Global governance

Key people

• Cristina LafontSpanish philosopher
• Barry Keith GillsDoctoral candidate at the London School of Economics and Political Science
• Rorden WilkinsonBritish academic and author
• Susanne Kerstin SchmidtGerman political scientist

Timeline

• 1963The 1963 Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty prohibiting atmospheric nuclear testing marked the beginning of the globalization of environmental issues.
• 1970Numerous new international institutions and actors have emerged in this field since the 1970s.
• 2020A publication of 2020 described global environmental governance as "one of the institutionally most dynamic areas in world politics" in the last thirty years.
• 2022As of 2022, new alliances are being formed between intergovernmental treaty secretariats and non-state actors.

Read

• International Organization and Global GovernanceThomas G. Weiss · 2013Book
• International OrganizationsKelly-Kate S. Pease · 2011Book
• Critical Perspectives on Global GovernanceJean Grugel · 2007Book
• Global Governance, Human Rights and International LawErrol P. Mendes · 2014Book

Listen

• Global Governance PodcastGlobal Governance ForumPodcast
• Global Governance Futures: Imperfect Utopias or BustGlobal Governance FuturesPodcast
• Global Governance PerspectiveAndy TIANPodcast
• CILJ 11th Annual Conference: 'Strengthening Global Governance through International Law: Challenges and Opportunities'CILJPodcast

Voices to follow

• Alejandro Posada@pal3jo · XColombian political economist, social scientist, policy expert
• Wendy H. Wong@wendyhwong · XPolitical science researcher

By the numbers

• 4.7CO₂ per person (t) — global, 2024 (World Bank)
• 31.1Forest area (% land) — global, 2023 (World Bank)

Debates

• Should national sovereignty always take precedence over international intervention?One view: National sovereignty is a fundamental principle, protecting states from external interference and ensuring self-determination. · Another: International intervention is sometimes necessary to address human rights abuses, genocides, or global crises that transcend borders.Open question
• Are current global governance institutions effective enough to tackle complex global challenges?One view: Existing institutions like the UN and WTO provide crucial frameworks for cooperation and have achieved significant progress in many areas. · Another: These institutions often suffer from slow decision-making, power imbalances, and a lack of enforcement mechanisms, limiting their effectiveness.Open question
• Should non-state actors have a more formal role in global decision-making?One view: Non-state actors like NGOs and corporations bring diverse perspectives, expertise, and resources, enhancing legitimacy and effectiveness. · Another: Granting formal power to non-state actors could undermine the democratic legitimacy of state-based global governance and introduce accountability issues.Open question

Glossary

• Global governanceThe sum of the many ways individuals and institutions manage their common affairs across borders.
• International lawA system of rules and principles governing the relations between sovereign states and other international actors.
• SovereigntyThe supreme authority of a state over its territory and internal affairs, free from external control.
• MultilateralismCooperation among three or more states based on shared principles and common interests.
• Non-state actorsEntities other than states that play a role in international relations, such as NGOs or multinational corporations.
• International OrganizationsBodies established by treaties between states to address common issues, like the UN or WHO.

Careers

Roles this can lead toward

Student research

Published policy papers by One Young India delegates — every delegate leaves published under their own name.

• Global Inflation after the Pandemic: Cyclical Pressures, Structural Drivers, and Policy MisstepsGayatri Satish
• Global Emissions and Carbon Offsetting: Examining Conservational Approaches and Regulatory GapsVinayak Raj
• EGO: The Ethics and Governance OrganisationSanyam Patel
• The Decline of Regional Languages in India – Preserving Linguistic Diversity in a Globalized EraSajinkya Sharan Gupta
• Decentralized Sovereignty: Restructuring Economic Power with Crypto-Nations and Blockchain-Based GovernanceTamil Jeevan S S
• Capitalism and Global Inequality: A Unified AnalysisRuveer Vohra

Threads 3

Where this connects to other fields — and why it's worth knowing.

• Gene Editing Ethics Science

  Say one country decides it's fine to genetically upgrade its babies. Rivals now feel they can't afford to fall behind, so they follow, and suddenly there's a race to redesign humans. There's no world government acting as referee to blow the whistle, which is what makes this so hard to stop.

• Networks & the Internet Technology

  There's no world government, yet billions of devices on the internet somehow all follow the same rules. How? A group of engineers agrees on standards by 'rough consensus and running code,' basically whoever's idea works and most people accept. It's a real, working example of the whole planet cooperating with nobody officially in charge.

• Social Institutions Sociology

  People used to think a shared forest or fishery would inevitably get wrecked unless a government or a private owner took control. Elinor Ostrom traveled the world and found communities that manage shared resources just fine with their own homegrown rules. The 'tragedy of the commons' isn't destiny; ordinary people can govern what they share.