Let’s first understand who an ‘actor’ is on the International stage.

Actor:
An ‘actor’ is basically anybody who has the ability to influence the actions of other similar actors
at the global level. By this definition, an actor can be a state, it can be an organization, and it can
be an individual.

State Actors:
State actors are very simple governments. These are the countries who form the major actors on
the world stage. The US, Russia, India, France, Australia, Japan etc. are all state actors.
Organizations within states that have global influence like the CIA, FBI, and so on are also
looked upon as state actors because most of their actions are taken with some form of approval
from the state.

Non State Actors:

Non-State actors are very simply, any actor on the world stage that is not a country.

1- These can be Transnational Corporations (TNCs) like McDonald’s, Nike, Samsung,

Sony, and so on that have global reach.
2- Non-state actors can include organizations like NGOs, charitable organizations,
environmental organizations (like Greenpeace).
3- Non-state actors are also inclusive of terrorist and belligerent actors like ISIS, Al Qaeda,
Boko Haram and so on.
4- And finally, they also include individuals who have global influence, like, Nelson
Mandela (before becoming a state actor) and Malala Yousufzai.