Legitimacy is crucial if global governance is to deliver on the many challenges confronting contemporary states and societies, from climate change and transnational conflict to trade protectionism and human rights abuse. Yet the legitimacy of global governance appears to be increasingly contested around the world. The research program "Legitimacy in Global Governance," funded by Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, offered the first systematic and comprehensive examination of these issues. To what extent are global governance institutions (GGIs) regarded as legitimate citizens and elites? What explains that legitimacy? By what processes are GGIs legitimated and delegitimated? What are the consequences of legitimacy for the functioning of GGIs? In this talk, Jonas Tallberg, PI of LegGov, summarizes key take-aways from this six-year research program.

Jonas Tallberg is Professor of Political Science at Stockholm University and co-director of the Stockholm Center on Global Governance. His main areas of research are issues of power, effectiveness, legitimacy, and democracy in global and regional governance. His most recent research project examines the consequences of democracy and autocracy for international cooperation and is funded by the European Research Council.

Discussants: Elsa Hedling, Joint Faculties of Humanities and Theology, Lund University

The seminar addresses the question of legitimacy which is crucial if global governance is to deliver on the many challenges confronting contemporary states and societies, from climate change and transnational conflict to trade protectionism and human rights abuse. The seminar is interdisciplinary and features interventions from the fields of diplomacy studies, history of international organisations, and EU law. In addition, it explores the ever-important question of how to think big in academia (and get funding).

Jonas Tallberg is Professor of Political Science at Stockholm University, where he coordinates the research group on global and regional governance, selected as a leading area of research at SU. His primary research interests are global governance and European Union politics. He currently directs the research project The Global Governance of Artificial Intelligence, funded by the Marianne and Marcus Wallenberg Foundation, and the research project Democracy, Autocracy, and International Cooperation, funded by the Swedish Research Council. As of January 2024, he is co-directing the newly established Stockholm Center on Global Governance, funded through an excellence grant from the Swedish Research Council. Most recently, Jonas Tallberg was awarded the European Research Council Advanced Grant for the project 'Democracy, Autocracy, and International Cooperation'.

Centre for Modern European Studies – CEMES  Global Europe & International Cooperation Research Group and Centre for European Studies at Lund University