Diplomacy and Global Governance

Former Austrian diplomat Nowotny (political science, Univ. of Vienna; Strawberries in Winter: On Global Trends and Global Governance) became convinced by his years of practical experience that the demands on government and its representatives now require a different type of diplomat than the generalists who have dominated the corps. He argues that a diplomat is no longer the sole channel of communication between one government and another; nation-states are no longer the primary actors on the world stage. Dominant issues like environmental protection, climate change, and terrorism are no respecters of borders. According to Nowotny, multilateral organizations like the World Bank, the UN, and nongovernmental relief agencies are at least as important as governments and often have better technical expertise on staff. To succeed in this more complex setting, Nowotny recommends recruiting technical experts to serve in a country's diplomatic corps and establishing a "multilateral track" to allow some diplomats to specialize in working with other agencies. His other suggestions, e.g., shared embassy facilities and outsourcing some traditional functions, will be more controversial in the field.