Vision

Global Transformations and Governance Challenges (GTGC) at Leiden University aims to advance knowledge and practice on how we govern – and could govern – major world-scale changes in contemporary society. These global transformations include hegemonic and other geopolitical shifts, ecological changes, technological innovations, pandemics, demographic trends, economic restructuring, reconfigured identities, and altered forms of violence and peacebuilding.

We examine various governance challenges in the face of these transformations, including current difficulties for regional and global multilateralism with resurgent Realpolitik and populist movements. GTGC also explores new ways of global governing such as collaborations among cities and multistakeholder arrangements. We have particular interest to identify policies and institutional designs that may attract greater citizen engagement in global politics.

Theoretically, GTGC is eclectic and in particular seeks to synthesize institutional, legal, normative, relational and structural understandings of governance. Methodologically, GTGC is transdisciplinary (especially combining humanities, law and social sciences), transscalar (examining local-national-regional-global interconnections), transcultural (foregrounding exchanges among diverse life-worlds), and comparative (between geographical sites, between issue areas, and between social groups). Practically, GTGC engages policy circles and the general public with the aim to enhance democracy, effectiveness, fairness, peace and sustainability in governance responses to contemporary global transformations.

Interdisciplinary programmes

GTGC is one of the nine interdisciplinary programmes ('stimuleringsprogramma’s') launched by Leiden University in 2020. GTGC especially involves the Faculties of Governance and Global Affairs, Humanities, Law, and Social and Behavioural Sciences. You can read more about the interdisciplinary programmes here.