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The goal of this opening chapter is to provide a survey of international organizations: to explain what they are and how they relate to states, to review the varieties in which they are found, and to explain how they have evolved and what they do. The chapter also explains the concept of global regimes, and the manner in which IOs fit within these regimes, as well as differences in the depth and reach of regimes. The chapter begins with a review of the system of global governance and its constituent parts, then reviews the motives behind the creation of the earliest international organizations, before discussing the pressures that have led to the construction of the liberal world order since 1945. The chapter then defines the terms international organization and regime, making a distinction between IOs that are intergovernmental (with states as members) and those that are non-governmental in that they engage non-state actors in the process of global governance. The chapter ends with a review of international law and its place in global governance: how international laws are developed, the areas in which these laws have been agreed, and their relationship to the work of international organizations.
This chapter focuses on the functions of international organizations. It does this by approaching them as political systems, reviewing the rules on which they are based, the manner in which they make decisions, how they are led, and how they are funded. .The chapter begins by looking at the common characteristics of IOs, including their purposes, their terms of membership, and the methods they use. It then looks at the practical reasons behind the creation and operation of IOs, emphasizing their roles as facilitators and their lack of independent powers or direct powers of enforcement. The bulk of the chapter is devoted to an assessment of the different elements of IOs, including their founding agreements, their leaders, their decision-making systems, and their secretariats, asking how each of these elements fit together, and assessing the results. It looks at the different pressures and demands that come to bear on IOs, and at the way these are converted into outputs. The chapter ends with a review of the ways in which IOs are funded, contrasting the advantages and disadvantages of mandatory and voluntary funding, and the implications of variations in the share of funding provided by different members.
Before moving to the specific regimes around which each of the remaining chapters of the book are based, this chapter looks at the more focused work of regional international organizations (RIOs). These are more geographically limited than most IGOs, and yet they are also often more ambitious, and are typically interested in a wider range of policies, including economic cooperation, foreign policy coordination, and the development of single markets. Regional integration has become increasingly common since the creation in the 1950s of what is now the European Union (EU). The chapter begins by looking at the underlying motives and dynamics of regional integration, at the structures of the organizations created, and then focuses on the EU as the lynchpin of the idea of integration. It explains the origins of the EU, outlines its constituent institutions, and critiques the different policy areas in which it has been active. The chapter then looks at examples of regional integration in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, comparing and contrasting the records of different RIOs in these regions, and the different motivations behind their creation. It ends with a brief review of the role of non-state actors in regional integration.
This first chapter focused on a regime deals with international organizations whose work addresses the needs of peace and security. It begins with a discussion about the meaning of terms such as war, peace, security, and human security, and then looks at the short history of the League of Nations (founded in 1920). The chapter then reviews the creation of the United Nations (UN) and the expansion of the definition of security, before focusing on the work of the UN, the dominating intergovernmental organization of the modern era. The structure and the work of the UN are reviewed, its advantages and disadvantages are discussed, and its peacekeeping activities are assessed. The chapter goes on to look at collective security organizations, prime among them being the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The concept of peace through cooperation is then reviewed through the work of IGOs such as the Commonwealth, the Organization of American States (OAS), and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The chapter ends with a discussion of the activities of non-state actors, mainly international non-governmental organizations interested in the promotion of peace, campaigning for disarmament, providing humanitarian relief, and working to influence security policy.
The second regime addressed revolves around finance and development, although given the control that states prefer to exert over economic policy there is more of a focus on the latter than the former. The chapter begins with a review of the global economic picture, introducing the Human Development Index as a comparative measure. It goes on to look at the Bretton Woods system and its related international organizations, before summarizing changes in the global economic landscape since 1945. The concept of sustainable development is explained, and the goals of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals outlined. The chapter then looks at informal arrangements such as the Group of 7 and the Group of 20, before focusing on the work of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The chapter then moves on to development organizations, headlined by the World Bank and the extensive global network of multilateral development banks. It ends with a review of non-state development actors, looking at a selection of the many international non-governmental organizations (such as Oxfam and BRAC) that have an interest in the fight against poverty. It also notes, though, that development interests overlap with several other fields, such as health care, human rights, and refugee assistance.
The focus of this chapter is on international organizations active in matters related to trade. It begins with a review of the context of global trade, discussing the evolution of approaches to trade, and summarizing the domination of the leading trading powers. The chapter goes on to look at the evolution of the global trade regime, emphasizing the rapidity with which it has changed since 1945, and discussing the work of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). It looks at the nature of international trade law (particularly regional trade agreements) before turning to a focus on the structure and work of the World Trade Organization (WTO). It discusses the strengths and weaknesses of the WTO, and the impact of its dispute resolution system, before turning the focus to other trade IGOs such as the World Customs Organization (WCO), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). It also looks at the unusual example of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The chapter ends with a review of the role of non-state actors, with an emphasis on the critical influence of multinational enterprises in defining, shaping, and operating the global trade system.
