United Nations Will Effect Every Person On Earth! United Nations
Earth in Brackets + the United Nations
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world food program development program environment program e United Nations is a complicated institution, here’s our introduction to its structure. Keep your short-term memory sharp, since the UN speaks the language of acronyms, and you’ll likely come accross many that you had never seen, but hopefully some of these will be familiar to you. Any questions? en, let’s go. text by earth in brackets team Special thanks to Lara montesanto ‘15 design by khristian Mendez ‘15 - [email protected] earth in brackets 2013 earth in brackets and the united nations: A visual introduction e United Nations General Assembly contains all the member states of the UN, and they have equal representation. Currently there are 193 members, whereas there were originally 51. Resolutions are discussed and voted on, although these are only binding to states if they are budgetary. ere are also observer states (currently, the Holy See and Palestine) which are able to participate but not vote. 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.” ese consisted of former mandates of the League of Nations and territories taken from defeated nations following WWII. General Assembly food & agriculture organization International Court of Justice Secretariat e judges can 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. e United Nations Secretariat is comprised roughly 16,000 core international staff working in duty stations around the world. ese civil servants carry out the day-to-day work of the UN system, administering a wide variety of programmes and policies. 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. ough 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. e 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. e Secretariat is lead by the Secretary-General of the United Nations. Economic & Social Council e Economic and Social Council is the primary body responsible for coordinating all the economic, social and related work of the of the United Nations. e council has 54 members, each serving for 3-year terms. Voting is by simple majority. e 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. is 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. Security Council e 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. e 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. e 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. e Security Council is also responsible for recommending the admission of new members to the United Nations. Human Rights Council International fund for agricultural development world trade organization united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization world health orgnization Trusteeship Council (inactive) bodies that earth in brackets has engaged with Rio conventions International Financial Institutions Intergovernmental, legally independent organizations, with the aim of keeping the technical branches of the UN separate from the political: specific problems can be addressed without entering into larger disagreements. Each was set up to deal with specific issues. e system has been criticized for leading overlap or conflict of work, as coordination is lacking. ey are funded by assessed as well as voluntary contributions, but have become underfunded with time, leading some to accept corporate sponsorship. ere are 17 agencies in total. Aims to stabilise greenhouse gas concentrations before they become dangerous. It led to the creation of the Kyoto Protocol, a legally binding document for countries to reduce their emissions. It has 194 parties. biodiversity. Aims to preserve biodiversity, and use it both sustainably and equitably. It looks at ecosystems, species and genetic resources. It led to the creation of the Cartagena Protocol regarding biotechnology and emphasizing the use of the precautionary principle, as well as the creation of the Nagoya Protocol which discusses access and benefit sharing ofgenetic resources. Aims to combat desertification and mitigate effects of drought. It is focused on Africa and on sustainable land management strategies. It is only informally linked to the UN: it was established to incorporate all GATT (General Agreements on Tariffs and Trade) in 1995. It seeks to supervise and liberalise international trade. e IMF and World Bank are technically UN specialised agencies. However they differ in that they are Bretton Woods institutions. ey were created in 1944, before the UN, in preparation for rebuilding the global economic system following WW2. ey now use the US dollar as a reserve currency. e IMF oversees the international monetary system, and the World Bank finances economic development.e IMF’s funding comes from its members: their contributions determine their voting power. Since it is a bank, the World Bank’s funding also comes from its members: some invest and others borrow. It also uses the global market. It should be noted that regional banks also qualify as international financial institutions. e United Nations Secretariat is comprised roughly 16,000 core international staff working in duty stations around the world. ese civil servants carry out the day-to-day work of the UN system, administering a wide variety of programmes and policies. 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. e Secretariat is lead by the Secretary-General of the United Nations. located in The Hague, Netherlands headquarters in New York , United States ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE... Who we are Earth in Brackets is a student organization engaging in international environmental and sustainable development politics. Since 2006, we have worked to bring a sense of justice—environment and social—to international negotiations on biodiversity, climate change, sustainable development, and food security. We believe another world is not only possible, but necessary, and we want to bring more young people into the fight for and celebration of that world. & others Europe Africa Latin America & Caribbean Asia Pacific western asia Sustainable development status of women population & development social development & others on indigenous issues Development cooperation & others Regional COmmissions Forums Specialized agencies CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON Climate Change CONVENTION TO COMBAT DESERTIFICATION programmes Commissions Subsidiaries of the general assembly: report to the General Assembly and/or ECOSOC. e decisions they take do not become effective until they have been adopted by the General Assembly. ey are established by the General Assembly. ey are mostly financed through voluntary contributions as well as UN budget funds for staff posts.
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The United Nations is a complicated institution, here’s our introduction to its structure. Keep your short-term memory sharp, since the UN speaks the language of acronyms, and you’ll likely come accross many that you had never seen, but hopefully some of these will be familiar to you. Any questions? Then, let’s go.
