With rising global trade and political tensions and a shifting global landscape, what lies ahead for the world order?
The Taipei School of Economics and Political Science (TSE) at National Tsing Hua University is pleased to invite Professor Amitav Acharya, TSE Visiting Chair Professor and a leading scholar in international relations, to deliver a public lecture on the past and future of global order—and how we might shape a more just, inclusive, and respectful international system.
Bio:
Amitav Acharya is currently (2024-25) a Visiting Chair Professor at the Taipei School of Economics and Political Science. He is Distinguished Professor and the UNESCO Chair in Transnational Challenges and Governance at the School of International Service, American University, Washington, DC. Previously, he was a Professor at York University, Toronto and University of Bristol, U.K., Fellow of Harvard University’s Asia Center, Research Fellow of Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, and Christensen Fellow at St Catherine’s College, Oxford. Acharya is three-time recipient of the Distinguished Scholar Award given by the International Studies Association (ISA), the largest and most influential global network in international studies. These awards recognized his “influence, intellectual works and mentorship” in the field of international organization; and “extraordinary impact” in globalizing the study of International Relations. His most recent book is The Once and Future World Order: Why Global Civilization Will Survive the Decline of the West (New York and London: Basic Books, 2025), which is listed among "The Most Anticipated Books of 2025" by Foreign Policy Magazine. He has written for the New York Times, Financial Times, Washington Post, Times of India, and Australian Financial Review, among others and appeared on BBC, CNN, CGTN, and Al-Jazeera network.
Abstract:
Drawing on his new book covering 5000 years of history, Acharya argues that world order is not the monopoly of any civilization or nation. The three major forms of world order: independent states, empires, and tributary systems, are non-European in origin, so are – in both their rudimentary and advanced forms, institutions and norms of preserving peace such as great power cooperation, freedom of the seas, humanitarian values, racial equality and rules-based order. Neither does the West have an exclusive patent over are ideas about human rights, republican government, and self-determination, as it often claims. Yet, centuries of dominance have bred both arrogance and ignorance in the West; in which the ideas and contributions of other civilizations through history have been forgotten or dismissed. Hence, the end of Western dominance need not mean the collapse of world order. On the contrary, a world order where non-Western nations find more voice and role will create a more equitable and mutually respectful global arrangement. While no world order can be free from conflict, the West and the rest of the world should embrace the inevitable and work together to enrich the global knowledge pool, forge genuinely multi-cultural, mutually tolerant relations among civilizations and states.
Title: The Once and Future World Order
Guest Speaker: Amitav Acharya (TSE Visiting Chair Professor; Distinguished Professor, School of International Service, American University; UNESCO Chair in Transnational Challenges and Governance)
Time: May 5 (Mon), 7:00 PM- 8:30 PM
Venue: Tsinghua Hall of Fame
*Conducted in English
Watch the full recording of the event.