International Advisory Board annual meeting on the future of multilateralism

ZIF's International Advisory Board convened for its annual meeting in Berlin on June 6-7, 2024. Chaired by Jonas Alberoth, Principal Senior Advisor to the Challenges Forum International Secretariat at the Folke Bernadotte Academy in Sweden, members discussed the future of multilateralism in "turbulent times". The International Advisory Board consists of high-ranking representatives from the United Nations, the African Union, the NATO, the OSCE, the EU, the German Armed Forces, think tanks and humanitarian organisations contributing their expertise and experience to ZIF's strategic development.

Deike Potzel, Director of the Department for Crisis Prevention, Stabilisation, Peacebuilding and Humanitarian Aid at the Federal Foreign Office and Special Representative for Humanitarian Aid in the Middle East, emphasised at the beginning of the meeting that, despite shrinking budgets, expertise is needed to sharpen the instruments of crisis prevention and achieve a better impact. The aim is to rebuild trust with partners around the world in times of upheaval. Other central topics discussed were the public visibility of successful crisis management, strategic communications and the question of measurable parameters for the impact of peace operations.

Part of the Board's cultural programme was an invitation to the Villa Grisebach auction house. The guided tour and subsequent discussions provided new inspiration for the possibilities of the visual component in crisis management and the persuasive power of images. Dr Tobias Lindner, Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office, provided an exciting input on the opportunities and challenges for Germany in a changing multilateral order afterwards. He lively discussed the value-based foreign politics and ZIF's specific contribution within German foreign policy with the Board members.

The second day of the Board meeting started with an insightful presentation by Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, CEO of the International Civil Society Action Network. She shared a moving account of experiences from her network and pleaded for the involvement of local actors and networks of female peacebuilders in peace processes.

"This valuable exchange with our Board members, all renowned subject matter experts, showed above all that it is important to continue investing in crisis prevention right now," said Dr Astrid Irrgang, Managing Director of ZIF, after two intense days. "Peace operations remain an important means of stabilisation and crisis management - despite all hurdles and challenges. Our numerous international partnerships help us at ZIF to critically reflect on and sharpen our contribution."