Surviving Trump, Brexit and the BRICS: Resilient International Organizations for the 21st Century

The post-war international liberal order is under threat. While multilateral global governance has prospered in the first two decades since the fall of the Berlin Wall, in recent years, the work of international organizations has become fiercely contested. Remarkably, this challenge comes not just from emerging powers such as the BRICS who feel that existing arrangements no longer reflect geopolitical realities but also the very architects of the post-war international order. A zero-sum approach to multilateralism under the Trump administration has led the United States to withdraw or distance itself from a number of international organizations. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union may reflect a broader popular sentiment that international organizations are, at the same time, too distant, too intrusive, and too ineffective.

This keynote lecture reflects on the challenges and changing demands that international organizations are currently facing.