Global IR aims to de-centre Western dominance and promote diverse perspectives in international relations.
Author
Deepshikha Shahi, Professor, Jindal School of International Affairs, O.P. Jindal Global University, India
Summary
Global International Relations is a term that refers to the growing body of literature that aims to incorporate hitherto untapped non-Western knowledge forms for the purpose of overcoming the limitations of Western-centrism in theory and practice of International Relations (IR). If one looks at the chronological evolution of IR knowledge-building, one identifies the influence of Western-centrism that compelled this discipline to revolve around the major incidents of Western history, thereby sidelining not only non-Western history but also non-Western knowledge forms. The primary objective of global IR is to de-centre IR knowledge and reconcile the cognitive gaps between the West and the non-West. The novel cosmovisions related to global IR offer opportunities to conceive of and found a “new world order”, anchored in a temporally-spatially indivisible human condition on Earth, and delineate guiding principles for innovative theory-building and policymaking that could transcend the geocentric limitations of knowledge production and knowledge application.
Published in: Elgar Encyclopedia of International Relations
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