia"), [Brazil](/wiki/Government_of_Brazil "Government of Brazil"), [Canada](/wiki/Government_of_Canada "Government of Canada"), [Ethiopia](/wiki/Government_of_Ethiopia "Government of Ethiopia"), [Germany](/wiki/Government_of_Germany "Government of Germany"), [India](/wiki/Government_of_India "Government of India"), [Mexico](/wiki/Government_of_Mexico "Government of Mexico"), [Nigeria](/wiki/Government_of_Nigeria "Government of Nigeria"), [Pakistan](/wiki/Government_of_Pakistan "Government of Pakistan") and [Switzerland](/wiki/Government_of_Switzerland "Government of Switzerland"), had signed agreements as partners of the Forum and are represented on the Forum’s Strategic Council and Board of Directors, supporting the activities of the organization and providing expertise. Most recently, to commemorate the [20th anniversary](https://forumfed20.org/) of the organization's founding, the Forum hosted an International Dialogue on the Future of Federalism \- a series of webinars convening world\-leading experts to examine these critical issues of federal and multilevel governance.


What is the Forum?