Transcript of Earth in Brackets + the United Nations
world food
program
development program
environmentprogram
�e United Nations is a complicated institution, here’s our introduction to its structure. Keep your short-term memory sharp, since the UN speaks the language of acronyms, and you’ll likely come accross many that you had never seen, but hopefully some of these will be familiar to you. Any questions? �en, let’s go.
text by earth in brackets teamSpecial thanks to Lara montesanto ‘15design by khristian Mendez ‘15 - [email protected]
earth in brackets2013
earth in brackets and the united nations:A visual introduction
�e United Nations General Assembly contains all the member states of the UN, and they have equal representation. Currently there are 193 members, whereas there were originally 51. Resolutions are discussed and voted on, although these are only binding to states if they are budgetary. �ere are also observer states (currently, the Holy See and Palestine) which are able to participate but not vote.
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.” �ese consisted of former mandates of the League of Nations and territories taken from defeated nations following WWII.General Assembly
food & agriculture organization
International Court of Justice Secretariat
�e judges can 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.
�e United Nations Secretariat is comprised roughly 16,000 core international sta� working in duty stations around the world. �ese civil servants carry out the day-to-day work of the UN system, administering a wide variety of programmes and policies.
It is the principal judicial organ of the UN. It is largely a responsive agency, settling legal disputes between states and o�ering advisory openings to the UN and its agencies upon request.
�ough 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.
�e 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 sta� members report only to the UN as a whole and take an oath not to seek or receive instructions from any government.
�e Secretariat is lead by the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Economic & Social Council�e Economic and Social Council is the primary body responsible for coordinating all the economic, social and related work of the of the United Nations. �e council has 54 members, each serving for 3-year terms. Voting is by simple majority.
�e day-to-day activities of ECOSOC are carried out by eight functional commissions, �ve 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.�is 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.
Security Council�e Security Council has �nal 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. �e 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 a�rmative votes to pass.�e 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. �e Security Council is also responsible for recommending the admission of new members to the United Nations.
Human Rights Council
International fund for agricultural
development
world trade organization
united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization
worldhealth
orgnization
Trusteeship Council
(inactive)
bodies that earth in brackets has engaged with
Rio conventions
International Financial
Institutions
Intergovernmental, legally independent organizations, with the aim of keeping the technical branches of the UN separate from the political: speci�c problems can be addressed without entering into larger disagreements. Each was set up to deal with speci�c issues. �e system has been criticized for leading overlap or con�ict of work, as coordination is lacking. �ey are funded by assessed as well as voluntary contributions, but have become underfunded with time, leading some to accept corporate sponsorship. �ere are 17 agencies in total.
Aims to stabilise greenhouse gas concentrations before they become dangerous. It led to the creation of the Kyoto Protocol, a legally binding document for countries to reduce their emissions. It has 194 parties.biodiversity.
Aims to preserve biodiversity, and use it both sustainably and equitably. It looks at ecosystems, species and genetic resources. It led to the creation of the Cartagena Protocol regarding biotechnology and emphasizing the use of the precautionary principle, as well as the creation of the Nagoya Protocol which discusses access and bene�t sharing ofgenetic resources.
Aims to combat deserti�cation and mitigate e�ects of drought. It is focused on Africa and on sustainable land management strategies.
It is only informally linked to the UN: it was established to incorporate all GATT (General Agreements on Tari�s and Trade) in 1995. It seeks to supervise and liberalise international trade.
�e IMF and World Bank are technically UN specialised agencies. However they di�er in that they are Bretton Woods institutions. �ey were created in 1944, before the UN, in preparation for rebuilding the global economic system following WW2. �ey now use the US dollar as a reserve currency.
�e IMF oversees the international monetary system, and the World Bank �nances economic development.�e IMF’s funding comes from its members: their contributions determine their voting power.
Since it is a bank, the World Bank’s funding also comes from its members: some invest and others borrow. It also uses the global market. It should be noted that regional banks also qualify as international �nancial institutions.
�e United Nations Secretariat is comprised roughly 16,000 core international sta� working in duty stations around the world. �ese civil servants carry out the day-to-day work of the UN system, administering a wide variety of programmes and policies.
As international civil servants sta� members report only to the UN as a whole and take an oath not to seek or receive instructions from any government. �e Secretariat is lead by the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
located inThe Hague, Netherlands
headquarters inNew York ,United States
ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE...
Who we are
Earth in Brackets is a student organization engaging in international environmental and sustainable development politics. Since 2006, we have worked to bring a sense of justice—environment and social—to international negotiations
on biodiversity, climate change, sustainable development, and food security. We believe another world is not only possible, but necessary, and we want to bring more young people into the �ght for and celebration of that world.
& others
Europe
Africa Latin America & Caribbean
Asia Pacific western
asia
Sustainable development
status of women
population & development
social development
& others
onindigenousissues
Development cooperation
& others
Regional COmmissions
Forums
Specialized agencies
CONVENTIONON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
FRAMEWORKCONVENTIONON Climate Change
CONVENTION TO COMBAT DESERTIFICATION
programmesCommissionsSubsidiaries of the general assembly: report to the General Assembly and/or ECOSOC. �e decisions they take do not become e�ective until they have been adopted by the General Assembly. �ey are established by the General Assembly. �ey are mostly �nanced through voluntary contributions as well as UN budget funds for sta� posts.
