The effectiveness of the broader coordinated, inclusive global approach to the global economic crisis embodied in the G20 Summits will be determined by the degree to which the G20 provides a mechanism for linking leaders to their societies and for giving publics a sense that leaders are taking responsibility for the public interest. Providing timely intellectual leadership on both international economic issues and on global governance reform contributes to advancing the effectiveness of the G20 summits as manifestations of national and global political leadership.

The National Perspectives on Global Leadership (NPGL) project is a collaborative effort between CIGI and the Brookings Global Economy and Development Program and seeks to advance the idea of a "global steering committee" by fostering ongoing dialogue and relationship-building between the actors that drive the G20 and the G20 emerging market economies, providing the support needed for governance reform to flourish in the new era.

The purpose of NPGL's research and convening is to assess the degree to which a broader summit grouping in the context of the global economic crisis can restore the confidence and trust of people in the capacity of national leaders acting together to take public responsibility for the public interest in economic outcomes.

The NPGL projects aims to generate a stimulating inquiry into various economic, political and international dimensions of national and global leadership as manifested in summitry based on the Breaking Global Deadlocks network of think tank scholars, experts and former officials in G20 countries.

NPGL will continue to develop ideas on global leadership and the leading issues on the G20 summit agenda, extending it to the engagement of the new US administration. The project advances understanding of the issues at the same time as it contributes to developing stronger communications and confidence-building relationships among leading experts and officials from G20 countries.

Partners

• Centre for Policy Research (CPR)


• Centro Brasileiro De Relacoes Internacionais (CEBRI)


• Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales - Sede Argentina (FLACSO)


• German Development Institute


• Institute Francaise de Relations Internationales (IFRI)


• Istanbul Policy Centre, Sabanci University


• Mexican Council on Foreign Relations (COMEXI)


• School of Public Policy and Management, Tsinghua University


• South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA)


• The Brookings Institution


• The Centre for Global Studies (CFGS), University of Victoria


• The Centre for the Study of Global Governance, London School of Economics

Areas of Research

The areas of research include the four issues that reveal insights into the relationships between national leaders and their publics and global leadership and global society: economic, political and international interests of national societies, and global leadership responsibility for the public interest.

Project Activities

This project focuses on collaborative inquiry into national perspectives on global leadership; linking thinking on issues to events.

The National Perspectives on Global Leadership was launched in April of 2009 with an experimental inquiry into the political relationship between national leaders and their publics in the context of the London G20 Summit on April 2nd as revealed in national newspapers in the capitals of G20 countries in the run-up and immediate aftermath of the G20 Summit.

The NPGL team posed four questions to participating think tank experts representing developed and emerging market G20 members from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Mexico, South Africa, Turkey, the UK and the US. Each contributor prepared a response providing an overview of their national perspectives on a series of specific areas of policy. The papers will be available on the CIGI website Monday, June 29, 2009 and will serve as a valuable foundation and framework for continued engagement.

Similar inquiries in the days of the upcoming Italian G8 Summit (8-10 July) and immediately after the third G20 Summit in the fall in Pittsburgh will serve to continue this inquiry.