Guide to the United Nations
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History
Born from the ashes of the League of Nations, the United Nations has since served as the world’s primary forum for international collaboration between countries. Beginning in 1944, a group of Allied Nations – lead by the US, Britain, the USSR, and China – met in Washington to discuss a blueprint for ensuring lasting peace.
The work done in 1944 formed the basis for the UN Charter, which was drafted by 50 countries and a number of NGOs during the UN Conference on International Organization in the spring of 1945. Later that year, on October 24th, the UN Charter was ratified.
Since then, the UN has grown to 193 member states, 15 specialized agencies, roughly 29 programmes, dozens of active negotiations, and over 60,000 employees.
Structure
The United Nations is made up of five principle organs: the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Secretariat, and the International Court of Justice.
General Assembly
The General Assembly is the UN’s primary deliberative organ. It is the only UN body which includes representatives of all member countries, each of which has one vote. The General Assembly has a number of important functions, including:
- To discuss and recommend action on any question within the UN Charter
- To commission studies that promote the general welfare
- To recommend peaceful settlement of any international situation
- To consider reports from all United Nations organs and agencies
- To consider and approve the United Nations budget
- To elect non-permanent members of the Security Council
- To elect members of the Economic and Social Council
- To elect, with the Security Council, Judges of the International Court
- To appoint the Secretary-General, as recommended by the Security Council
The work of the United Nations stems largely from the decisions taken by the General Assembly. This work is carried out by committees, international conferences, and the UN Secretariat.
Decisions taken by the Assembly have no legally binding force over governments, but they do represent the will of the world community and provide a strong moral framework for action.
Security Council
The Security Council has final authority on issues related to international peace and security, as outlined in the UN Charter. It consists of 15 members, 5 of which are permanent – China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The remaining members are elected for 2-year terms by the General assembly.
Each member on the Security Council has one vote, but veto power is reserved for the 5 permanent members. A decision taken by the Council requires at least 9 affirmative votes to pass.
The Security Council is one of the few institutions within the UN to wield ‘hard-power’. Under article 25 of the Charter, all members of the United Nations are bound to accept and implement any decisions made by the Security Council. It most commonly uses sanctions as an instrument to enforce decisions. The Security Council is also responsible for recommending the admission of new members to the United Nations.
Economic and Social Council
The Economic and Social Council is the primary body responsible for coordinating all the economic, social and related work of the of the United Nations. The council has 54 members, each serving for 3-year terms. Voting is by simple majority.
The day-to-day activities of ECOSOC are carried out by eight functional commissions, five regional commissions, three standing committies, a number of expert bodies, and a number of forums. ECOSOC also coordinates its activities with the UN programmes and specialized agencies, each of which report to the council.
The Economic and Social Council is unique in that the UN Charter allows the Council to consult with non-governmental organizations regarding “matters within its competence.” As a result, ECOSOC has a very active civil society, with roughly 3,000 NGOs granted consultative status.
Secretariat
The United Nations Secretariat is comprised roughly 16,000 core international staff working in duty stations around the world. These civil servants carry out the day-to-day work of the UN system, administering a wide variety of programmes and policies.
The work undertaken by the Secretariat ranges from the administration of peacekeeping operations, to producing studies on social and economic trends, to helping NGO’s book meeting space at international negotiations. As international civil servants staff members report only to the UN as a whole and take an oath not to seek or receive instructions from any government.
The Secretariat is lead by the Secretary-General of the United Nations and is headquartered in New York City.
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice is located in the Netherlands at The Hague. It is the principal judicial organ of the UN. It is largely a responsive agency, settling legal disputes between states and offering advisory openings to the UN and its agencies upon request.
The Court consists of 15 judges elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council. They serve for nine year terms and can be re-elected. Care is taken to ensure all the principal legal systems of the world are represented. No two judges may be from the same country.
Though similar in name and location, the International Criminal Court is a separate entity within the UN and is focused on prosecuting cases of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.
Trusteeship Council
Established by the UN Charter in 1945, the Trusteeship Council is the only primary organ of the UN no longer operating. Its purpose was to supervise and assist in the administration of “Trust Territories.” These consisted of former mandates of the League of Nations and territories taken from defeated nations following WWII.
The Trusteeship Council technically still exists, but suspended activity in 1994 following the last of the Trust Territories gaining independence. It currently consists of the five permanent members of the Security Council and meets on an as-needed basis.
There has been some speculation of future mandates for the Trusteeship Council, including assisting in the governance and administration of the global commons. More recently it has been suggested the Council simply be eliminated, though this could be problematic since it would require reopening the UN Charter for revision. As such, it will likely remain a dormant organ of the UN.
Active Negotiations of Note
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Rio Conventions
- Convention on Biological Diversity
- Convention to Combat Desertification
- Framework Convention on Climate Change
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ECOSOC Commissions
- Commission on Population and Development
- Commission for Social Development
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Commission on Narcotic Drugs
- Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
- Commission on Science and Technology for Development
- Commission on Sustainable Development
- United Nations Forum on Forests
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Additional Conferences and Commissions
- Conference on Trade and Development
- Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf
- Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Acronyms
AAU – Assigned Amount Unit
AF – Adaptation Fund
AFOLU – Agriculture, Forestry and other Land-Use
AG13 – Ad Hoc Group on Article 13
AGBM – Ad Hoc Group on the Berlin Mandate
AHTEC – Ad-Hoc Technical Expert Group
AIJ – Activities Implemented Jointly
AIP – Annex I Parties
AOSIS – Alliance of Small Island States
AR4 – IPCC Fourth Assessment Report
Art. – Article
AWG – Ad Hoc Working Group
AWG-LCA – Ad Hoc Working Group on Long Term Cooperative Action
AWG-KP – Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol
BAPA – Buenos Aires Plan of Action
BINGO – Business and Industry Non-Governmental Organizations
BTU – British Thermal Unit
C2F6 – Tetrafluoroethane
CACAM – Central Asia, Caucasus, Albania and Moldova
CAN – Climate Action Network
CBD – Convention on Biological Diversity
CCS – Carbon Capture and Storage/Sequestration
CDI – Capacity Development Initiative
CDM – Clean Development Mechanism
CDM EB – CDM Executive Board
CEB – United Nations Chief Executives Board for Coordination
CEE – Central and Eastern Europe
CEO – Chief Executive Officer
CER – Certified Emission Reduction
CF4 – Carbon Tetrafluoride
CFC – Chlorofluorocarbon
CG11 – Central Group 11
CGE – Consultative Group of Experts on National Communications from Non-Annex I Parties
CH4 – Methane
CMP – Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol
CMS – Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals
CO – Carbon Monoxide
CO2 – Carbon Dioxide
COP – Conference Of the Parties
COP/MOP – Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties
COW – Committee of the Whole
CPF – Collaborative Partnership on Forests
CRF – Common reporting format
CTBTO – Preparatory Committee for the Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization
DAC – Development Assistance Committee
DESA – Department of Economic and Social Affairs
DGACM – Department for General Assembly and Conference Management
DM – Department of Management
DPA – Department of Political Affairs
DPI – Department of Public Information
DPKO – Department of Peacekeeping Operations
DFS – Department of Field Support
DSS – Department of Safety and Security
EA – Enabling Activity
EC – European Community
ECA – Economic Commission for Africa
ECE – Economic Commission for Europe
ECLAC – Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
ECOSOC – Economic and Social Council
EGTT – Expert Group on Technology Transfer
EIG – Environmental Integrity Group
EIT – Economy in transition
ENB – Earth Negotiations Bulletin
ENGO – Environmental Non-Governmental Organizations
EOSG – Executive Office of the Secretary-General
ERU – Emission reduction unit
ESCAP – Economic and Social Commission for Asian and the Pacific
ESCWA – Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia
EU – European Union
FAO – Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
FAR – IPCC First Assessment Report
FCCC – Framework Convention on Climate Change
FSP – Full-Size Project
G77 – Group of 77
GA – General Assembly
GATT – General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
GCOS – Global Climate Observing System
GEF – Global Environment Facility
GEO – Ad hoc Group on Earth Observations
GEOSS – Global Earth Observation System of Systems
GET – Global Environment Trust Fund
GHG – Greenhouse gas
GOOS – Global Ocean Observing System
GRULAC – Group of Latin America and Caribbean States
GTOS – Global Terrestrial Observing System
GTZ – German Technical Cooperation Agency
GWP – Global Warming Potential
HCFC – Hydrochlorofluorocarbon
HFC – Hydrofluorocarbon
HWP – Harvested Wood Products
IAEA – International Atomic Energy Agency
IBRD – International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank Group)
ICAO – International Civil Aviation Organization
ICCP – International Climate Change Partnership
ICJ – International Court of Justice
ICLEI – International Council of Local Environmental Initiatives
ICRC – International Committee of the Red Cross
ICSID – International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (World Bank Group)
ICSU – International Council of Scientific Unions
IDA – International Development Association (World Bank Group)
IEA – International Energy Agency
IFAD – International Fund for Agricultural Development
IFC – International Finance Corporation (World Bank Group)
IGBP – International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme
IGO – Intergovernmental Organization
IHDP – International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change
ILO – Internaitonal Labour Organization
IMF – International Monetary Fund
IMO – International Maritime Organization
INC – Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee
IOC – Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
IPCC – Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
