In the eye of the beholder? Defining and understanding multipolarity in the 21st century

The notion of polarity has a long history both as a concept and as a guiding principle in international political decision making. Yet the meaning of “polarity” depends on specificities of historical experience and cultural interpretations of international relations. The mainstream debate about multipolarity is based largely on a Western view of the concept, a view heavily influenced by the Western world dominance since the age of imperialism. A growing number of countries contest Western domination of the international system and its attendant concepts such as polarity, thereby reinterpreting that concept and reshaping their policies accordingly. Very little scholarly attention, however, has been devoted to mapping, understanding, and evaluating the impact of different meanings of multipolarity.

This project, funded by Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, will arrange an international conference with the aim to address this lacuna by bringing together a group of distinguished scholars and practitioners from different parts of the world to explore different regional and disciplinary perspectives on the concept of polarity. We will compare underlying assumptions and dominant definitions in order to explore the emerging and potential implications for foreign policy making. The outcome of the conference is intended to be a publication of short “think pieces” and a summary text from the content of the papers and panel discussions.