Transnational Activism and World Politics

Transnational activism has become an increasingly salient dynamic of world politics in several issue areas including human rights, environment, development, women’s rights, and peace. The article first assesses how major international relations theories look at them. While realist theories do not take them seriously, constructivism and sociological institutionalism underline the fact that transnational actors can matter in world politics. An important component of this study is that it assesses when, how, and under what conditions transnational actors can matter in international relations. Finally, the study examines areas in which transnational actors pose challenges for state-centric Westphalian international systems while suggesting that they also suffer from notable limitations. In the end, the article calls for the existence of opportunities for further research