The online conference“Global Governance in a Multipolar World was organized by Associação Nova Roma and Associação Sovereignty and broadcast on the Geoforça channel, with retransmission on the Associação Nova Roma channel.
1. The Urgency of Global Governance in the Transition to Multipolarity
Raphael Machado emphasized the urgent need to improve existing mechanisms of global governance and to create new ones in the context of the transition from unipolarity to multipolarity. He argued that the absence of global governance increases the likelihood of rivalries, tensions, and conflicts. Machado highlighted traditional Chinese thought as offering a holistic vision of international relations that overcomes the Western “zero-sum game” perspective. This worldview is reflected in concrete Chinese initiatives such as the Belt and Road Initiative, the New Development Bank, and especially the Global Governance Initiative, which seeks to adapt the UN Sustainable Development Goals in ways that favor Global South countries, exemplified by improvements in China–Pakistan relations.
2. Cultural and Mental Dimensions of Sino–American Competition
Thales Rufini analyzed the dispute between China and the United States beyond material and objective aspects, stressing the importance of cultural and mental dimensions. He identified these factors as crucial for understanding the differences between both countries and how they present themselves as international leaders. According to this analysis, Chinese proposals for cooperation are characterized by a more collaborative and consensual orientation.
3. Governance, Multipolarity, and Civilizational Pluralism
Augusto Fleck distinguished between the concepts of global governance and multipolarity, tracing their earlier Western instrumentalization aimed at subordinating isolated actors and their current emergence as central concepts in the development of a genuinely plural order. He contrasted the Chinese and Western worldviews, presenting Chinese governance efforts and encouragement of other blocs as expressions of an anti-hegemonic worldview based on harmony among large spaces. This perspective was presented as a source of inspiration for similar projects from other geopolitical positions, such as the Ibero-American space.
4. Multilateral Reform as a Condition for Multipolarity
Lucas Leiroz argued that multilateral governance through the reformulation of international institutions is a fundamental process for the multipolar geopolitical transition. He presented Chinese global governance proposals as a model for the Global South in the search for a new platform to manage state interests and conflicts, emphasizing governance as an existential condition for a multipolar order.
5. Environmental Discourse and Development Constraints
André Soares analyzed environmental agendas through a perspective inspired by Kicking Away the Ladder by Ha-Joon Chang. He argued that Currently Developed Countries use environmental requirements—such as rigid climate targets, complex certifications, and costly “green” policies—as instruments to block the progress of the Global South. By linking trade, investment, and financing to these standards, these countries limit access to cheap energy, hinder industrialization, and reinforce dependence on primary exports, constituting a form of “environmental neocolonialism.” In contrast, Chinese initiatives associated with the Global Governance Initiative were presented as capable of reconciling environmental concerns with the industrialization and development needs of Global South countries.
6. Strategic Infrastructure and Continental Integration
Arthur Pavezzi focused on the Port of Chancay, financed and built by China within the Belt and Road Initiative, as a strategic milestone for South America. The port enables direct projection toward the Pacific and a gradual reduction of dependence on Atlantic routes and influences. It symbolizes the possibility of continental productive integration based on railways, logistical corridors, and effective territorial occupation, connecting the interior of the continent to both coasts. Pavezzi also emphasized the need for a South American and Ibero-American “Great Space Autarchy,” capable of organizing its own productive chains, reducing external dependencies, and negotiating globally on its own terms.
7. Technology, Security, and Sovereignty
Arthur Lima addressed the role of high technology, border security, and state security within multipolar global governance, contrasting it with the unipolar model. He argued that technology is crucial for controlling entry and exit, as well as for preventing the formation of parallel forces. The inability to explore and develop such technologies poses existential security risks. Lima highlighted that technology agreements offered by international institutions often restrict Global South countries through end-use agreements that prevent technological exploration. In contrast, BRICS countries—especially China—offer agreements that allow the joint creation of new technologies and equal access to patents, enabling the Global South to reach higher levels of technological development and security.
Conclusion
The conference was positively received by the audience and successfully introduced and consolidated a plurality of analytical approaches to global governance.
