Essays exploring a world dramatically transformed by the collapse of communism—and the prospects for democracy in that realigned reality. The breakup of the Soviet Union’s external empire in Eastern Europe, soon followed by the demise of the USSR itself, destroyed the bipolar structure that had characterized world politics for almost half a century. But while the dramatic collapse of communism left no room for doubt that the era of the Cold War had come to an end, there was very little agreement about the nature of the new international order being born. This book explores the emerging post-Cold War international system and its implications for the future expansion and consolidation of democracy. Bringing together both experts on international relations and scholars of democracy from Europe, North America, and Asia, it examines the link between these two subjects in a way that is rarely done. While a large literature has emerged in recent years on the effects of democracy on international relations (the debate over what is often called the theory of “democratic peace”), the authors of this volume instead examine the other side of this relationship—the impact of the international system on the prospects for democracy. Contributors: Zbigniew Brzezinski, Center for Strategic and International Studies • Robert Cooper, Defence and Overseas Secretariat in the Cabinet Office, London • Jean-Marie Guéhenno, Institut des Hautes Etudes de Défense Nationale, Paris • Samuel P. Huntington, Harvard University • Robert Kagan, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace • Ethan B. Kapstein, University of Minnesota • Kyung Won Kim, Institute of Social Sciences • Jacques Rupnik, Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques, Paris • Dimitri Landa, University of Minnesota • Adam Daniel Rotfeld, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Stockholm • Philippe C. Schmitter, European University Institute, Florence

More than a decade into the new millennium, the fusion of corporate and state power is the essential defining feature of US foreign policy. This edited volume critically examines the relationship between corporations and the US state in the development of foreign policies related to globalization. Drawing together a wide range of contributors, this work explores the role of corporations in using US foreign policies to advance the interests of transnational capital in a wide range of contexts, including: how US government policies have contributed to the globalization of production and finance the ways in which transnational corporations have influenced the US relationship with China, a crucial linkage in the new era of transnational accumulation how transnational corporate power has shaped capital-labour relations, humanitarian intervention, structural adjustment policies, low-intensity democracy and the G20 summits the "corporate centrism" of the Obama Administration, whose policies have been consistent with the growing power of transnational capital in US foreign policymaking the politics and consequences of the embedded relationship between various sectors of the transnational capitalist class, global institutions and the US state, including the limits and contradictions of this relationship during the ongoing capitalist crisis. This work will be of great interest to students and scholars of both US foreign policy and international political economy.

This book offers in-depth legal and political analysis concerning the compatibility of the Westphalian state model with globalization and the digital revolution. It explores the concept of democracy in a globalized world, discusses the legitimacy of economic integration in the global market, and presents three case studies (from Brazil, Taiwan and Spain) on the impact of social media on elections. It further entails novel perspectives on the impact of digitalization on national borders, and the role of citizens and experts in the shaping of globalization. A final chapter addresses the extent to which insights gained from the analysis of the abovementioned aspects will need to be considered in efforts to recover from the current global health and economic crisis.

This book explores how global capitalism has reconfigured state-market relations, and how interactions among capital, labor and consumption threaten democracy. It is for specialists in political economy, political science, economics, sociology, international relations and development studies, and for supplemental use on undergraduate and graduate courses on globalization, capitalism, development, and democracy.

Seeking to extend the debate on the diversity of democracy, this book provides the reader with a comprehensive account of how two different global actors, the European Union and the World Social Forum respond to the challenges of globalization with various models of democracy and modes of cooperation at the transnational level. Analysing EU democracy assistance in the EU’s neighbourhood, Fiedlschuster sheds light on the complex relationship between the EU and civil society. Although the EU perceives a vital civil society as crucial for democracy, its mix of a governance approach with deliberative and participatory democracy will unlikely result in a citizen-centred democracy. The book also provides a compelling account of the World Social Forum and its participants interviewed for this work attempt to answer one of the challenges of contemporary globalization: How can civil society pursue democratically global social change? Fiedlschuster skilfully deploys various sociological approaches not only to analyse concepts and practices of democracy by transnational activists but also to throw light on the tensions between democratic idealism and anti-democratic tendencies in the Forum. This book will be of wide interest to students and academics, including those working within political sociology, European Union politics, and globalization.

This book examines the impact of globalization upon Canada, Mexico and the United States. It investigates changes in the structures and practices of federalism, in public policies and practices of governance and politics, and in economic livelihoods in all three nations. It also provides comparisons of the effects of globalization on women's lives.

Combining theory with compelling case studies, this book examines the globalizing world of democracy. Noted critical scholars Stephen J. Rosow and Jim George argue that democracy must be understood not as a unified concept but as a diversity of political responses to specific conditions and political struggles. Doing so reveals how democracy is taking multiple forms around the world in response to neoliberal globalism and the increasing pace and complexity of everyday life. The authors show how the current phase of globalization is destabilizing the dominance of Western democracy promotion as resisters challenge common understandings and forms of democracy. Explaining the theory behind neoliberal globalization and democracy promotion, they consider its impact and struggles against it in South Africa, post-Soviet Russia, India, and Venezuela and other “pink tide” states in Latin America. Rosow and George also examine how digital communications networks, the centralization of security, and the fluid movements of people and ideas are destabilizing traditional democratic theories. At the same time, they give rise to concepts of democracy that focus on new forms of citizenship and democratic participation, a cosmopolitan democratic constitutionalism, cross-boundary political activism, and local and community-based economic and democratic practices.

Leading international scholars explore the relationship between power and democracy

First Published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Globalization: Prospects and Problems, by JoAnn Chirico, provides a comprehensive and enlightening overview of globalization issues and topics. Emphasizing the theory and methods that social scientists employ to study globalization, the text reveals how macro globalization processes impact individual lives—from the spread of scientific discourse to which jobs are more or less likely to be offshored. The author presents a clear image of “the big globalization picture” by skillfully exploring, piece by piece, a myriad of globalization topics, debates, theories, and empirical data. Compelling chapters on theory, global civil society, democracy, cities, religion, institutions (sports, education, and health care), along with three chapters on global challenges, help readers develop a broad understanding of key topics and issues. Throughout the text, the author encourages readers to relate their personal experiences to globalization processes, allowing for a more meaningful and relevant learning experience.