In a tense and dangerous international environment, this book looks at the important question of how Australia deals with the outside world. It describes the role of the government departments and intelligence organisations that support the governments policy-making, and the thinking of the people who make it, in more detail than ever before. It discusses the processes, institutions, actors and calculations involved in foreign policy making in Australia, and how these have changed under the impact of globalisation. It draws on an extensive survey - the first ever - of how Australian foreign affairs officials think about the world, includes case studies of four recent Australian foreign policy initiatives, and concludes by speculating on the challenges ahead for Australian foreign policy making.