I. UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM

1. UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM

United Nations Headquarters (New York)
http://www.un.org/
United Nations HQ Home Page, New York, NY
Most United Nations documents (Security Council, General Assembly, International Court of Justice, Economic and Social Council, Secretariat) can be found here:
http://www.un.org/documents/
All Security Council Resolutions from 1946 to present:
http://www.un.org/documents/scres.htm
All United Nations General Assembly Resolutions from 1946 to present:
http://www.un.org/documents/resga.htm

The United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG)
http://www.unog.ch/
The United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG) is the largest and most active centre for conference diplomacy in the world and the site of many historic negotiations. It is also the second largest United Nations office after New York Headquarters.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
http://www.reliefweb.int/ocha_ol/index.html or http://www.un.org/ha/
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
See also :
-OCHA Emergency Information by Country or Region:
http://www.reliefweb.int/ocha_ol/index.html
-IRIN (Integrated Information Networks)
http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/index.phtml
-How to subscribe (free of charge) to IRIN reports by e-mail:
http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/subscribe.htm

Official Web Site Locator for United Nations Agencies (English & French)
http://www.unsystem.org/
Official Web Site Locator for UN Agencies

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
http://www.fao.org/
FAO - United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Rome, Italy
See the "State of Food Insecurity in the World 1999"
http://www.fao.org/FOCUS/E/SOFI/home-e.htm
In the developing world, 790 million people do not have enough to eat,
according to the most recent estimates (1995/97). That represents decline of 40 million compared to 1990/92. At the World Food Summit in 1996, world leaders pledged to reduce the number of hungry people to around 400 million by 2015. At the current rate of progress, a reduction of 8 million undernourished people a year, there is no hope of meeting that goal.

UN International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR)
http://www.idndr.org/forum/
As the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR) concludes, the international community is increasingly aware that natural disasters are a major threat to social and economic stability and that disaster prevention is the main long-term solution to this threat. The biggest challenge of the Decade lies, therefore, in the creation of a global culture of prevention. It is in this context that the IDNDR Secretariat in the United Nations is organizing the IDNDR Programme Forum 1999 within the closing event of the Decade.
See also the Internet Conference (June 14-15, 1999):
http://www.emforum.org

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
http://www.undp.org/
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), New York, NY 10017
See also the
-"Programme Documentation Library":
http://stone.undp.org/eis3/documents.html
-UNDP Annual Development Reports (2000 issue available 29 June 2000):
http://www.undp.org/hdro/
-New UNDP Online Newsroom (for affiliated journalists):
http://www.undp.org/hdro/00newsroom.html
-Governance Tools
http://magnet.undp.org

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
http://www.unep.org/
UNEP - UN Environment Programme, Nairobi, Kenya
Its mission is to provide leadership and encourage partnerships in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing and enabling nations and people to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations
See also www.grid.unep.ch/btf/ Balkans Task Force (BTF) United Nations Environment Programme-United Nations Center for Human Settlements. The BTF report was presented to the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, in Geneva on the 9th of October 1999. In its report, the Joint UNEP/UNCHS (Habitat) Balkans Task Force (BTF) concludes that the Kosovo conflict did not cause an environmental catastrophe affecting the Balkans region as a whole, but that pollution detected at four environmental "hot spots" (Pancevo, Kragujevac, Novi Sad and Bor), is serious and poses a threat to human health. At these sites, all in Serbia, immediate clean-up action, which should be seen as a part of humanitarian assistance to the region, is called for. The BTF report, "The Kosovo Conflict Consequences for the Environment and Human Settlements", also concludes that much of the pollution identified pre-dates the conflict and that there is widespread evidence of long-term deficiencies in the treatment of hazardous waste. It also concludes that in Kosovo the human settlement problem is not just about reconstructing ouses but a question of establishing administrative procedures that will give people security of tenure.

UNESCO
http://www.unesco.org/
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was established on 16th of November 1945, it has its headquarters in Paris, France and 60 field offices and units in different parts of the world. The main objective of UNESCO is to contribute to peace and security in the world by promoting collaboration among nations through education, science, culture and communication in order to further universal respect for justice, for the rule of law and for the human rights and fundamental freedoms which are affirmed for the peoples of the world, without distinction of race, sex, language or religion, by the Charter of the United Nations.
See also the "Manifesto 2000. For a culture of peace and non-violence"
(1. Respect all life. 2. Reject violence. 3. Share with others. 4. Listen to understand.
5. Preserve the planet. 8. Rediscover solidarity) :
http://www.unesco.org/manifesto2000

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
http://www.unhchr.ch/ See also
-the Commission on Human Rights (Resolutions, Press Releases, Documents):
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu2/2/56chr/56main.htm
-UN Human Rights Meetings and Events:
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/meeting.htm
-UN Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004):
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu6/1/edudec.htm
-Third UN Decade to Combat Racism (1993-2003):
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu2/issracis.htm
-International Decade for the World's Indigenous Peoples (1994-2004):
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu2/10/c/ind/ind_sub.htm#decade

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
http://www.unhcr.ch/

United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)
http://www.unicef.org/
United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), New York, NY
UNICEF's International Child Development Centre http://www.unicef-icdc.org/index.htm site has finally reopened and is quite impressive!
See UNICEF's Annual Report "The Progress of Nations 1999" http://www.unicef.org/pon99/
And "Progress of Nations 2000" -- UNICEF [.pdf, RealPlayer]
http://www.unicef.org/pon00/
UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund) has once again posted its
annual report, "The Progress of Nations," online. This year's report
places special focus on HIV/AIDS.
And the "State of the World's Children 2000":
http://www.unicef.org/sowc00/
The State of the World's Children 2000 seeks to fan the flame that burned so brilliantly a decade ago when world leaders adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989 and then confirmed their commitments for children and adolescents at the 1990 World Summit for Children. It is a call to leaders in industrialized and developing countries alike to reaffirm their promises for children. It is a call for vision and leadership within families and communities, where the respect for the rights of children and women is first born and nurtured and where the protection of those rights begins. And it is a call to all people to realize a new dream within a single generation: a shared vision of children and women - indeed of humankind - freed from poverty and discrimination, freed from violence and disease.

UNRWA United Nations - Relief and Works Agency
http://www.un.org/unrwa

UNIDIR (United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research)
http://www.unog.ch/unidir
UNIDIR is an autonomous institution within the framework of the
United Nations. It was established by the General Assembly for the
purpose of undertaking independent research on disarmament and
related problems, particularly international security issues. The
Institute has its seat at the Palais des Nations in Geneva
Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland

UNRISD (United Nations Research Institute for Social Development)
http://www.unrisd.org/
UNRISD was established in 1963 with a mandate "to conduct research into problems and policies of social development and relationships between various types of social development and economic development during different phases of economic growth." The Secretary-General's Bulletin that set up the Institute also called on UNRISD to carry out research and studies which are "urgent and important" to the work of the United Nations Secretariat as well as to regional and national institutes working in the fields of economic and social development.
UNRISD will carry out work in the following programme areas for the period 2000-2003: Social Policy and Development; Democracy and Human Rights; Identities, Conflict and Cohesion; Civil Society and Social Movements; Technology and Society.
Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland

