BOOK PROJECT SUMMARY

When do major powers forgo cooperation when they have common interests? Inherit the Earth explores the global politics that enable and constrain major power cooperation. It explores how cooperation can be frustrated by a regime security dilemma, which consists of three interrelated ideas. First, major powers with common interests forgo cooperation when they fear that others will undermine their preferred international regimes – rules and organizations used for governing the spaces that exist in between major powers. Second, economic and political instability in these spaces – ranging from decolonization to global financial crises – tempts major powers to change international regimes, making major power cooperation less likely. Third, decision-makers routinely undervalue the reputational costs of changing international regimes, leading to the conclusion that they can change international regimes without causing cooperation to break down. Tragically, major powers cooperate less than they otherwise might, particularly in unstable periods during which major power cooperation is most beneficial.

DRAFT CHAPTER LIST

  • Chapter 1 - Introduction
  • Chapter 2 - A Theory of Regimes and Major Power Cooperation
  • Chapter 3 - Major Power Cooperation since 1945
  • Chapter 4 - Revolutionary Horizons: Decolonization and the Long Cold War 
  • Chapter 5 - Leading the Camp: Decolonization and the Sino-Soviet Split
  • Chapter 6 - Sands of the Ogaden: Africa, Afghanistan, and Détente
  • Chapter 7 - After the Wall: Democratization and US-China Cooperation
  • Chapter 8 - Ending Engagement: The Financial Crisis and US-China Cooperation
  • Chapter 9 - Conclusion

DATA (IN PROGRESS)

​Major Power Cooperation Dataset, 1945 to 2023
​
​PRC Elite Ideology Dataset

ARCHIVAL & INTERVIEW RESEARCH

China 
  • Interviews, Beijing and other locations | Spring 2024 & Winter 2024

United States
  • ​George H.W. Bush Presidential Library, College Station | Winter 2021
  • Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley | Winter 2022
  • Hoover Institution Library & Archives, Stanford | Summer 2023, Fall 2024
  • Interviews | Ongoing

​United Kingdom
  • The National Archives, London | Winter 2023, Summer 2024 & Spring 2025

France
  • Centre des Archives diplomatiques de Nantes | Summer 2024
  • Centre des Archives diplomatiques de La Courneuve | Summer 2024​



Image:  Xinhua Gate of Zhongnanhai, Beijing