Cooperation among the BRICS Revisited: Towards an Impact on Global Governance?

The BRIC(S) acronym was coined in 2001 to describe four bourgeoning emerging market economies and to highlight investment opportunities therein. Since then the BRICS concept has not only matured to include South Africa as the fifth member in 2010 and to hold regular summits, of which the 7th will be held this month in Russia, but the BRICS have also given rise to a lively academic and political debate. The BRICS have emerged as the central reference for a perceived power shift toward rising powers and away from the Global North. They are large, (mostly) fast-growing economies and wield significant and growing influence on regional and global affairs. Where are the constraints and opportunities for increased cooperation among them? Which policy fields have lent themselves more easily toward cooperation, where is cooperation blocked? How far can relations be developed based on non-interference, equality, and mutual benefit? What roles do the newly founded institutions play, such as the New Development Bank (NDB), the reserve currency pool, and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)? And how does all that contribute or not to an improved global governance, that is – to use a well-known definition – "the sum of the many ways individuals and institutions, public and private, manage their common affairs" in a deeply connected and interdependent world? The panellists will talk about the general concepts, country-cases, and, last but not least, about what these changes do imply for the economy in the city state of Hamburg, the private sector, and the demands on training for young researchers in the field. Speaker: Professor Cord Jakobeit, moderator of the panel discussion, is the coordinator of PRIMO and Chair in International Relations at Universität Hamburg. Professor Ummu Salma Bava, speaking on India and EU-India relations, is Professor of European Studies at the Center for European Studies at JNU. Dr. Doris Hillger, speaking on the importance of the BRICS states for the economy in Hamburg, is with the department of external trade promotion/international markets of the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce. Professor Paulo Esteves, speaking on Brazil and development matters, is the Director of and Professor at the Institute of International Relations at PUC-Rio. Professor Andrew Hurrell, speaking on the BRICS concept and implications for global governance, is a Professorial Fellow and Montague Burton Professor of International Relations at Balliol College, Oxford. Stuart Jackson, speaking on the importance of the BRICS market for JLR, is with the department of government programmes at JLR, UK. PRIMO is an Initial Training Network (ITN) financed within the 7th Framework Programme for Research of the European Commission. As an ITN focused on the BRICS and their role as regional and rising powers, PRIMO brings together leading scholars in International Relations and Area Studies from prestigious universities located in old and new powers and integrates expertise from the private sector and think tanks. From the Hamburg side, the Universität Hamburg, GIGA, and the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce are participating in PRIMO. öffentliche Veranstaltung