As a research group, the GREI came together during 2008 under the auspices of the IBEI, first with the recognition as emerging research group in 2009, and later as consolidated research group in 2014. The subjects for study by the group members combine the academic traditions and perspectives of international political economy with those of international relations. The main area for the research group to focus on is a wide set of global problems regarding politics and international development, with the study of international governance processes being tackled transversely. In this way, the group members consider, among other matters, the political economy of the States in the context of globalisation, the role of the multilateral institutions, and the networks of actors present in the international sphere or in the processes of interaction among countries and the effects on their public policies.