Thriving in Complexity? The OECD System’s Role in Energy and Taxation

The purpose of this article is to reveal how two organizations from the OECD system—the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the International Energy Agency—are maneuvering strategically to retain their focal places in the regime complexes that developed around taxation and energy, respectively. It argues that their bid for leadership and centralization is built on the comparative advantages they enjoy as institutions; namely, their historically accumulated expertise and distinct working methods, their close ties with the Group of 8, and their rapidly developing relationships with emerging powers. Notwithstanding these institutional assets, a revision of the OECD’s membership could further cement and legitimize the central role of the OECD system in these regime complexes.