Do cities need foreign policies?
City Diplomacy investigates the capacity of cities to engage in international relations. If cities are now more connected than ever before on a global scale, local governments are not just spectators of this networked age. Cities are actively forging links across borders, taking part in setting the international agenda, and shifting the landscape of urban politics from local to increasingly global. City diplomacy is and must become a strategic activity for cities worldwide if they are to remain relevant in the new global order.
The City Diplomacy team conducts research on a range of facets of international city engagement, works with international organisations, city networks and governments to translate research into practice and delivers professional training programs to upskill the next generation of city diplomats.
Current projects
Outputs
Pejic, D., Acuto, M., and Kosovac, A. 2022. ‘City Diplomacy During COVID-19: The 2022 Cities and International Engagement Survey.’ Melbourne Centre for Cities; Chicago Council on Global Affairs.
Pejic, D., & Acuto, M. (2022). City diplomacy back home: Central–local tensions in a time of global urban governance. Journal of International Affairs, 74(1).
Acuto, M. Kosovac, A. & Hartley, K. (2021). City Diplomacy: Another Generational Shift?, Diplomatica, vol.3, no.1, pp. 137-146.
Acuto, M., Kosovac, A., Pejic, D., & Jones, T. L. (2021). “The city as actor in UN frameworks: Formalizing ‘urban agency’ in the international system?” Territory, Politics, Governance, 1–18.
Acuto, M., & Leffel, B. (2021). “Understanding the global ecosystem of city networks”. Urban Studies, 58(9).
Kosovac, A. Hartley. K, Acuto, M. & Gunning, D. (2021). City Leaders Go Abroad: A Survey of City Diplomacy in 47 Cities, Urban Policy and Research, vol.39, no.2, pp. 127-142.
Kosovac, A & Pejic, D (2021). What’s next? New forms of city diplomacy and emerging global urban governance, Cities on Global Governance, Barcelona Centre for International Affairs, February 2021.
Kosovac, A., Acuto, M. & Jones, T. (2020). Acknowledging Urbanization: A Survey of the Role of Cities in UN Frameworks. Global Policy.
Pejic, D. (2020). Cities and International Relations. In Oxford Bibliographies in International Relations, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Kosovac, A., Hartley, K., Gunning, D., & Acuto, M. (2020). Conducting city diplomacy: A survey of international engagement in 47 cities. Chicago Council on Global Affairs; Connected Cities Lab. https://www.thechicagocouncil.org/publication/conducting-city-diplomacy-survey-international-engagement-47-cities
Acuto, M., Decramer, H., Kerr, J., Klaus, I., Tabory, S., & Toly, N. J. (2018). Toward city diplomacy: Assessing capacity in select global cities. Chicago Council on Global Affairs; City Leadership Lab, University College London; Melbourne School of Design, University of Melbourne.
Acuto, M. (2018). Engaging with global urban governance. In: Harrison, J., & Hoyler, M. (Eds.). Doing Global Urban Research. Sage: 96-109.
Acuto, M., Robin, E., Setzer, J. (2018) "Politics of an Urban Age", special issue of Palgrave Communications 4 (2)
Curtis, S., & Acuto, M. (2018). "The Foreign Policy of Cities" The RUSI Journal, 163(6): 8-17
Leffel, B., & Acuto, M. (2018). Economic Power Foundations of Cities in Global Governance. Global Society 32(3): 281-301.
Acuto, M. (2016) “Give Cities a Seat at the Top Table” Nature News 537: 611-13.
Acuto, M. and Rayner, S. (2016) “City networks: breaking lock-ins?” International Affairs 92 (5): 1230-45.
Sydney Morning Herald (June 2017) – “Should Sydney and Melbourne have their own foreign policies?”
Politico (June 2017) – “Why Cities Need Their Own Foreign Policies"
Financial Times (June 2017) – “Climate pledge shows how cities bypass national governments”
