Great Decisions 2025

Great Decisions is America's largest discussion program on world affairs.  This program series highlights eight critical foreign policy challenges facing Americans each year. Supported by the Foreign Policy Association for over 50 years, Great Decisions involves citizens in the foreign policy making process. In this monthly discussion, participants read the relevant chapter in the briefing book, which is available for checkout. A moderator leads the discussion series based on the readings and shows a topic related video.

Chapter 2: U.S. Changing Leadership of the World Economy by Daniel Drezner

Under President Biden, the U.S. has advanced new ideas about trade, technology, industrial policy, competition with China, and the organization of the world economy. For most of the postwar era, the U.S. has tied its global leadership to cooperative agendas aimed at creating a more open world trading system, but that has apparently come to an end. What are America’s options and opportunities as a leader of the world economy? How will America’s “foreign policy for the middle class” and strategic competition with China impact its leadership role? How can the postwar rules and institutions of the world economy be made safe for economic nationalism and great power competition?