Beyond Governments

In a world characterized by globalization, governments increasingly find themselves unable to govern. Corruption is everywhere, natural resources are being exploited, the environment damaged, markets distorted, and the fight against poverty is often ineffective. Certain challenges cannot be addressed by governments alone. Increasingly, collective governance “beyond governments” is seen as part of the solution, with state and non-state actors working together. This book sets out a framework for those wishing to implement collective governance, involving civil society, companies and governments as key actors. Based on over eight years of running the most advanced example of collective governance at international level, the Head and Deputy Head of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) outline the practicalities and pitfalls, and draw out the experience of the EITI as a case example. Beyond Governments tells a positive story of how this type of innovative governance can make real achievements, but also cautions against those who see collective governance as a silver bullet to solve development challenges. It provides practical guidance from a practitioner’s perspective and is essential reading for those in government, business and academia.

In a world characterized by globalization, governments increasingly find themselves unable to govern. Corruption is everywhere, natural resources are being exploited, the environment damaged, markets distorted, and the fight against poverty is often ineffective. Certain challenges cannot be addressed by governments alone. Increasingly, collective governance "beyond governments" is seen as part of the solution, with state and non-state actors working together. This book sets out a framework for those wishing to implement collective governance, involving civil society, companies and governments as key actors. Based on over eight years of running the most advanced example of collective governance at international level, the Head and Deputy Head of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) outline the practicalities and pitfalls, and draw out the experience of the EITI as a case example. Beyond Governments tells a positive story of how this type of innovative governance can make real achievements, but also cautions against those who see collective governance as a silver bullet to solve development challenges. It provides practical guidance from a practitioner's perspective and is essential reading for those in government, business and academia.

John Gray is now established as one of the UK's leading political thinkers. For over a decade he has been asssociated with the ideas and think-tanks of the New Right. In this book he presents both a criticism of the ideological excesses of New Right ideology and a radical critique of the New Right itself, developed from the standpoint of traditional conservatism. All the major thinkers and themes of the New Right are examined, together with many major issues of current public policy - such as the growth of the underclass, the future of the welfare state and the role of government in education and culture. The author also argues that there are deep affinities between conservative ideology and Green thought. He advances radical proposals for the preservation and renewal of common life for an age in which the ideals of modernism, including continuous economic growth, are decreasingly viable. He expresses his conviction that conservative philosophy will find its future in dissociating itelf from the neo-liberalism that has lately dominated policy, and returning to the task of redefining traditional values.

Providing students of economics, politics, and policy with a concise explanation of public choice, markets, property, and political and economic processes, this record identifies what kinds of actions are beyond the ability of government. Combining public choice with studies of the value of property rights, markets, and institutions, this account produces a much different picture of modern political economy than the one accepted by mainstream political scientists and welfare economists. It demonstrates that when citizens request that their governments do more than it is possible, net benefits are reduced, costs are increased, and wealth and freedom are diminished. Solutions are also suggested with the goal to improve the lot of those who should be the ultimate sovereigns in a democracy: the citizens.

In these ground-breaking essays, James A. Yunker issues a powerful challenge to conventional thinking on world government. Based on an innovative plan for a limited world government tentatively designated the “Federal Union of Democratic Nations,” this book envisions a legitimate world government a quantum leap beyond the United Nations of today. The Federal Union proposed would operate under some key restraints, such as a dual voting system in the world legislature, and two key reserved rights of the member nations: to withdraw from the Federal Union at their own unilateral discretion, and to maintain independent control over whatever military forces they feel are necessary to their national security. Yunker demonstrates how these restraints would minimize the possibility that the world government would result in such adverse outcomes as global tyranny, bureaucratic overload, or cultural homogenization.

With rare exceptions, few large institutions change bosses every two or three years. Yet the U.S. Government has temps on top. American government has 3,000 presidential political appointees and thousands more state and local political appointees, who refer to their in-and-out bosses as 'Christmas help.' Beyond a Government of Strangers is the first book to focus on the men and women who stick around, on the career executives and their own roles in the executive branch. Robert Maranto provides pithy, sage advice on how career bureaucrats can improve tenuous relationships and overcome conflicts with political appointees, especially during presidential transitions, for more effective government from the top down.

Beyond Government examines how vigorous and truly pluralistic policy debate has evolved in both mature and emerging democracies and then suggests how it may be encouraged from within and sustained by outside assistance. The contributors argue that a strong democracy thrives on a rich population of organizations and individuals that respond to the issues of the moment, the concerns of groups within society that wish to be heard, and the styles of interaction that seem most appropriate at any given time. The volume has five parts. In the first, three U.S.-based authors present models of public debate from the American experience. In the second part, four authors-two from Latin America and two from Eastern Europe-chronicle and analyze the public debate that accompanied their countries' transitions to democracy. The third section includes chapters on specific areas of policy research, the fourth shifts attention to the institutions that foster debate, and the fifth assesses contributions to public debate from abroad by foundations and the corporate sector. A concluding section looks ahead to challenges and opportunities.