“I feel everyone is worried and it's not only a concern for the US,” Owen stated. “Lots of our wealthy, mature democracies throughout the Atlantic are in an identical state. “They’re actually nervous about the way forward for constitutional self-government.”
Owen is Ambassador Henry J. and Mrs. Marion R. Taylor Professor of Politics, a senior fellow at UVA's Institute for Superior Research in Tradition and UVA's Miller Heart for Public Affairs. He stated he was “stunned, amazed, flattered and honored” by his choice because the Grawemeyer recipient.
“Political scientists have tended to research democratic longevity and crises in home phrases,” Charles E. Ziegler, a professor of political science on the College of Louisville and director of the Grawemeyer Prize for Concepts for Enhancing World Order, stated in a launched assertion. “They often take a look at the inner financial construction, revenue ranges and cultural traits of a society. Owen's exposition of the position of the worldwide ecosystem marks a serious contribution to our understanding of world order.”
Owen is in household firm, as two of his mentors, Robert Keohane and Samuel Huntington, every obtained a Grawemeyer-Keohane Award in 1989 for “After Hegemony: Cooperation and Disruption in World Political Financial system” and Huntington in 1992 for “The Third” . The Wave: Democratization within the Late Twentieth Century.
“I first heard about it after I was a graduate scholar,” Owen stated. “Really, I by no means thought that certainly one of my books would obtain this award, although the newest e book is explicitly concerning the worldwide order, and that's what the Grawemeyer award is about.”
Owen began the e book in the course of the COVID-19 lockdown whereas on a year-long sabbatical. He didn't have Grawemeyer or writing a best-seller in thoughts, however he thinks the award will assist him obtain his writing purpose.
“I hoped it might actually impression the general public discourse rather a lot,” he stated. “It's a crowded subject, with a lot of individuals writing books and articles about what's incorrect with democracy and the right way to repair it. It’s a pleasure to obtain this award. It signifies that quite a few individuals on this nation and overseas thought that that is the perfect e book of the 12 months, probably the most useful or enlightening e book of the 12 months.”
Owen has no plans to relaxation on his laurels.
“I need to write extra books and I’ve a number of concepts,” he stated. The idea on the prime, he stated, contains visions of worldwide order from hegemonic international locations reminiscent of the US, China and Russia.
“If [Chinese leader] Xi Jinping had a magic wand and he might wave it and the world would change, what would that world appear to be? he stated. “That doesn't imply he can ever obtain it – nobody ever achieves every little thing they need in worldwide relations – however imaginative and prescient issues.”
Owen will settle for his award at a ceremony in Louisville, Kentucky, on April 10.