The War in Ukraine, the genocide in Gaza, and the rising tension in the South China Sea. These conflicts, among others, are testaments that global geopolitical tensions have markedly increased in recent years, increasing conflict, competition and fragmentations among countries. This context calls into question the dynamics of Global South countries amid this turmoil. Global South’s engagement in geopolitical dynamics used to be seen through the lens of major powers who forced Global South countries to pick a side. However, the rising power of Global South countries, both economically and politically, has allowed them to transform from mere onlookers of geopolitical tension into active participants in shaping the global order.

However, the Global South is far from a unified bloc. The Global South was born from a group of formerly colonised countries as a political project to create an alternative to the imperialist global order. Nevertheless, exactly what kind of alternative world order and through what means this alternative is achieved evolved to be highly diversified. Global South countries often fall to the pit of merely integrating as opposed to challenging the global system in their fight for power and recognition. In effect, their engagement in the global fora are stymied: the Global South are moved further away from their vision of decoloniality, if there is one. Thus, two questions arise: To what extent does Global South’s representation in the global forum allow Global South’s voices to be heard? Moreover, to what extent is the alternative order posed by Global South countries committed to decoloniality?

The 2024 Annual Convention on the Global South is organised by the Institute of International Studies (IIS), Universitas Gadjah Mada. Initiated from the “Bandung Conference and Beyond” in 2015, IIS has committed to contributing to Global South studies by hosting the Annual Convention of the Global South since 2019. The upcoming forum aims to provide platforms for vibrant discussions and debates on the dynamics of the Global South from various perspectives and salient issues. Comprehensive studies of the Global South in geopolitical turmoil are needed to comprehensively analyse the challenges, opportunities and complexities of the situation.