As the range of actors, issues and levels of negotiation at the COP26 meeting in Glasgow demonstrates, the defining feature of global governance today is pluralism. Geopolitics, including swings in US global leadership and surging US–China competition, are part of the picture, but do not adequately explain the complexity of contemporary multilateralism. Deeper, systemic forces are at work – the birth pains of a more plural global system. This article identifies and examines four dimensions of pluralism: multipolarity, multiple issues, multi-level governance, and multiple stakeholders. The effect is that all states – including middle and small states – must be more active, more agile, more self-reliant, more willing to lead, and more oriented towards issues than ideology. The article illustrates the four dimensions through reviews of multilateral responses to COVID-19, cyber attacks, and mass migration, before asking how states and non-state actors can effectively manage a more plural system of governance. Three capacities for success are discussed: to act early and decisively by finding partners and fora for success; to embrace adhocracy internally and externally; and to rebalance effectiveness and trust through greater technocratic expertise, transboundary scientific cooperation, and a more inclusive diplomacy.

中文翻译：

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多元化时代的全球治理

正如格拉斯哥 COP26 会议上的参与者、问题和谈判水平所表明的那样，当今全球治理的决定性特征是多元化。地缘政治，包括美国全球领导地位的波动和中美竞争的加剧，是其中的一部分，但并不能充分解释当代多边主义的复杂性。更深层次的系统性力量正在发挥作用——这是一个更加多元化的全球系统的诞生之痛。本文确定并考察了多元化的四个维度：多极化、多问题、多层次治理和多利益相关者。其结果是，所有国家——包括中小国家——都必须比意识形态更积极、更灵活、更自力更生、更愿意领导、更以问题为导向。本文通过回顾对 COVID-19、网络攻击和大规模移民的多边反应来说明这四个维度，然后询问国家和非国家行为者如何有效管理更加多元化的治理体系。讨论了三种成功的能力：通过寻找合作伙伴及早采取果断行动成功论坛；在内部和外部接受adhocracy ；并通过更多的技术专家、跨界科学合作和更具包容性的外交来重新平衡有效性和信任。