The economic crisis is accentuating the rise of informal global governance. These days, bodies such as the G8 and the G20 arguably matter as much as more formal, treaty-based organisations. Risto Penttilä argues that this 'multilateralism light' should be welcomed, since it brings together leaders who can change things, and it offers a fast way of incorporating emerging powers such as India and China into global governance. He explains that informal and formal bodies depend on each other: informal institutions are increasingly responsible for the process of solving problems while formal, treaty-based bodies concentrate on legitimising the results.
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