Kai Monheim, Visiting Fellow at the Grantham Research Institute has published a new book which addresses the question of whether multilateral negotiations can foster worldwide cooperation on global challenges. The world climate summit of Copenhagen 2009 and the succeeding conference of Cancún 2010 reveal that the success of these summits does not only depend on the interest of countries. In addition, the negotiation management by the host country government and the UN plays a central role, as confidential interviews with over 60 chief climate negotiators, host country facilitators and UN officials prove. The book sheds light on the decisive influence of summit diplomacy and the negotiators of participating countries – and thereby on the reaching of global agreements. Negotiations on world trade and biosafety confirm these results.

One year ahead of the next world climate summit in Paris, this book on the “Power of Process” contributes to a better understanding of international diplomacy on global challenges, and finds that negotiation management can be a powerful tool to influence the outcome of future summits.

Lord Nicholas Stern, Chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, said of the book:

“The world faces twin challenges of managing climate change and fostering development. The policies to tackle these challenges are clear and many countries are already acting strongly as they see new markets and opportunities for low-carbon investment and growth. But we will do better as a world and accelerate action if we act together. This book considers in detail the essential elements of how we can manage complex multilateral negotiations better. It provides helpful tools to assist future organizers of global climate summits. It also offers helpful insight for students of multilateral negotiations.”

The following academics and long-standing practitioners in the field of international relations have also expressed their appreciation of the book and endorsed it:

  • Robert O. Keohane of Princeton University,
  • John Odell of the University of California and
  • Michael Zammit Cutajar, Executive Secretary of the UN Climate Secretariat between 1991 and 2002.

This work on which the book was based has been awarded the German Mediation Scholarship Prize for 2014 by the Center for Mediation in Cologne.

The book, How Effective Negotiation Management Promotes Multilateral Co-operation: The power of process in climate, trade and biosafety negotiations will be published by Routlegde in November 2014 and is currently available for pre-order. As of August 2016 the book is also available in paperback format.

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