The Impact of Changing Societies on the Future of International Relations
Human society has been undergoing far-reaching and fast-paced transformations. The dynamics of these transformations are the subject of this working paper’s analysis. As human society is a vast subject, the paper is focused primarily on three main areas: demographic change, with emphasis on declining fertility, aging, and urbanization; civil advancement, i.e. spreading education, women’s emancipation, and the growth of civil society; and technological revolution, including interconnectivity. At the turn of the 21st century, all three of these areas experienced impressive evolutions on a global scale. Moreover such evolutions appeared to converge towards standards the American, European, and other advanced societies had already reached.
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Details
Washington, Brookings Center on the United States and Europe (CUSE), 19 January 2016, 32 p. (U.S.-Europe Working Paper)
Introduction
A. Lessons to be Taken from History
The New Thirty Years’ War
Three Post-WWII Transitions
B. A Different Global Society: Making Good of Change
Demography, Gender, Education
The Internet Revolution and Big Data
The Role of States and the Advent of Geoeconomics
Facing Retrogression in the International System
C. New Foreign Policy Opportunities Open for Europe and the United States
Western Leadership in Societal Change
The Consequences of International Disorder
How to Take Stock from Global Societal Convergence