City Diplomacy

Lorenzo Kihlgren Grandi is the chair of the Globalization, Territories and Integration Working Group at the International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration (IASIA), a co-founder and chair of Urban Flag, and a lecturer in City Diplomacy at Sciences Po and École Polytechnique in Paris. His primary expertise and research interests are in the international action of cities and their multilateral response to global challenges such as sustainable development, intercultural dialogue, and digital transition.Lorenzo gained extensive practical experience in these areas, serving as an officer of the City of Milan's International Relations Department and as a consultant to the International Association of Francophone Mayors (AIMF). He is currently an advisor on city diplomacy strategies to numerous municipalities, city networks, and international organizations.

“All chapters provide multiple examples of city diplomacy, its successes and failures. The narration is well structured, the main ideas are always signposted in bullet-points. … the monograph is exceptionally up to date: despite having being finalised in spring 2020, it has incorporated multiple examples of and reflections on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on city diplomacy in different fields.” (Ekaterina Mikhailova, The Hague Journal of Diplomacy, Vol. 17, 2022)

• Chapter 1: City diplomacy: a strategic choice.- Chapter 2: The historical, legal, and geographic evolution of city diplomacy.- Chapter 3: Decentralized cooperation.- Chapter 4: City diplomacy for peace.- Chapter 5: Economic city diplomacy.- Chapter 6: Smart city diplomacy.- Chapter 7: Environmental city diplomacy.- Chapter 8: Cultural city diplomacy.- Chapter 9: City diplomacy and migration