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High Noon: The urgent Need for New Global

Problem-solving Approaches

2003

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The Urgent Need for New Approaches toGlobal Problem-Solving

Key Messages

1. Two big forces of change are running ahead of our ability to respond to them

2. In that context, there are about 20 urgent global issues

3. The current global problem-solving setup has not been up to the task

4. There are several families of ideas on alternative global problem-solving approaches

5. Time has come for starting an international discussion on the methodology of global problem-solving

6. The events of September 11 have made all this even more urgent

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A Beleaguered Planet

Population increase New economy

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New Economy

Population Increase

Human Institutions

A Dangerous Gap . . .

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Inherently Global Issues

Deforestation

Greenhouse gas emissions

Fisheries depletion

Biodiversity loss

Poverty

Information age taxation

Water shortages

Financial stability

…mostly failures

A few examples...

Exception that proves the rule: The Montreal Protocol

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Sharing our Planet: Issues involving the global commons

• Global warming• Biodiversity and ecosystem losses• Fisheries depletion• Deforestation • Water deficits• Maritime safety and pollution

Sharing our humanity: Issues whose size and urgency requires a global commitment• Massive step-up in the fight against poverty • Peace-keeping, conflict prevention, combating terrorism• Education for all• Global infectious diseases • Digital divide• Natural disaster prevention and mitigation

Sharing our rulebook: Issues needing a global regulatory approach• Reinventing taxation for the 21st century• Biotechnology rules• Global financial architecture• Illegal drugs• Trade, investment and competition rules• Intellectual property rights• E-commerce rules• International labor and migration rules

20 years, 20 issues

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The current international set up for solving Inherently Global Issues (IGIs) is essentially not up to the task . . .

Treaties and conventionsToo slow for burning IGIs

Intergovernmental conferencesToo short on follow-up mechanisms

G7/8, G-X type mechanismsFour limitations:

1. Methodology2. Exclusiveness3. Knowledge limitations4. Distance to the people

Global multilateral institutionsNot able to handle IGIs alone

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Two major tracks...

Current Setup

World Government

AlternativeApproaches

Covering all issues

One global issue at a time

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A world government ?

EU

A case study... …not functioning at world level

In the next 20 years, there is not a chance that we will see a «world government» concept emerging as a solution.

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Alternative approaches: three families of ideas

G20-type Groupings

Global Issues Networks (GINs)

New Diplomacy and Expanded aid concepts

• Inter-governmental• Not permanent

• New diplomacy• New sources of funds

• Tripartite: public sector, business, civil society

• Permanent

• World Bank and other experiments: forestry, dams

• Recent development in the field of aid (global public goods + UNDP ideas)

• Recent G7 experiments

Main features: Main ideas originating in:

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Global Issues Networks (GINs)

• Permanent Networks for various global issues- launched by a multilateral as facilitator- tripartite (public, private, civil society)

• Three phases- Startup- Norm Production- Rating, naming-and-shaming

• GINs don’t legislate, but put pressure on countries to enact conforming legislation (reputation effects)

• Partial examples: Dams, Forestry

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Phase 1 - The constitutional phase

Parties in each GIN:• Government• International civil society organizations• Business

Facilitators/conveners:• One global multilateral (as lead facilitator)• One from civil society• One from the business world

Global Issues Networks (GINs)

1 year

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Modus operandi:• Discipline and substance, no posturing• Deliberative polling through Electronic Town Meetings (ETM) • Rough consensus 

Structured work on a specific IGI:• What is the problem?• How much time do we have?• Where do we want to be 20 years from now?• How do we get there?• What are the options?• What should the norms be?

Global Issues Networks (GINs)

Phase 2 - The norm-producing phase

1 year 2-3 years1 year

Detailed norm packagesOther recommendations

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New tasks:• Rating countries and players against norms, creating

reputation effects• Observatory and knowledge exchange roles

1 year 2-3 years1 year 2-3 years 10 years?

Global Issues Networks (GINs)

Phase 3 - The implementation phase

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Global Issues Networks (GINs)

GIN

1 year 2-3 years 10 years?

Membership: 101 102 103

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102

ETM Electronic Town

Meeting

IEP Independent Expert Panel

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Country 1 2 3… 200 Horizontal cross border legitimacy

Issue-by-issue

Vertical legitimacy

All issuesGove

rnm

ent

s

Elect

ed

Repre

senta

tives

People

Global Issue Network 1

Global Issue Network 2 …

…Global Issue Network 20

Vertical and Horizontal: A new interplay

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G20-type Mechanisms

• Example: G20, FATF, Financial Stability Forum

• Create one G20 group for each global issue

• Membership would depend on the issue

• G20s’ work would feed into:

• G7/8

• Treaties and conventions

• National legislation

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• National issues experts also become diplomats

• National sector ministries with 2 budgets:

- Domestic budget

- Global action budget

• ODA (C) and ODA (G)

• Global Participation Fund to help poor countries

- Participate

- Implement

Expanded Concepts of Aid and Diplomacy

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A possible outcome

New Diplomacy and Expanded Aid

Concepts

G20sCurrent International Setup

• Treaties

• Intergovernmental conferences

• G7/8 type groups

• Global Multilaterals

+ GINs

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There is an urgent need for leadership in getting these methodological questions discussed.

• A new “Bretton Woods conference”?

• Special heads-of-state brainstorming?

• Other venues?

The point is...

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Basic Books

New York, 2002