Multilateral cooperation is failing when we need it most. Multipolarity, fragmentation of issue areas, institutional inertia, and harder and more complex problems have contributed to gridlock in world politics, as argued by  David Held in the book “Gridlock” (2013).

Yet, this grim outlook is not insurmountable. In his newest book, “Beyond Gridlock” (2017), David Held together with Thomas Hale, identified seven pathways on how to affect global change. These actions follow top-down as well as bottom-up approaches. They are grouped into three categories: resilience, innovation and agency.

There is no silver bullet answering all of today’s challenges, but the seven pathways offer potential forward-looking strategies to improve institutional governance.

David Held, who is Professor of Politics and International Relations and Master of University College at Durham University, presented these insights at a Public Lecture and International Geneva Luncheon organized by the Global Governance Centre.

Find a short video from David Held summarizing his main takeaways from the talks here.