Book Review: A New World Order

In October 2004, Princeton University Press released Anne-Marie Slaughter's A New World Order, a compelling work discussing the role of government networks in global governance.

As Dean of Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton and current President of the American Society of International Law, Slaughter is a renowned expert on international law. She has served as editor on a number of books and scholarly journals, such as The European Courts and National Courts: Doctrine and Jurisprudence and Legalization and World Politics: A Special Issue of International Organization, and has written articles on issues in international affairs and law.

Slaughter offers a different perspective on the global political arena, in which officials exchange information and coordinate movements through the use of "government networks." These networks are often comprised of legislators, judges, police officers, and regulators, and they are effectively changing the way the world is governed.

Slaughter seeks to "explore their potential, highlighting their advantages and warning of their disadvantages, in constructing a world order that is better fitted to meet the challenges of the world we share."

INECE is one of several examples given of an effective government network. As a part of the new world order, INECE and networks like it "perform a wider array of functions in the past." Their ability to bring together officials with common goals facilitates information sharing and consensus building in order to enforce policies that transcend borders.

Slaughter's treatment of INECE is positive as she writes that INECE and similar networks foster environments in which reason and discussion lead to a valuable consensus. This is due to the non-hierarchical and communal manner in which this type of government network operates. She goes on to argue that these networks are under-appreciated and underused when they should play a larger role in the issues that face the world today.

For more information, visit: http://www.pupress.princeton.edu/titles/7712.html or amazon.com.