Overview

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

An examination of the structures and processes and the main substantive decisions of the United Nations and related international organizations. Based upon in-depth study of the UN Charter, the Security Council, General Assembly, Secretary-general and Secretariat and their constitutional and political interactions since 1945, with special attention to the theory and practice of international organization advanced by the principal Western countries, the Soviet Union and Soviet bloc, the People's Republic of China and leading Third World countries.

COURSE DETAILS:

This course explores the nature, evolution, functions and problems of international organization within the broader context of changing global politics. With an emphasis on the United Nations (UN) system, the course examines patterns of international institutionalization in a variety of contemporary issue-areas (peace and security; trade and finance; development; environmental governance, human rights, etc). The focus here is on the historical development of the institutions, patterns of decision-making, power and influence, and the formal and informal ordering devices that help or hinder their ability to achieve cooperative solutions to various international problems. The most prominent theoretical and conceptual approaches to the analysis of international organization are examined throughout the course, with particular emphasis on the evolving notions of multilateralism and global governance.  

The course material is divided two parts:   Part One (Institutionalization in World Politics) examines how international politics is organized through international institutions, the nature and types of international institutions (including the institutions of international law), and their role in global governance. We also discuss the major theoretical approaches to the study of international organizations within the discipline of International Relations. These include Realism, Liberalism, and the Critical/Social Perspectives.  

Part Two examines some issues and debates in contemporary international organization. Beginning with an examination of contemporary challenges to sovereignty and the state, we proceed to examine the international organization of contemporary issues based on the ‘Three Pillars’ of the United Nations System: 1) international organization for peace and security; 2) international organization for human rights; and 3) international organization for economic cooperation and sustainable development. Although our focus is global (i.e., the UN system), we shall examine prominent regional organizations where appropriate.  

A three-hour lecture and one-hour tutorial each week.  Tutorials start Week One.

Grading

Materials

REQUIRED READING: