ABSTRACT
This book has so far progressed from discussing what is meant by a nongovernmental organization in the world of global diplomacy to outlining NGO participation rights in global policy-making, their increasing role in the international legal system, and their impact on global communications. In each of the three domains of politics, law, and communications, NGOs have initiated change, made demands to be considered part of the international system, and have brought about a restructuring of relationships. Global politics, law, and communications are no longer confined to governments: they are multi-actor systems. In order to understand the activities of NGOs and the influence they achieve, it was necessary to reject an orthodox state-centric power-based approach and adopt an issue-based approach, focusing on a diverse range of actors engaged in contention over the translation of values into norms that govern behavior. Now we must bring together all these ideas and ask what has been the overall impact of NGOs on global politics.
