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21. nternational Organizations' Modes of Governance in Areas of Limited Statehood: The Case of Food Security

Author:
Leon Schettler, Angela Heucher, and Andrea Liese
Publication Date:
03-2018
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Collaborative Research Center (SFB) 700
Abstract:
International organizations (IOs) are confronted with a twin challenge in areas of limited statehood (ALS). On the one hand, IOs are governmental organizations qua mandate. Their usual approach – providing a range of services to their members and working with or for a given state – may, however, either be blocked or prove unsustainable in ALS. On the other, ALS present numerous challenges to IO governance, ranging from insecurity to a lack of meta-governance. Yet, we know surprisingly little about how IOs operate in these contexts, and, in particular, which modes of governance they choose for which purposes. How can IOs attain the twin objectives of acting in accordance with their mandate, which gives primacy to governments, and responding to ALS-specific challenges in order to effectively provide food security? This paper addresses IOs’ choice of distinct modes of governance, ranging from bargaining to persuasion. It investigates how different types of IOs use and combine these modes in light of varying ALS-challenges. The empirical observations presented in this paper stem from interviews with IOs (ECHO, FAO, IDB, WFP, and the World Bank) at the level of headquarters and country offices (in Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Haiti, Niger, and Sierra Leone), as well as from organizational documents.
Topic:
Food, Governance, Food Security, NGOs, and Statehood
Political Geography:
Global Focus

22. Re-Thinking Global Climate Change: A Local Bottom-Up Perspective

Author:
Rafael Leal-Arcas
Publication Date:
09-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations
Institution:
School of Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University
Abstract:
This article provides a timely and forward-thinking analysis regarding the transition to clean energy. It does so by offering a behavioral-economics analysis of prosumer-market factors. We argue that transitioning to clean energy cannot be achieved solely through top-down or bottom-up methods; rather, a symbiotic relationship between government or businesses creating opportunities and individual prosumers is key. The article puts an emphasis on the effectiveness of bottom-up factors like smart cities, NGOs, and ordinary citizens.
Topic:
Climate Change, Energy Policy, NGOs, and Renewable Energy
Political Geography:
Global Focus

23. 2018 Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs

Author:
Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
Publication Date:
08-2018
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
Abstract:
WFPG's Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs highlights women shaping foreign policy around the world and the role that they play as leaders, diplomats, and policymakers. The Guide provides an index of prominent women from across the international community, including heads of state and government, government ministers and diplomats, and leaders of international organizations and corporations.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Government, United Nations, Women, Leadership, and NGOs
Political Geography:
Global Focus

24. Why talk about carbon removal?

Author:
David R. Morrow, Holly J. Buck, Wil C. G. Burns, Simon Nicholson, and Carolyn Turkaly
Publication Date:
10-2018
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institute for Carbon Removal Law and Policy, American University
Abstract:
Talk of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is spilling out of scientific circles and into the realm of climate politics and policy. Civil society has a vital role to play in ensuring that this conversation is responsive to social needs and develops in constructive and appropriate ways. This report provides a starting point to help environmental and social justice non-governmental organizations (NGOs) engage in the growing conversation about carbon removal. Section 1 of the report argues that the world needs to grapple seriously with large-scale carbon removal and long-term storage, exploring both the rationale for considering carbon removal and the associated risks and downsides. Section 2 provides a brief introduction to the range of options for large-scale carbon removal. Section 3 surveys the existing conversation in different domains, from academia to philanthropy to civil society. Section 4 considers the relationship between carbon removal and mitigation. Section 5 sketches a research agenda for assessing various approaches to carbon removal.
Topic:
Civil Society, Climate Change, Science and Technology, NGOs, and Carbon Emissions
Political Geography:
Global Focus

25. The Rise of Transnational Democracy and Its Effect on the International Legal Order

Author:
Mehmet Halil Mustafa Bektaş
Publication Date:
10-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Academic Inquiries
Institution:
Sakarya University (SAU)
Abstract:
It has been acknowledged that the international legal order faces the prospect of significant change through developments such as the Internet, the increase in the influence of NGOs, and also – controversially – the waning of Westphalian dominance by states together with the development of transnational democracy. This paper first examines the transformation that the international legal order has experienced, particularly since the end of the Cold War, underlining the rise of NGOs in the international realm. It then discusses the relationship between this development and both the degeneration of the state-centric system and the issue of democracy that is of growing concern in international law. It concludes that the developments the international legal order has been witnessing are interdependent, having led to the rise of NGOs, resulting in the extension of democracy beyond national borders and increasing pressure on state-centric systems.
Topic:
International Law, Democracy, NGOs, and transnationalism
Political Geography:
Global Focus