IPO – Indigenous peoples organizations
ITC – International Trade Centre
ITU – International Telecommunication Union
ISSC – International Social Science Council
IUCN – International Union for Conservation of Nature
JI – Joint Implementation
JLG – Joint Liaison Group
JUSCANZ or JUSSCANNZ – Japan, United States, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, Norway and New Zealand
JWG – Joint Working Group
LDC – Least developed country
LDCF – Least Developed Countries Fund
LEG – Least Developed Countries Expert Group
LGMA – Local Government and Municipal Authorities
LUCF – Land Use Change and Forestry
LULUCF – Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry
MIGA – Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (World Bank Group)
MOI – Means of Implementation
MOU – Memorandum of Understanding
MRV – Measurable, Reportable, Verifiable
MSC – Military Staff Committee
MSP – Medium-sized project
N2O – Nitrous oxide
NAIP – Non-Annex I Parties
NAPA – National Adaptation Programme of Action
NCCSAP – Netherlands Climate Change Studies Assistance Programme
NCSA – National Capacity Needs Self-Assessment
NCSP – National Communications Support Programme
NGLS – Non-Governmental Liaison Service
NGO – Non-Governmental Organization
NIR – National Inventory Report
NMVOC – Non-methane volatile organic compound
N.N. – Not Named
NOx – Nitrogen oxides
OCHA – Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
ODA – Official development assistance
OECD – Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development
OHCHR – Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
OIOS – Office of Internal Oversight Services
OLA – Office of Legal Affairs
OP – Operational programme
OPCW – Office for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
OPEC – Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
PDF – Project Preparation and Development Facility
PFC – Perfluorocarbon
PFII – Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
POP – Persistent Organic Pollutant
QA – Quality Assurance
QC – Quality Control
QELRO – Quantified Emission Limitation Reduction Objective
QERO – Quantified Emissions Reduction Obligation
RDB – Regional Development Bank
RINGO – Research oriented and Independent Non-Governmental Organizations
RMU – Removal unit
SAR – IPCC Second Assessment Report
SB – Subsidiary Body
SBI – Subsidiary Body for Implementation
SBSTA – Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice
SBSTTA – Subsidiary Body for Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice
SCCF – Special Climate Change Fund
SDPAMs – Sustainable Development Policies and Measures
SDR – Special Drawing Rights
SF6 – Sulphur Hexafluoride
SGP – Small Grants Programme
SIDS – Small Island Developing States
SOx – Sulphur oxides
STRM – Short-term response measures
TAR – IPCC Third Assessment Report
TEAP – Technology and Economic Assessment Panel
TT:CLEAR – Technology Transfer Information Clearing House
UN – United Nations
UNAIDS – Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS
UNCCD – United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
UNCTAD – United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
UNDP – United Nations Development Programme
UNEP – United Nations Environment Programme
UNESCO – United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
UNFCCC – United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
UNFIP – United Nations Fund for International Partnerships
UNFF – United Nations Forum on Forests
UNFPA – United Nations Population Fund
UNGA – United Nations General Assembly
UN-HABITAT – United Nations Human Settlements Programme
UNHCR – Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
UNICEF – United Nations Children’s Fund
UNICRI – United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute
UNIDIR – United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
UNIDO – United Nations Industrial Development Organization
UNIFEM – United Nations Development Fund for Women
UN-INSTRAW – United Nations International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women
UNITAR – United Nations Institute for Training and Research
UNMOVIC – United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission
UNODA – United Nations OFfice for DIsarmament Affairs
UNU – United Nations University
UNODC – United Nations OFfice on Drugs and Crime
UNOG – United Nations Office at Geneva
UN-OHRLLS – Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small ISland Developing States
UNON – United Nations Office at Nairobi
UNOPS – United Nations Office for Project Services
UNOV – United Nationa Office at Vienna
UNOWA – Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for West Africa
UNRISD – United Nations Research Institute for Social Development
UNRWA – United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East
UNSC – United Nations Security Council
UNSG – United Nations Secretary General
UNSSC – United Nations System Staff College
UNU – United Nations University
UN Women – United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women
UNV – United Nations Volunteers
UNWTO – United Nations World Tourism Organization
UPO – United Nations Postal Union
URF – Uniform Reporting Format
USCSP – U.S. Country Studies Program
WCC – World Climate Conference
WCRP – World Climate Research Programme
WEOG – Western European and Others Group
WFP – World Food Programme
WHO – World Health Organization
WIPO – World Intellectual Property Organization
WMO – World Meteorological Organization
WSSD – World Summit on Sustainable Development
WTO – World Trade Organization
YOUNGO – Youth Non-Governmental Organization