Global Cities
by Cheryl Walker
Far more than simple locations that host other actors in global governance, global cities do and will continue to play a significant role as actors as is evidenced by their ability to negotiate and create global norms, increasingly strengthen their diplomacy efforts through institutionalization, and address issues of human security. As global cities continue to explore their abilities as actors, there will be a growing tension between nation-states and cities as the policies and practices of cities encroach on nation-states’ claims to sovereignty.
The rise of global cities and their networks has been accompanied by the formation of NGOs and IGOs, organizations that compile global city data in the hopes of drawing comparisons and pointing to patterns between cities. Some focus heavily on gathering data on cities such as the World Council on City Data. (About Us — dataforcities.org, 2015) Most notably, the Brookings Institute and Goldman-Sachs have partnered to create the Global Cities Initiative, a five-year project to strengthen economies that will host a series of forums in collaboration with urban leaders to provide research and share best policy practices and innovations from around the world.
(About the Global Cities Initiative — brookings.edu, 2015) This cross-sector collaboration is indicative of the creative approaches prevalent in governing through global cities. Many of these organizations seek to disseminate shared best practices so that global cities can be sources of support to each other as they host and ultimately define the actions that can be taken in global governance. With a significant increase in migration to urban spaces, global cities are positioning themselves to face the challenges and embrace the benefits of growth. Actors providing resources such as research via big data analytics and best policy practices, whether they are NGOs, IGOs or city attachés themselves will play an increasingly important role for global cities.
Download the whole paper here.
