U.S. Global Engagement Initiative

Reshaping discussions on U.S. foreign policy by highlighting ethical considerations

For the last five years, the post-Cold War bipartisan consensus in U.S. foreign policy—that the sustained deployment of U.S. power around the world is indispensable for maintaining the international system—has been called into question. There are now a series of competing narratives providing very different rationales for the degree and scope of U.S. engagement being advanced by different groups on the U.S. domestic political spectrum—each resting on a different understanding of what constitutes ethics in international affairs.

The U.S. Global Engagement Initiative seeks to:

Reshape

Reshape wider discussions on U.S. foreign policy to seriously address the causes and consequences of U.S. disengagement and re-engagement.

Move

Move ethical considerations to the center of policymakers' thinking about international relations, including the emergence of new ethical perspectives based on environmentalism, a focus on greater inclusivity, and the emergence of new technologies.

Probe

Probe the ethical considerations in a world increasingly defined by geopolitical and ideological competition among major powers.

Inform

Inform democratic citizens' understanding of international affairs, global engagement, and U.S. foreign policymaking.

Featured USGE Podcasts, Events, & Articles

JAN 11, 2024 Podcast

Can the Nation-State Survive in 2024? with Judah Grunstein

Judah Grunstein, editor-in-chief of "World Politics Review," joins "The Doorstep" to discusses the fracturing, power vacuums, and identitarianism that will re-shape international politics in 2024.

FEB 1, 2024 Podcast

The Future of Foreign Policy is Feminist, with Kristina Lunz

In this virtual event, Kristina Lunz discusses her book on feminist foreign policy. How can this innovative approach to global diplomacy become a reality?

The Doorstep

An international news podcast and event series that invites participants to recognize that all global news is local in a borderless Internet. Hosted by award-winning journalism professor Tatiana Serafin and international relations scholar Nikolas Gvosdev, this series seeks to broaden listener perspectives on global affairs.

FEB 1, 2023 Podcast

Sanctions Loopholes, Rerouting Trade, & Russia's War Machine, with Rachel Ziemba

Leading up to the one-year anniversary of Russia's second invasion of Ukraine, Rachel Ziemba, head of Ziemba Insights and adjunct senior fellow at the Center ...

JAN 19, 2023 Podcast

Ideology in U.S. Foreign Relations, with Christopher McKnight Nichols

From racialized notions of subjecthood and civilization in the 18th century to the neoconservatism, neoliberalism, and unilateralism of the 21st century, ideology drives American foreign ...

JAN 11, 2023 Podcast

Will 2023 Be the Year of Global Power Shifts? with Judah Grunstein

Judah Grunstein, editor-in-chief of "World Politics Review," joins "Doorstep" co-hosts Nick Gvosdev and Tatiana Serafin for his annual review of global power shifts. The past 12 ...

DEC 14, 2022 Podcast

Blind Spot: The Global Rise of Unhappiness and How Leaders Missed It, with Jon Clifton

Although pundits and politicians pay close attention to measures like GDP or unemployment, almost no one tracks citizens' wellbeing. Gallup CEO Jon Clifton discusses this "...

NOV 16, 2022 Podcast

Personality and Power: Builders and Destroyers of Modern Europe, with Ian Kershaw

Throughout the 20th century, European leaders from Stalin to Mussolini, from Gorbachev to Thatcher, and more, have shifted global narratives by sheer force of will. ...

Leadership

Nikolas K. Gvosdev

Former Carnegie Council Senior Fellow, U.S. Global Engagement Initiative (USGE); U.S. Naval War College

Tatiana Serafin

Former Carnegie Council Senior Fellow, U.S. Global Engagement Initiative (USGE); Marymount Manhattan College