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Gordon Smith Publications
The Evolving Role of the G20
In considering the evolving role of the G20, it is worth reflecting upon the factors that shaped the group’s original mandate. As the first decade of the new century progressed, it became increasingly clear that the international balance of power had shifted, but the institutional framework, which sought to manage the global economy, had not adapted to reflect this new reality. The financial crisis of 2008 forced the leading economic powers (notably the US, where the crisis originated) to confront the need to integrate the emerging economies more effectively into international economic decision making.
Getting the Context Right: Essential to Assuring G20's Success
The summer of 2011 was not a time when key players in the international economic arena could relax on the beach. With the world facing an international economic crisis, one might have expected that the world’s “premier forum for international economic cooperation” — the G20 — would have been centre stage. Indeed, former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for a special meeting of the G20. It did not happen.
G7 to G8 to G20: Evolution in Global Governance
In the sixth installment in CIGI’s G20 Paper series, Gordon Smith discusses the evolution of the Group of Seven (G7) to the formation of the Group of Twenty (G20) finance ministers in late 1990s, and the G20 leaders’ summit forum at the outbreak of the global financial crisis in 2008. Gordon Smith discusses the evolution of the summitry from the G7 in the 1970s, to the first G20 leader's summit in 2008.
The G20 Agenda and Process: Analysis and Insight by CIGI Experts
These 21 CIGI commentaries analyze the policy issues and debates under discussion in 2010 that are still relevant to the ongoing G20 agenda under the French presidency and the G20’s aspirations for the future.
Challenges and Opportunities for the French Presidency: The G20 — 2011 and Beyond
As host of the sixth G20 summit later this year, France is under pressure to succeed in resolving visible issues and delivering on the existing agenda. A CIGI report considers the issues facing the French G20 presidency and the need for the G20 to define its role quickly or risk becoming irrelevant.
Making the G20 Summit Process Work: Some Proposals for Improving Effectiveness and Legitimacy
The G20 at the summit level has emerged as the “premier forum for international economic cooperation” in the wake of the global financial crisis. In the second of CIGI’s series of G20 papers, Barry Carin, Paul Heinbecker, Gordon Smith and Ramesh Thakur discuss which global problems could be on future G20 agendas and offer ideas as to how the new “G” grouping can achieve both effectiveness and legitimacy.
The G20 and Climate Change: the Quintessential Global Governance Issue
Thanks to Lord Nicholas Stern of Britain, a compelling case has been made about the drastic economic consequences of failing to deal in good time with climate change. The next economic crisis might well be driven by an inadequate response to climate change. We have seen from the Great Recession that the G20 can deal successfully with global-scale problems. We need it now to focus its efforts on the quintessential global governance issue – climate change—that could doom us all if we can’t find the means to agree to change course.