In its message of 26 December 1995 to the Conference of the Continental Boards of Counsellors the Universal House of Justice announced that a Four Year Plan would be rolled out at Ridván.

"The Wilmette Institute is a center of Bahá'í learning. Its programs aim to facilitate study and dialogue on the teachings and principles of the Faith to help individuals and communities apply learning and advance human civilization."

For the proceedings see Law and International Order: Proceedings of the First European Bahá'í Conference on Law and International Order and for a review of the book by Joshua Lincoln see Bahá'í Library Online.

"Fundamental to the work of the Counsellors is the understanding that all members of the Continental Board are responsible for the entire continent, and should, to the degree possible, endeavor to familiarize themselves with the conditions of the Cause in the countries therein. Through periodic reports from individual Counsellors, the Board is kept abreast of developments in all areas of the continent and is able to offer guidance to assist its members in the execution of their duties. Whereas no Counsellor should be regarded as having exclusive responsibility for any one territory, the detailed familiarity acquired by each through close interaction with the National Spiritual Assembly and Auxiliary Board members in a particular area is in fact a valuable asset to all the Counsellors on the Board."

On June 20th the Universal House of Justice informed the same National Spiritual Assemblies that the entire sum had been ensured but that $10M annually would be required until the end of the century. [Ridván 152; Vineyard of the Lord No 11 p8; Sacred Stairway p66-67]

Humanity has done well to articulate material indicators of development, and even to achieve a number of them. But focusing only on that which is quantifiable has obscured the critical importance of factors related to higher aspects of the human spirit, such as the value of relationships, the quality of one's character, and the coherence between principles and deeds. The need to bring such factors to the centre of the development discourse was outlined in The Prosperity of Humankind, which made clear that ideals require the force of spiritual commitment to cement them. The statement laid out an ambitious vision of humanity's capacity to take charge of the course of its development, and addressed a set of principles and concepts indispensable to the task, from reimagining collective decision-making to rearranging economic priorities. It called for "unconditioned recognition of the oneness of humankind" and "a commitment to the establishment of justice as the organizing principle of society". [BIC 3 March 2020]