Divided Nations

Ian Goldin is Director of the Oxford Martin School, which includes over 300 leading Oxford researchers from medicine, physical and social sciences and humanities working in teams to address critical global problems. The book addresses why global governance is failing, and what we can do about it. The starting point is the paradox of globalisation as a progressive force that is also likely to create the most severe crises of the 21st-century. We therefore need to work out how to manage these threats in view of the fact that our management capacity has not kept pace with the growth and complexity of global issues. This leaves a governance gap between yesterday's structures and today's problems. What he calls our hyper-connectivity resulting from accelerated technological change makes us vulnerable to financial crisis, pandemics, cyber attacks and dangers resulting from the failure to manage migration and climate change. He gives an analysis of these issues in the first chapter, followed by a consideration of how to reconcile global, national and local interests that require an unprecedented level of cooperation.

The organisational profiles of UN institutions need updating, for instance in terms of attracting midcareer specialists and building interdisciplinary teams with long-range perspectives. Appointments systems need to be reformed and issues of legitimacy and effectiveness addressed. The establishment of supportive groups transcending national interest is also crucial, as are the potential contribution of the private sector and the formation of coalitions of the willing. Ultimately, it is about the relationship between hard and soft power. In our connected world, individuals can play a new role, especially in terms of innovation and mobilising social activism. The emergence of digital democracy is an important trend, as is the use of social media in driving change. There is also an important downside to this development, which the author identifies.

The final chapter addresses what can be done to prevent globalisation from sowing the seeds of its own destruction. It needs to be sustainable and inclusive, and ethical issues will need to be included as they arise naturally from our growing interdependence, complexity and fragility. Change is inevitable, but the question is whether we address our central challenges pre-emptively or wait to patch together solutions after some kind of global systemic crisis. We are by no means out of the woods so far as our financial system is concerned, as the quantity and nominal value of derivatives indicates. The message of this hugely informative book is hopeful in stressing our capacity to create and collaborate to address these pressing concerns of global governance.