Sometimes it’s called the dog days of summer, but not at the CIGI Publications department, where many new CIGI research papers have been rolling off the press — or parading on to the website — with astonishing alacrity.
If that team of editors were pulling the oars in a Roman galley, you might think of its leader, Managing Editor Carol Bonnett, as being like Buddy Rich on the drum — at least, in terms of the pace. But I assure you, the working conditions are much, much nicer.
Highlights from the wave of recent publications:
- Unleashing the Nuclear Watchdog: Strengthening and Reform of the IAEA, by CIGI Senior Fellow Trevor Findlay. This one garnered worldwide media attention, for its bold recommendations to reform the International Atomic Energy Agency — solid work by a CIGI expert and the result of more than two years of research.
- National Perspectives on Global Leadership During the Los Cabos G20 Summit, a project led by Senior Fellow Colin Bradford. This report surveys the media covering in a dozen G20 capitals — and finds that attention to the euro zone crisis overwhelmed several important outcomes from the summit.
- An Unfinished House: Filling the Gaps in International Governance, by senior publications adviser Max Brem with the assistance of CIGI Project Officer Deanne Leifso. It’s an encyclopaedic survey of the global governance landscape, based on a conference held at CIGI late in 2011. This one looks at gaps in international governance, focusing on governance challenges under CIGI’s thematic areas of concentration — Global Economy, Environment and Energy, Global Development and Global Security.
- How Global Watchdogs Missed a World of Trouble, by CIGI Senior Visiting Fellow Paul Blustein. A former journalist with the Washington Post, Paul’s an excellent writer and digger. He interviewed scores of policy makers and unearthed thousands of pages of previously undisclosed documents. His scrutiny of the Financial Stability Forum shows a failure of regulators to keep pace with the globalization of the financial system.
- A Flop and a Debacle: Inside the IMF's Global Rebalancing Acts, also by Blustein. This paper is a detailed account of IMF initiatives to address imbalances prior to the 2008 global financial crisis. It’s not a flattering picture.
That’s just a small sampling, with more in the works. Stay tuned for a major new CIGI paper next week by Senior Visiting Fellow Susan Schadler, analyzing the sovereign debt crises roiling global markets, and proposing a five-point agenda for solving the problems.
You can find many other recent CIGI publications posted free at the CIGI website. They range from quick reads — 700-word commentaries and concise policy briefs — to hefty papers and blockbuster special reports, all on pressing matters of international interest.
Amid all of this publishing hubbub, Carol’s team also reissued the CIGI Style Guide, which prescribes proper formats for footnotes, citations, use of punctuation and the like. Is it “policy maker” or “policymaker”? “Adviser” or “advisor”? “Email” or “e-mail”? These may be subjective choices, but someone has to set the rules for consistency. The guide reveals all, for CIGI researchers and authors. Interested style mavens and grammar wonks can find it online here.
Happy reading!