How to Run the World summary

Have you ever heard of an organization called Americans for Informed Democracy or AID? This group recently put on a diplomatic workshop involving hundreds of students.

But the participants weren’t just representing countries. They also represented actors like Greenpeace, the World Trade Organization and major oil cartels to simulate negotiations on all sorts of topics, from agricultural subsidies to the national debt.

Despite countless years of work to forge a global security system, war is upon us. In reality, it always has been. Clearly, something isn’t working. Instead of aiming for a system of global security, then, we should first set our sights on the construction of such systems regionally.

In fact, as you read this, the world is forming new regional systems, each with its own rules. Just take some of the current regional tensions, whether between Saudi Arabia and Iran or China and India.

In today’s world, colonialism is widely considered to be a negative term referring to a damaging practice that fragmented the world. But can it be reappropriated for good?

Well, let’s start by fully understanding the damage colonialism has done. It left scores of states in terrible shape, incapable of forging new, strong governments.

There are plenty of poor countries in the world that are rich in natural resources but nevertheless consistently fail to pull themselves out of poverty. Why?

Well, by trying to emulate emerging economies like those of the BRIC nations – Brazil, Russia, India and China – poor countries often get in over their heads. In the process, they end up hampering their plans for development.

Did you know that there are roughly 2 billion people in the world who live on less than $1.25 per day? It’s true. Poverty is everywhere you look and aid agencies might actually be to blame.

In the end, dependence on aid impedes poor countries from making true progress. As a result, despite the fact that there are 230 aid agencies worldwide, people still go hungry. Foreign organizations that send money from abroad – like the World Bank or the UN – are so encumbered by bureaucracy and writing reports that they can’t invest in enabling the big developments that could make lasting change.