Method

When it comes to issues of global governance, what do we need to think about today in order to avoid surprises, mitigate risks and make use of opportunities? In search of answers, each cohort of GGF fellows spent a year exploring three topics and jointly developed new and better ways of thinking about a future that they themselves will help shape.

To help them in this ambitious endeavor, the GGF method provided an intellectually challenging framework that enabled structured communication and rigorous thinking. The fellows used a tailor-made ‘scenario approach’ to construct plausible future trajectories for each of the three GGF topics and arrived at a better understanding of the challenges they identified. Along the way, they challenged their own biases and perspectives, and combined their newly won insights with their individual convictions about the shape and role of global governance.

The GGF program provided a platform for intercultural exchange and exposed fellows to different national and professional viewpoints. Our fellows safely challenged one another’s ideas, reflected on their own assumptions and learned about the options and opportunities for policymaking in the face of uncertain futures. The results of this process reflected a shared understanding between nine countries and five world regions, while at the same time highlighting the divergences that states must overcome so they can jointly confront pressing global challenges.

Over the course of the program, the GGF fellows distilled and combined their insights and ideas into final working group reports. During the last meeting of each program year, they engaged with experts, policymakers and other thought leaders to test and discuss their findings as well as explore options for strategic policymaking that are resilient to uncertainties while taking into account ongoing political realities. On an individual level, the fellows were encouraged to turn the knowledge they gathered into concrete recommendations for decision- and policymakers in their home countries as well as in international organizations, and to make their analyses and suggestions available to an interested public through outputs such as op-eds, podcasts and interviews.

Joel Sandhu (GGF Team)

Joel Sandhu (GGF Team)