Teacher: Fredrik Söderbaum

This lecture introduces the course through a focus on the history and evolution of global and regional governance. It deals with questions such as: When did global and regional governance begin? What are the differences between older and newer forms of governance, and between global and regional governance? What is the difference between governance and international organizations?

Powerpoint for the lecture are here: IR1233.History.HT2023.pptx

Readings:

Start reading Weiss and WiIkinson, which is the introduction to one of the best-sellers in the field. It deals specifically with the link between global governance and international organizations. Then read Acharya, who is one of the world's leading scholars of world order and global governance. He describes the difference between old, conventional (American-led) global governance and more fragmented global governance in a multiplex world order. The next two chapters are about regional governance. Söderbaum outlines the history of regionalism and regional governance in a broad sense, covering both regionalism and regionalisation. Monika Herz's chapter is included in the edited volume by Weiss and Wilkinson and gives a comprehensive global overview of regional organizations.

Weiss, Thomas G. & Wilkinson, Rorden (2018/2014) Introduction: From International Organization to Global Governance, in Weiss, Thomas G. & Wilkinson, Rorden (eds.): International Organization and Global Governance. London: Routledge, pp. 1-20. The link is to the 2014 edition. It is acceptable to read the 2014-version - but if you can get 2018, then that version is preferred. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/gu/reader.action?docID=1480757&ppg=28

Acharya, Amitav (2017) ‘After Liberal Hegemony: The Advent of a Multiplex World Order.’ Ethics & International Affairs, 31(3), 271-285. https://doi.org/10.1017/S089267941700020X

Söderbaum, Fredrik (2016) “Old, New and Comparative Regionalism. The History and Scholarly Development of the Field”, in Tanja Börzel and Thomas Risse (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Regionalism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 16-33. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199682300.013.2

Monika Herz (2018) “Regional governance and regional organizations” in Weiss, Thomas G. & Wilkinson, Rorden (eds.): International Organization and Global Governance. London: Routledge, pp. 250-268. The link is to the 2014 edition. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/gu/reader.action?docID=1480757&ppg=263

Study questions:

When did global governance begin?
How did global governance evolve? What are the differences and similarities between older and newer forms of global governance?
What does Acharya mean by a multiplex world order? How is it different from liberal order? What drives it?
How did regional governance (or regionalism) evolve historically? According to Söderbaum, what are the differences and similarities between older and newer forms of regional governance?
What is the relationship between regional and global governance since 1990, according to Monica Herz?