Shaping Globalization

Civil Society has become a major power in the world. The stunning defeat of the controversial and secretive Multilateral Agreement on Investments, the massive worldwide WTO protests, and the yearly meetings of the World Social Forum are testimony to its coming of age. With tens of millions of citizens and more than a trillion dollars involved in advancing its agenda, civil society now joins the State and the Market as the third key institution shaping globalization. However, it cannot fully mobilize its resources and power because it lacks clear understanding of its identity.

Shaping Globalization argues that global civil society is a cultural institution wielding cultural power, and shows how, through the use of this distinct power, it can advance its agenda in the political and economic realms of society without compromising its identity. The book then outlines the strategic implications for civil society both locally and globally, and explains that its key task is to inaugurate "threefolding:" the forging, where appropriate, of strategic partnerships between civil society, government, and business. Such authentic tri-sector partnerships are essential for advancing new ways for nations to develop, and for charting a different, sustainable kind of globalization. Using the model of The Philippine Agenda 21, the book shows how civil society and progressive individuals and agencies in government and business are demonstrating the effectiveness of this new understanding to ensure that globalization benefits the poor, societies, and nature.

Nicanor Perlas is President of the Philippines Center for Alternative Development Initiatives (CADI). An international award-winner for his advocacy work on globalization and sustainable development, he has authored seven books and numerous articles, and frequently speaks at international conferences.