Mitarbeiter sonstige

From individual to systemic impact: transnational networks and the meso-level of change

Lynders, Eva
Mitarbeiter sonstige (2024)

in: Sven Grimm / Stephan Klingebiel (eds.), Transnational cooperation – an explorative collection, Bonn: German Institute of Development and Sustainability, 57-61

ISBN: 978-3-96021-229-4
DOI: https://doi.org/10.23661/idp4.2024

Transnational networks can play a crucial role in tackling complex challenges in sustainability transformations at political, societal and technical levels (Göpel, 2016; WBGU, 2011). Monkelbaan (2019, p. 36) frames them as “informal institutions linking actors across national boundaries and involving various aspects of global governance in new and informal ways”, referring to Wessel (2011).27 The scope, depth and urgency of the necessary transformations ahead of us easily leads to a sense of  individual inefficacy: “The systems” seem too all-encompassing for any single individual to make a difference. However, this perspective might underestimate the role of individuals at a meso level of system change in transnational networks. Exploring  the mechanisms of cooperation in these networks and the paradigms defining their goals can help us understand their potential impact for political and societal transformation.