ABSTRACT
Foundations are well suited to play a role in global diplomacy in the twenty-first century. Foundations use various forms of private diplomacy to address global problems: interacting directly with civil society organizations in other countries, forming partnerships and cooperating with governments and international organizations, and engaging in bilateral or multilateral networks of private and sometimes public individuals. Foundations are focused on promoting democratic societies and free market economies around the world. One of their principal tools was cultural diplomacy. Foundations have particular strengths in today's global system. Foundations are trying to build democracy around the world, transform health care and agriculture in poor countries, advance policies to prevent climate change, and prevent nuclear proliferation. Foundations are helping to establish new global norms, devise and advocate for new national and multilateral policies and regimes, create new public-private alliances and networks to address complex global issues, conduct bilateral dialogues, and thereby influence the context for traditional multilateral diplomacy.