The United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) has
launched a sub-site on Geneva 2000
http://www.unrisd.org/engindex/cop5/forum/copmenu.htm
The sub-site includes full text of two occasional papers the Institute has
recently published for Geneva 2000:
OPG 1 Civil Society, NGOs and Social Development: Changing the Rules of the
Game, Alan Fowler. This paper reviews the role and performance of
non-governmental development
organizations (NGDOs) in relation to the agenda set out at the World Summit for
Social Development in 1995. The paper analyses the practices of NGDOs as well as
weaknesses of the current aid system, and suggests changes in the relationship
between donors and NGDOs that would improve social development.
OPG 2 Business Responsibility for Sustainable Development, Peter Utting.
An increasing number of large firms claim that they are adopting policies and
practices conducive to sustainable development. This paper asks whether these
assertions are valid. It assesses the current range of their efforts, and finds
that change is taking place in a piecemeal fashion. The paper then considers
whether there are forces that might permit a scaling-up of initiatives
associated with corporate responsibility, thus enabling business to make a more
meaningful contribution to sustainable development.
These papers can be downloaded for free from UNRISD ON-LINE:
http://www.unrisd.org/engindex/cop5/forum/opgs.htm
UNRISD's Geneva 2000 sub-site also includes information on:
-Report for Geneva 2000 ("Visible Hands: Taking Responsibility for Social Development"):
http://www.unrisd.org/engindex/cop5/forum/report.htm
-the Virtual Forum on Initiatives for Geneva 2000:
http://www.unrisd.org/engindex/cop5/forum/index.htm
-research on social policy in West Africa in follow up to the Social Summit
-Enhancing Social Development: A Review of Parliamentary Action to Implement the
Commitments made at the WSSD, a report prepared by UNRISD and published by the
Inter-Parliamentary Union
Also UNRISD ON-LINE:
-UNRISD Annual Report 1998-1999 (accessible from the home page)
-Perspectives in Social Development Research at the Millennium, 6-8 May 1999,
Rayong, Thailand. (accessible from the home page)
-UNRISD News 21 in English and French (under publications)
For other full text papers available for free download go to
http://www.unrisd.org/engindex/publ/cat/publona.htm
Then click on the first letter in the title
-Business Responsibility for Environmental Protection in Developing Countries
Report of the International Workshop, Heredia, Costa Rica, 22-24 September 1997
-DP 99 Gender in the World Bank's Poverty Assessments: Six Case Studies from
Sub-Saharan Africa, Ann Whitehead and Matthew Lockwood
-DP 100 Technology and Globalization: Modern-Era Constraints on Initiatives for
Land Reform, Peter Dorner
-DP 101 Land Reform in Developing Countries: The Role of the State and Other
Actors, Solon L. Barraclough
-DP 103 Social Mobilization for Land Reform: Historical Case Studies and
Theoretical Considerations, Gerrit Huizer
-DP 104 The Political Economy of Market-Based Land Reform, M. Riad El-Ghonemy
-DP 105 Iniciativas campesinas y la sostenibilidad de los resultados de las
reformas agrarias en América Central, Eduardo Baumeister
-DP 106 How to Get It Wrong in Rural Uzbekistan: An Ethnographic Critique of
Household Survey Categories, Deniz Kandiyoti
-DP 108 The Conditions and Consequences of Choice: Reflections on the
Measurement of Women's Empowerment, Naila Kabeer
-DP 109 Partners in Time? Business, NGOs and Sustainable Development, David F.
Murphy and Jem Bendell
-DP 110 The Greening of Business in Mexico, David Barkin
-DP 111 Internetworking for Social Change: Keeping the Spotlight on Corporate
Responsibility, Kelly O'Neill
-DP 112 The New Public Management and Crisis States, George A. Larbi
-DP 113 New Directions in State Reform: Implications for Civil Society, Yusuf
Bangura
Please address questions to

UNITAR (United Nations Institute for Training and Research)
http://www.unitar.org/
UNITAR is an autonomous body within the United Nations with a mandate to enhance the effectiveness of the UN through training and research. To meet this aim, UNITAR provides training to assist member states, conducts research to explore innovative training and capacity building approaches, and forms partnerships within and outside of the UN system in order to build upon existing networks and expertise. With a diverse range of programmes to offer, each year UNITAR reaches out to a large number of individuals and institutions of Member States.
UNITAR, Palais des Nations, CH 1211 Geneva 10 Switzerland

See also UNITAR Programme in Peacemaking and Preventive Diplomacy :
http://www.unitar.org/peacemaking/

United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies (UNU/IAS)
http://www.ias.unu.edu/
The United Nations University/Institute of Advanced Studies (UNU/IAS) was officially inaugurated in April 1996 by Boutros Boutros-Ghali. The Institute conducts research and post-graduate education both in-house and in cooperation with a worldwide network of academic institutions and international organizations. As an integral part of the United Nations system, research at UNU/IAS deals with the interaction of natural and societal systems, pressing global issues and the process of eco-restructuring.