The focus of this chapter is on IOs concerned with migration and with the welfare of refugees, asylum-seekers, and stateless people. It opens with a review of the rapidly changing global migration picture, which has seen a dramatic increase in numbers in just the last few decades. It goes on to look at the halting development of the global migration regime, noting how the work of international organizations has been compromised by the degree to which states control and shape the debate. The chapter then reviews the content and effects of the key pieces of international law on refugees and migrants before turning to the work and the structure of the two key intergovernmental organizations: the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). The former mainly provides services to migrants and promotes respect for their human rights, while the latter provides help and protection to refugees during emergencies. The chapter continues with an assessment of other IGOs, including UNICEF, before ending with a discussion of the work of non-state actors, including the large number of non-government organizations with an interest in the welfare of migrants and refugees, including Save the Children and the International Rescue Committee.
The focus of this chapter is on international organizations that work to promote human rights, as outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It opens with a definition of those rights and the threats they face, before reviewing the troubled and controversial efforts made to build a human rights regime after 1945. The struggles of the Commission on Human Rights are discussed, followed by an outline of the major pieces of international human rights law. The chapter then moves on to the current UN human rights regime, revolving around the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The structure and goals of both organizations is discussed, along with the challenges they face. The work of other IGOs is then discussed, with a focus on the International Criminal Court (ICC) and on regional human rights courts. Prime among the latter is the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), whose growing reach and workload contrasts with the difficulties faced by the ICC. The chapter concludes with a review of the non-state actors active on human rights, focusing on the achievements of two international non-governmental organizations: Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.
This chapter addresses the international regime that has evolved around food and agriculture, and more specifically around the so far unmet challenge of ensuring global food security. It opens with a review of the causes of food insecurity and of the dimensions of the problem, asking whether access to food should be considered a human right. It then looks at the evolution of the post-war global food regime, noting that agriculture was barely addressed internationally until after World War II, being given a boost by the first world food crisis in the 1970s (followed by a second in 2007-08). The chapter then discusses the goals and structures of the major agricultural IGOs: the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). It goes on to review the place in the regime of international commodity bodies such as those concerned with coffee and with tropical timber. The chapter closes with an assessment of the influence of agribusiness multinationals, and the implications of having large elements of global agriculture and food supply being controlled by a small number of large corporations.
Cooperation on health, and particularly on controlling the spread of infectious disease, is the focus of the organizations assessed in this chapter. It opens with a review of the challenges posed by such disease, and draws attention to the inequalities found in health care around the world. It then outlines the most important steps in the development of the global health regime, underlining the transformations that have come in recent decades. The focus of the chapter is on the World Health Organization (WHO), whose structure is outlined and whose goals are explained before the work of the organization is critically reviewed. Other IGOs involved in health matters are then discussed, notably the UNAIDS joint programme, UNICEF, the World Bank, and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA). The chapter then reviews the place of public-private partnerships such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and the Gavi Alliance that works to promote access to immunization in poorer countries. The chapter assesses the work of non-state actors involved in health, notably the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and Doctors Without Borders (MSF), and concludes with a reminder of the key roles played by faith-based organizations and by pharmaceutical companies.
In this chapter, international organizations are focused on the management of the environment and natural resources, a challenge that has deepened in the wake of climate change and threats to biodiversity. National responses to these problems vary in quality and in quantity, reflected in the slowness with which the foundations of a global environmental regime were built; it was not until after the 1972 Stockholm conference that the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) was founded, and while there was progress on addressing acid pollution and threats to the ozone later, the story on other problems was less positive. After reviewing achievements in agreeing environmental law, the chapter focuses on the structure and goals of UNEP, noting the failure of efforts to create a World Environment Organization. It then discusses the work of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and the varied results in building regimes around forests and energy. On the latter, the work of IOs such as the International Energy Agency (IEA) is reviewed. The chapter ends with an assessment of the work of non-state actors, arguing that environmental INGOs have been a source of pressure on governments and IGOs, and noting the impact of changes in the policies of multinational enterprises.
This final chapter focuses on a wide range of international organizations engaged in activities with an emphasis on science and technology. It opens with an explanation of the parameters of these two areas, noting that while neither has a broad regime, or a dominating IGO, both have still been the target of important international collaboration. The breadth and depth of this collaboration has grown and changed with advances in scientific knowledge and technological applications. The chapter looks at the work of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) before reviewing the more focused interests of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), and the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), as well as several scientific INGOs. It then assesses the work of IOs engaged in shipping, aviation, and space, including the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). International standards organizations are then reviewed, with a focus on the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and the chapter ends with a discussion of the complex regime surrounding governance of the internet. Opinion is divided on how best to understand the latter given the prominence of self-regulating and private sector organizations.
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