26. Innovations in Global Governance

Author:
Miles Kahler and Deborah Avant
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Council on Foreign Relations
Abstract:
Over the last three decades, a diverse collection of actors—private corporations, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and subnational (state, provincial, and urban) governments—has developed and promoted a global agenda of collective action. From advancing human rights to combating climate change, these actors have become new governors in world politics. More recently, a second movement—a loose array of populist and nationalist groups and governments—has questioned the forward momentum of institutionalized global cooperation. Brexit, followed by the Donald J. Trump administration’s withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Paris Agreement on climate change, as well as proposed cuts in U.S. contributions to the United Nations and development assistance, suggest a weakening—if not undermining—of the network of treaties, institutions, and relationships constructed over the last seventy years. Each of these movements aims to transform a global order based on intergovernmental agreements and institutions. The first movement has already done so by increasing participation in global governance of new actors who are pursuing cooperative outcomes in collaboration with and independently of national governments and intergovernmental organizations (IGOs). Their involvement both complements and complicates the traditional international order. The second movement, in contrast, asserts national interest and sovereignty against the constraints of global governance. Although the conflict between these two movements remains unresolved, they will likely shape the future global order.
Topic:
Climate Change, Human Rights, Governance, and NGOs
Political Geography:
Global Focus

27. Mapping the Experiences of Formers to Streamline the Process of Engaging in CVE

Author:
Hedayah
Publication Date:
01-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Hedayah
Abstract:
This report maps a Former extremist’s journey from disengagement to CVE involvement, while also outlining implementable initiatives that can help governments and NGOs tackle some of the concerns Formers prior to becoming involved in CVE.
Topic:
Government, Violent Extremism, Psychology, NGOs, Identity, and Countering Violent Extremism
Political Geography:
Global Focus

28. Local Humanitarian Leadership and Religious Literacy: Engaging with Religion, Faith, and Faith Actors

Author:
Carleigh Berinot, Robert Brodrick, Tara R. Gingerich, and Diane L. Moore
Publication Date:
03-2017
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
Local humanitarian leadership is built upon the premise that humanitarian action should be led by local humanitarian actors whenever possible, yet this research finds that secular humanitarian INGOs do not engage systematically with local faith actors in their local leadership work. Based primarily on interviews with humanitarian INGO staff, this research also found that neither secular nor faith-inspired international humanitarian organizations have a sufficient level of religious literacy to enable them to understand the religious dimensions of the contexts in which they work and to effectively navigate their engagement with local faith actors.
Topic:
Religion, Leadership, NGOs, Humanitarian Crisis, and Faith
Political Geography:
Global Focus

29. Digital Affordances and Human Rights Advocacy

Author:
Steven Livingston
Publication Date:
03-2016
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Collaborative Research Center (SFB) 700
Abstract:
Keck and Sikkink’s boomerang model (1998) and Risse, Ropp, and Sikkink’s spiral model (1999) anchor much of the scholarly debate about human rights norms propagation. At the heart of both models is “information exchange” among members of broad coalitions advocating for better compliance with human rights norms. An updated spiral model (2013) offers a more liminal, ambiguous, and conditional set of actors and processes than appeared in the first boomerang and spiral models. In this context, we consider the effects of a wide array of digital technologies on human rights NGOs advocacy work and how they affect 21st century information exchange. Traditionally, evidence in human rights investigations is collected in face-to-face meetings among activists and on fact-finding missions. We argue that clusters of digital technologies create “digital affordances” that provide nonstate actors with tools that strengthen their ability to gather scientifically grounded information that pressures noncompliant actors toward commitments with broadly shared human rights norms. As to whether this also leads to greater compliance is less clear.
Topic:
Human Rights, Science and Technology, United Nations, and NGOs
Political Geography:
Global Focus

30. 2016-2017 Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs

Author:
Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
Publication Date:
08-2016
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
Abstract:
WFPG's Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs highlights women shaping foreign policy around the world and the role that they play as leaders, diplomats, and policymakers. The Guide provides an index of prominent women from across the international community, including heads of state and government, government ministers and diplomats, and leaders of international organizations and corporations.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Government, United Nations, Women, Leadership, and NGOs
Political Geography:
Global Focus