United Nations Volunteers (UNV)
http://www.unv.org/
The United Nations Volunteers programme (UNV) was created by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1970, to serve as an operational partner in development co-operation at the request of UN member states. It is unique within the UN family and as an international volunteer undertaking. It reports to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and works through UNDP's country offices around the world. There are about 4000 qualified, experienced and motivated women and men of over 140 nationalities annually serving in developing countries as volunteer specialists and field workers. Since 1971, roughly 18,000 UNVs from some 150 developing and industrialised nations 75% and 25% respectively in 1998 have worked in an equal number of countries.
PO Box 260 111 D-53153 Bonn Germany
or

United Nations Commission on Human Rights
Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities
- Question of the impunity of perpetrators of human rights violations
(civil and political). Revised final report prepared by Mr. Joinet
pursuant to Sub-Commission decision 1996/119.
[E/CN.4/Sub.2/1997/20/Rev.1 ]
http://www.derechos.org/nizkor/impu/joinet2.html
- Final report on the question of the impunity of perpetrators of human
rights violations economic, social and cultural rights), prepared by Mr.
El Hadji Guissé, Special Rapporteur, pursuant to Sub-Commission
resolution 1996/24. [E/CN.4/Sub.2/1997/8]
http://www.derechos.org/nizkor/impu/guissee.html

UNAIDS
http://www.unaids.org
See the Report on the global HIV/AIDS epidemics, released ahead of the 13th International AIDS Conference (Durban, South Africa, July 2000)
http://www.unaids.org/epidemic_update/report/index.html

World Food Programme (WFP)
http://www.wfp.org/
United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), Rome, Italy
WFP is the frontline United Nations Agency whose mission is to provide: Food for LIFE to sustain victims of man-made and natural disasters; Food for GROWTH to improve the nutrition and quality of life of the most vulnerable people at critical times in their lives; and Food for WORK to help build assets and promote the self-reliance of poor people and communities, particularly through labour-intensive works programmes. Last year, WFP helped feed more than 89 million people in 82 countries around the world.
Via Cesare Giulio Viola, 68, Parco dé Medici, Rome 00148

See also the WFP Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping project. VAM provides start up support to WFP country offices (Angola, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, China, Ecuador, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Sudan, Uganda) in the areas of 1) analyzing the vulnerability of target populations to food insecurity and their capacities for coping with disaster; and 2) presenting the analysis with digital maps. VAM data and maps contribute to a better targeting of areas affected by disaster, for relief activities, or prone to disaster, for development activities, and also provide key inputs in designing interventions to improve access to food and coping mechanisms and preserve assets.
http://www.wfp.it/vam/vamhome.htm

World Health Organization (WHO)
http://www.who.org/
World Health Organisation (WHO), Geneva, Switzerland
See especially the Division of Emergency and Humanitarian Action
http://www.who.int/eha/
and the Health Intelligence Network for Advanced Contingency Planning (HINAP):
http://www.who.ch/eha/hinap
as well as Communicable Disease Surveillance and Response (CSR) Networks (WHOSIS)
http://www.who,org/emc.surveill/
See also PAHO

International Organization for Migration (IOM)
http://www.iom.ch and http://www.iom.int
The International Organization for Migration (IOM), Geneva, Switzerland

International Monetary Fund (IMF)
http://www.imf.org
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) responsibilities include assisting post-conflict countries and reviewing social policy and military expenditure

World Bank
http://www.worldbank.org/
The World Bank, Washington, DC, USA
Poverty Net, a new resource for people working on poverty-related issues:
http://www.worldbank.org/poverty
revised and expanded resources for international development data:
http://www.worldbank.org/data
revised and expanded resources for research:
http://www.worldbank.org/research
and a vastly improved search engine
http://www.worldbank.org/search.htm
as well as the paper by Paul Collier on the economic causes of conflict:
http://www.worldbank.org/research/conflict/papers/civilconflict.htm
and the World Bank and post-conflict reconstruction:
http://wbln0018.worldbank.org/essd/kb.nsf/PostConflictHome?OpenView

United Nations Law Reports
http://www.UNLawReports.com
Unofficial Reports Concerning Legal Matters in the United Nations, edited by John Carey [email protected]

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