Branding ‘transformation’ in Canadian foreign policy: Human security

Abstract

Within the study of foreign policy, there is an growing awareness of the importance of “brand development” in terms of the active attempts by states to cultivate a positive (inter)national identity through the implementation of particular policies and initiatives. Within the global arena, Canada's position as a member of the vanguard of human security states is well recognized, and by concentrating on freedom from fear issues, Canada has been able to trademark its own human security agenda. Yet, there is a gap emerging between the positive reaction attached to the Canadian Human Security Agenda, and the outcomes that have been generated, because of the continuing influence of political realism and economic liberalism on Canadian foreign policy. The impacts of this paradoxical situation are not only detrimental to global human security, but may eventually undermine the Canadian Human Security Agenda, and the international credibility of Canadians, as differences between Canada's brand image and policy outcomes become more widely recognized.