Globethics Repository

Artificial Intelligence is rapidly reshaping societies and the power to define its direction remains concentrated. The governance of AI which encompasses who sets the rules, whose values are embedded, and whose interests are protected is still largely steered by a small set of influential actors. Civil society, especially from regions across the Global Majority, is underrepresented in fora where critical decisions are made. This policy brief argues that civil society, rooted in communities and accountable to the public interest, is uniquely positioned to act as the counterbalance AI needs to benefit all of humanity by bringing to light the perspective of those that are most affected by AI systems. This policy brief investigates the role of civil society on AI Governance with particular attention to the Global Majority. The research question explores whether civil society serves as an effective counterbalance to concentrated power in the AI ecosystem to ensure AI systems reflect diverse public interests and values. Additionally, the brief seeks to identify which barriers hinder the participation of underrepresented civil society actors in setting the agenda for and participating in AI governance fora. On top of that, the brief outlines the opportunities for civil society’s entry points in AI Governance and key mechanisms to enable more inclusive and impactful engagement. The analysis draws on desk research and a comparative review of recent multistakeholder initiatives in global AI governance. Additionally, leveraging Globethics’ regional centers across the Global Majority, this research incorporates direct input from civil society networks through a survey and semi-structured online focus groups and interviews with civil society representatives from Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and South and Southeast Asia. These dialogues surface context-specific challenges and opportunities, offering grounded and regionally informed inputs. Together, these insights inform a set of recommendations aimed at civil society actors, policymakers, and international organizations to strengthen the meaningful participation of civil society in AI governance. This policy brief contributes to the broader conversation on inclusive AI governance for the successful implementation of the UNESCO Recommendation on the Ethics of AI and the Global Digital Compact.

The report presents insights from roundtable discussions held as part of the international dialogue series Track II: Diplomacy for Global AI Safety. On this occasion, Globethics’ community of practice convened during the Harnessing the Power of AI — Safe and Ethical Integration track at the Global Ethics Forum 2025 (GEF 2025) in Geneva. Designed to advance responsible AI governance worldwide, the roundtables explored collective action for AI safety, strategies to preserve human thinking and critical literacy in the age of AI, and opportunities for cross-sector technological and diplomatic coordination to address catastrophic AI risks.

Commencing in February 2026, the InfoDoc Unit will select resources on topics related to Globethics 2026 strategic priorities and compile this into a bibliography called the Monthly Reading List. All items listed in the bibliography are available online, free for download, from the Globethics Repository. February 2026 issue is on the topic of Responsible Governance and Ethical Decision-Making in Organizations.

This White Paper is the result of four international meetings held in 2025 on the theme of multifaith and multistakeholder engagement in times of war and polarisation. It highlights the positive roles that religious and multifaith coalitions have played in promoting human rights, supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and fostering peace and social reconciliation. It also highlights the new challenges facing multistakeholder peacebuilding efforts and presents six recommendations aimed at strengthening these efforts. In doing so, the White Paper aims to affirm the importance of an emerging alliance of multifaith and multistakeholder actors who are mobilizing resources in response to today’s global crises. The White Paper and its recommendations are the outcome of a partnership between Globethics, Wilton Park, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), and the UN Faith for Rights Initiative, with the support and participation of many other organizations.

Commencing in February 2026, the InfoDoc Unit will select resources on topics related to Globethics 2026 strategic priorities and compile this into a bibliography called the Monthly Reading List. All items listed in the bibliography are available online, free for download, from the Globethics Repository. March 2026 issue is on the topic of Artificial Intelligence Ethics.

The United Nations turned eighty in June 2025. This milestone marks the end of a founding generation. It calls for renewal. For reform. After more than eight decades of a multilateral order built on the rule of law and international law, the balance of power is shifting. The rise of imperial powers and the growing fragility of smaller nations—who know they can disappear—signal a profound rupture. This transformation unfolds within a broader upheaval: the limits of the Western neoliberal economic model imposed hegemonically after the fall of the Berlin Wall; the internal tensions of liberal democracies, both in their ability to organize political power and to inspire other nations; and, more deeply still, the erosion of what was once believed to be an inseparable bond between liberal economics and liberal democracy. At the same time, the revolution of artificial intelligence places humanity at the threshold of new technological powers, a new form of civilization or its possible eclipse. In moments of upheaval on such a scale, societies return to the matrices that shape their identity and sense of belonging. The Spirit of Geneva is one of them. Forged by Calvin’s Reformation in the sixteenth century, Rousseau’s Social Contract in the eighteenth, and Dunant’s humanitarian vision in the nineteenth, it expresses a desirable continuity: a Geneva that reflects on the timeless values of multilateralism before hosting them; that invents a method—the Spirit of Geneva—to embody it in the governance of its own territory before it extends beyond its borders; a city that serves as its living laboratory, continually reinventing it whenever history demands it. This book of Robert de Traz, written 1929, is republished in 2026, with a new Preface and a new Introduction, by Geneva Agape Foundation and One Society Foundation as start of the project “The Spirit of Geneva for a New Multilateralism”.