report for contemporary world lesson 4: Global governance and UN

1. The United Nations and
Contemporary Global
Governance
Presented By ;
Julaili , Shakira Afra
Pioquinto , Earl James
( BSIE 2A )

2. LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
1. define global governance;
2. identify the roles and functions of the United Nations; and
3. determine the challenges of global governance in the twenty-first century.

3. GLOBAL GOVERNANCE AND ITS EXISTENCE
• Global governance is a complex and multifaceted concept,
encompassing the system of decision-making and cooperation
among a diverse range of international actorsStates generally
follow global navigation routes and respect each other's
territorial boundaries.

4. GLOBAL GOVERNANCE SOURCES
• Formal Sources: Treaties and Agreements,
International Law and International Organizations
• Other Actors: Non-Govermental Organizations,
Private Sectors and Civil Society

5. Global governance can be influenced by various sources, including states signing
treaties, forming organizations, and forming international NGOs. These
organizations can lobby individual states to adopt certain behaviors, such as
animal cruelty laws. Transnational corporations can significantly impact global
labor laws, environmental legislation, and trade policy.
Ideas like "global democracy" and "good governance" can also influence
international actors' actions. Overall, global governance is influenced by various
factors and influences on international actors.

6. WHAT IS AN INTERNATIONAL
ORGANIZATION?
International organizations (IOS) refer to intergovernmental groups primarily
composed of member-states, such as the UN, IMF, and World Bank, often referred
to as international NGOs.
International Organizations: A New
Perspective
•Historically, international organizations (IOs)
were seen as mere amalgamations of state
interests.
• IMF promoted a form of economic
orthodoxy based on professional
economists' beliefs.
• IOs can become influential as
independent organizations, as
noted by scholars like Michael N.
Barnett and Martha.

7. International Organizations (IOs) have the power to classify and
fix meanings, creating global standards such as the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) defining refugees. This
power has concrete effects as states are required to accept
refugees entering their borders. IOs also have the power to fix
meanings, such as defining terms like "security" or
"development" as well as defining security as not just safety
from military violence but also environmental harm.
IOs also have the power to diffuse norms, which are accepted
codes of conduct that produce regularity in behavior. They do
not only classify and fix meanings but also spread their ideas
across the world, establishing global standards.

8. IOs are staffed with independent bureaucracies, considered experts in various
fields, such as World Bank economists, who can create norms regarding the
implementation and conceptualization of development projects.
IOs have immense powers, promoting norms like environmental protection
and human rights. However, they can become sealed-off communities, failing
to challenge their beliefs. Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz
criticized the IMF for its "one-size-fits-all" approach to developing countries.

9. THE UNITED NATIONS
Having examined the powers,
limitations, and weaknesses of
IOs, the spotlight will now fall on
the most prominent IO in the
contemporary world, the United
Nations (UN). After the collapse
of the League of Nations at the
end of World War II, countries
that worried about another
global war began to push for the
formation of a more lasting
international league. The result
was the creation of the UN.

10. Although the organization is far from perfect, it should be emphasized that it has so far
achieved its primary goal of averting another global war. For this reason alone, the UN
should be considered a success.
UN's Organs Overview:
•General Assembly (GA): Main deliberative policymaking and representative
organ.
•Decisions on key issues require two-thirds majority.
•Simple majority for other matters.
•GA President elected annually for one-year term.
•All member states have GA seats.
•Philippines played a significant role in GA's early years.

11. ( president Xi Jinping addresses the UN
General Assembly ; Top Pic )
The Security Council (SC) is considered the
most powerful organization in the UN,
consisting of 15 member states. The GA
elects ten of these to two-year terms, while
the other five, known as the Permanent 5
(P5), are China, France, Russia, the United
Kingdom, and the United States.
The SC determines threats to peace and acts
of aggression, calls for peaceful settlements,
and may impose sanctions or authorize the
use of force to maintain international peace
and security. States seeking military
intervention in another state must obtain SC
approval.

12. The Security Council (SC) is a key UN organ, with permanent seats and veto
power from each member. The P5 consists of major Allied Powers from World
War II, making it heir to the tradition of "great power" diplomacy. The Economic
and Social Council (ECOSOC) coordinates policy review, dialogue, and
recommendations on social and environmental issues, and is the UN's central
platform for discussions on sustainable development.
The court cannot try individuals and its decisions are only binding when states
have explicitly agreed to place themselves before the court's authority. The SC
may enforce the rulings of the ICJ, but this remains subject to the P5's veto
power. The ECOSOC is the UN's central platform for discussions on sustainable
development.

13. CHALLENGES OF THE UN
The UN faces numerous challenges, including the need to respect state
sovereignty and its limitations on its various organs and programs. As a
non-world government, the UN relies on voluntary cooperation from
states, and refusal to cooperate can severely limit its influence.
UN Council on Human Rights' Information-Gathering Mechanism
• Sends special rapporteurs to alleged human rights violations.
• Failure to invite or condition rapporteurs can hinder goal achievement.

14. The United Nations faces a significant challenge in security issues, as the UN
Security Council is responsible for authorizing military intervention. However,
due to the P5's veto power, it is difficult to release or implement formal
resolutions. This was evident in the late 1990s when the US sought to
intervene in the Kosovo war, a conflict involving ethnic cleansing against
ethnic Muslim Albanians.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), led by the US, sought SC
authorization for humanitarian intervention. However, China and Russia
threatened to veto any action, rendering the UN incapable of addressing the
crisis. NATO intervened on its own, largely successful, but leaving the UN
ineffectual.

15. Syria's Civil War and UN Ineffectiveness
•Russia threatens to veto any UN resolution against Syria, causing state-sanctioned
violence against opposition.
•Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, avoids
policies weakening his legitimacy.
•The conflict has resulted in over 220,000 deaths and 11 million displacements.
•Despite challenges, the UN Security Council should limit military intervention.
•The US invasion of Iraq in 2001 was vetoed by Russia, China, and France, leading to a
"coalition of the willing."
•The invasion caused lasting problems for the country and the region.

16. CONCLUSION
Global governance is a complex issue that can be taught in its entirety,
with international organizations like the United Nations being the most
visible symbols. These organizations are often in a precarious position,
as they are groups of sovereign states with their own rationalities and
agendas.
This tension continues to inform the evolution of these organizations.
However, there are many institutions, groups, and ideas that hold
international and global politics together, and it is important to explore
these topics independently in one's own time.