A World Beyond Borders

Book excerpt: "This lucid, thoughtful synthesis makes excellent sense of the dense web that international organizations have spun around the globe over the last two centuries. Above all, by highlighting their role in relation to states and by assessing their performance, this volume provides a welcome introduction to a prime feature of our globalized world."---Michael H. Hunt, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill "The author has written a balanced, fair introduction to the modern history of international organizations. While the survey of the League of Nations is well done, the book really comes alive with its analysis of the United Nations. The final chapter, surveying recent UN operations, is excellent. A World Beyond Borders is an effective resource for undergraduate students of international relations."---George Egerton, University of British Columbia There were only a few international organizations at the start of the twentieth century. By the end of the century, there were thousands at the heart of the international system involved in all aspects of international relations, including peacekeeping, disarmament, peace resolution, human rights, diplomacy, and environmentalism. This short book examines how international organizations became the major legal, moral, and cultural forces that they are today. For easy reference, the appendices consist of the Covenant of the League of Nations, The Charter of the United Nations, and The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The book also includes a list of League of Nations members and United Nations members, diagrams of the structure of the General Assembly and the organs of the UN, and a list of UN peacekeeping missions.