USA

The Foresight project held its second major regional symposium in Washington DC on the 18-19 June 2009. Organised by the Alfred Herrhausen Society, the International Forum of Deutsche Bank in partnership with Policy Network and The Brookings Institution, it provided a unique opportunity to advance the task of forging a new global consensus on the shape of the emerging world order and the role of the US within it.

The US government faces a challenging task ahead in its efforts to revitalise the economy and restore American leadership abroad in an increasingly complex international environment. The symposium in Washington DC involved senior figures from the new administration and provided a unique opportunity to learn more about its future visions and strategies. Issues discussed included the fallout of the global financial crisis, how to forge an integrated security policy based on multilateral cooperation and the linked security challenges of climate, energy and proliferation.

The Washington symposium saw policymakers, leaders and experts come together from the US, Europe, India, China, Russia, Latin America to compare and contrast their perspectives on the key global challenges facing the US and the rest of the world. Internationally renowned high-level politicians, thinkers and strategists included: Lawrence Summers, director of the US National Economic Council; Julia Gillard, Australian deputy prime minister; Richard Holbrooke, US special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan; Peter Mandelson, UK first secretary of state, lord president of the council, secretary of state for business, innovation & skills; Jose Serra, governor of the state of Sao Paulo; Teresa Ribera, Spanish state secretary for climate change; Anatoly Adamishin, former deputy foreign minister of the Russian federation; Bernd Mutzelburg, German special envoy on Afghanistan and Pakistan; and Wu Jianmin, president, China Foreign Affairs University.

Foresight began its series of six high-level roundtable symposiums in Russia on 19-20 June 2008, this was followed by an expert roundtable in London at which Joseph Nye gave the keynote address. After Foresight USA, further events are planned in Europe, Brazil, India, China and Japan. The aim of these events is to identify areas where common positions between the Foresight countries/regions can be developed and thus progress made towards forging common futures. By bringing together participants from different parts of the world, these events will help build and sustain a Foresight network.

Symposium reader - Global power revisited
Focusing on the role of the US in a changing world order, the symposium reader brings together leading American and non-American authors, including Adam Posen, Chandrashekhar Dasgupta, Carlos Pascual, and Volker Perthes, to examine "insider" and "outsider" perspectives on three key global challenges: managing the economic and political fallout of the global financial crisis; forging an integrated international security policy based on multilateral cooperation, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan; and the challenges of climate change, energy security and proliferation for global governance. Containing key data that indicates trends in the fields explored, the publication provides unique insights into the role of the United States in a changing world order.

If you have any questions about this symposium, or the Foresight project, please contact Policy Network researcher Priya Shankar at pshankar@policy-network.net.

Symposium material

Agenda - Foresight USA

List of participants

Photos

Gopalaswami Parthasarathy,former Indian Ambassador to Pakistan and Carlos Pascual, Vice President, The Brookings Institution Richard Holbrooke, US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan