The president of Fundação Getulio Vargas, Professor Carlos Ivan Simonsen Leal, participated in a panel that brought together global think tank leaders at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) in Washington, DC, on May 9. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the Council of Councils (CoC) Report Card on International Cooperation, which evaluates multilateral efforts to address ten of the world’s most pressing global challenges, from countering transnational terrorism to advancing global health.

In addition to the president of FGV, speakers included Chen Dongxiao (president of Shanghai Institutes for International Studies – China), Richard N. Haass (president of the Council on Foreign Relations) and Elizabeth Sidiropoulos (Chief Executive of the South African Institute of International Affairs – South Africa). The presider of the debate was Missy Ryan, Pentagon Correspondent for the Washington Post.

The participants discussed the mounting challenges to international cooperation today, and launched the Report Card on International Cooperation. The report surveyed the Council of Councils (CoC), a CFR initiative that connects foreign policy institutes from 25 countries around the world.  The objective is to provide a benchmark of international cooperation year after year, in order to help global policymakers identify breakthrough opportunities and prioritize current critical issues. The conclusions of the 2016-2017 Report were presented at the event and the implications for global cooperation were discussed.

The Council of Councils draws on the best thinking from around the world to find common ground on shared threats, build support for innovative ideas, and introduce remedies into the public debate and policymaking processes of member countries. The membership of the Council of Councils includes leading institutions from twenty-five countries, roughly tracking the composition of the Group of Twenty (G20). The network facilitates candid, not-for-attribution dialogue and consensus building among influential opinion leaders from established and emerging nations.

Watch a video of the event below, which is in English and starts after 8’30”: