NAVIGATOR is back for another workshop on global governance reforms. After Johannesburg, this time in Ottawa!
Join us at our next workshop “Saving the Furniture: Which Elements of the Multilateral System Must Be Sustained – and How?”, organized by NAVIGATOR’s Prof. Roland Paris.
When? Monday 22 September 2025 | 9:00 to 16:30
Where? Université d’Ottawa + Online
Ths meeting is a full-day workshop exploring which parts of today’s multilateral order can and should be rebuilt, reformed, or protected in the face of intensifying global challenges. Two panels will also take place, one on Trade, Tax and Finance, and the other on Climate Governance.
Agenda
8:30am-9:00am – Registration
9:00am-9:10am – Welcome and Introduction
- Roland Paris, Professor and Director, Graduate School of Public and International Affairs (GSPIA); Ole Jacob Sending, Research Professor and Head of Center for Geopolitics, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI)
9:10am-9:30am – Opening remarks: “Multilateralism in a Fracturing World”
- Senator Peter Boehm, Senate of Canada
9:30am-10:30am – Panel: “What is the Future of the Multilateral System – and What Can Be Done?”
Given the evolution of geopolitical rivalries, deepening rifts among major powers, institutional paralysis, and the growing influence of alternative groupings such as the BRICS, a different kind of multilateral system may be emerging—more fragmented, contested, and pluralistic. This panel will explore what criteria should guide decisions about which elements of the multilateral order to rebuild, reform, or protect in light of these shifting dynamics.
- Panelists: Ole Jacob Sending, NUPI; Stéphanie Martel, Associate Professor of Political Science, Queen’s University; Anthony Dworkin, Senior Policy Fellow, European Council on Foreign Relations
- Chair: Alexandra Gheciu, Professor, GSPIA
10:30am-10:45am – Break
10:45am-12:00pm – Plenary discussion of: “Saving the Furniture: Which Elements of the Multilateral System Must be Maintained – and How?”
Drawing on insights from the preceding sessions, this plenary discussion will invite participants to propose concrete priorities, strategies, and specific suggestions for maintaining or reforming key elements of the multilateral system. The session aims to distill practical ideas for action in the face of growing fragmentation and uncertainty.
- Chair: Roland Paris, GSPIA
12:00pm-1:00pm – Lunch and group photo
1:00pm-2:30pm – Panel: “Saving the Furniture: Global Governance of Trade, Tax and Finance”
This session will examine how core elements of global trade, tax, and financial governance can be preserved or adapted to ensure functionality, fairness, and resilience amid shifting power dynamics and institutional strain.
- Panelists: Leonard Seabrooke, Professor, Copenhagen Business School; Jonathan Fried, Chair, Canadian National Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation; Patrick Leblond, Associate Professor and CN–Paul M. Tellier Chair in Business and Public Policy, GSPIA
- Chair: Meredith Lilly, Professor and Simon Reisman Chair, Norman Paterson School of International Affairs, Carleton University
2:30pm-2:45pm – Break
2:45pm-4:15pm – Panel discussion: “Saving the Furniture: Climate Governance”
This panel will explore which elements of global climate governance—institutions, norms, and mechanisms—are essential to preserve, adapt or create in the face of accelerating climate crises, geopolitical fragmentation, and growing demands for equity and accountability in climate efforts.
- Panelists: Daniel Muth, Postdoctoral Researcher, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Ryan Katz-Rosene, Associate Professor, School of Political Studies and the Institute of the Environment, University of Ottawa; Jessica Green, Professor, Department of Political Science and School of the Environment, University of Toronto (joining virtually)
- Chair: Michael Manulak, Associate Professor, Norman Paterson School of International
Affairs, Carleton University
4:15pm-4:30pm – Concluding remarks
- Roland Paris and Ole Jacob Sending
