The Rise of Emerging Countries and the Future of Global GovernanceBackground and Aim
The concept of global governance first became generally known in the late 1990s,
particularly after the publication of the “Our Global Neighborhood” report in 1995 by
the Global Governance Committee. The debate at the time was focused on how theinternational community as a whole could combat global economic, poverty,environmental and population issues.
Among the reasons this topic has garnered so much attention in recent years is,
first of all, the remarkable rise of the BRIC countries. It is widely expected thatsometime between 2025 and 2030 China will overtake the United States in terms of
GDP and become the world’s largest economy. The problem is that it is difficult toimagine that the BRIC countries (China included) will share and take part in global
governance premised on liberalism, as opposed to maintaining their stance on domestic
non-interference based on the traditional notion of sovereignty. For example, while
dispatching the necessary personnel for peacekeeping operations, these countries’
troops do not participate in peace-building operations that they consider interference inaffairs of state, nor do these countries show much concern for human rights ordemocratization, giving precedence to their own development above environmental
concerns and holding the developed nations responsible for environmental policy. These
are some of the conspicuous behavioral characteristics of these countries, and the rise of
the BRICs clearly illustrates their opposition to the idea of global governance.
Global governance is changing under these circumstances, and its status is thefocus of this study group, which will examine three primary topics.
First, the group will investigate theoretically the types of constructive changes
the rise of the developing nations will bring to the international order. Second, thegroup will isolate the various global problems the international society is currently
facing, and then study the attitudes of developing countries to these individual problem
areas. Third, the group will try to determine the future changes likely to occur inperceptions of the idea of global governance.
The ultimate goal of the study group is to determine through such analysis
precisely the direction that the idea of global governance is moving in a world ofdecreasing international order. Moreover, it aims to propose responses that Japan
should adopt towards the issue. This research will not only be pioneering on thisimportant scholarly problem, but will also have significance in promoting Japan’snational interests.
Overview of Activities
The research will take place from April 2011 to March 2012.
The study group will consist of a total of 13 members from JIIA and outside
institutions. Meetings will be held on a monthly basis, with progress reports maderegularly and outside lecturers invited for discussions and seminars.
In addition, the study group will form the following working groups (made up offour to six members each) for the three aforementioned research topics to facilitate
expert debate on each topic:-Working Group 1: The Economic Development of Developing Countries andInternational Structure: Power Shifts and International Order-

Working Group 2: Developing Countries and Global Issues-

Working Group 3: Developing Countries and Global Governance
The research results are to be announced through symposiums and reports. A reportwill be made by the end of the research period (March 2012).

Study Group Members
Chairman
NAYA Masatsugu

Professor, Aoyama Gakuin UniversityMembers
AKIYAMA Nobumasa

AssociateProfessor,

Hitotsubashi

University;

Visiting Fellow, Japan Institute of International
Affairs
IIDA Keisuke

Professor, University of TokyoOTA Hiroshi

Professor, Waseda University

OHASHI Fumio

Professor, Senshu University

KIKUCHI Tsutomu

Professor, Aoyama Gakuin University; Visiting
Fellow, Japan Institute of International Affairs

HIGASHI Daisaku

Associate Professor, University of Tokyo

YAMADA Tetsuya

Professor, Nanzan University,

YAMAMOTO Yoshinobu

Professor Emeritus, University of Tokyo; Professor
Emeritus, Aoyama Gakuin University; ResearchAdvisor, PHP Research Institute

WADA Hironori

Assistant Professor, Aoyama Gakuin University

Secretaries
SAIKI Naoko

DeputyDirectorGeneral,

JapanInstituteofInternational Affairs
KADOZAKI Shinya

Research Fellow, Japan Institute of International
Affairs

FUSHITA Hironori

Research Fellow, Japan Institute of International
Affairs