1. United Nations

2. Overview: The United Nations also known as “UN” is an organization composed of many countries throughout the world. The organization was founded after World War II to help prevent another world war or major conflict from occurring. There is currently 193 member states part of the United Nations.

3. Location: The United Nations headquarters are located in New York City, New York. There are also offices located in Geneva, Nairobi, and Vienna. The United Nations is funded by voluntary contributions from its member states.

4. Early History: In the 1800’s some similar organizations were setup such as the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Hague Conventions. After World War I the League of Nations was set up to help avoid another catastrophic war. Unfortunately the League of Nations did not have strong representation from major powers such as the USA, Russia, Germany, and Japan. Hague Conventions

5. Beginning: The first discussions and planning for the United Nations began in 1939 and was called the “Four Policeman”, referring to the United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and China. The name the United Nations was coined by President Franklin Roosevelt when he used it to refer to the Allied Countries during World War II. The United Nations Declaration was signed on New Year’s Day 1942.

6. Founding: During the first, conference negotiations took place which led the creation of the United Nations Charter. The first official meetings took place in London in the year 1946. During these first meetings New York City was selected as the headquarters which was completed in 1952.

7. Cold War Era: During the 1950s-1970’s there was the cold war between the United States and the USSR. Since this conflict involved two of the main leaders of the United Nations there was little done to intervene with conflicts that involved these countries. The first peacekeeping force that was used by the UN was put forth to end the Suez Crisis. Throughout the 1960’s many countries in Africa also became decolonized and caused a rise in many new independent countries in the UN. Throughout the 1970’s the UN shifted from peace keeping efforts to social and economic development.

8. 1980s’-present day: Throughout the 1980’s and to present day the United Nations has shifted back into many peace keeping roles along with continued economic development. There peace keeping missions included helping end the Salvadoran Civil war, keeping peace in Namibia, and helped initiate democratic elections in South Africa. Many of the other crisis included internal conflict in third world countries like Somalia, Haiti, Mozambique, Bosnia, Sierra Leone, Rwanda, Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, and Syria. Soldiers who enlist in the United Nations peacekeeping missions come from all different member countries and are recognizable noticed by their “Blue Helmet”.

9. Structure: The United Nations has five main parts. 1.General Assembly - adopts the budget, decides on new members, and selects judges as well as the assembly general. 2. Security Council - The five permanent members are the USA, France, China, Russia, and the United Kingdom. Each of the permanent members has veto power over any decision and they are responsible for helping support peace between all nations. 3.Economic and Social Council - help to work with nations to create and programs to support human rights. 4. Secretariat - is administrative bodies which help write reports and analyze information. 5.International Court of Justice. – helps settle legal disputes between member states. All of these parts are located in New York City, except for the International Court of Justice which is located in The Hague.

10. Membership: There are currently 193 member states within the United Nations. To become a member state a country must be recommended by a member of the Security Council and then agreed upon by the security general. There are two non-member observer states which include the Holy See and the State of Palestine.

11. Funding: The United Nations is funded entirely from voluntary contributions from its member states. After the UN adopts a budget they delineate what each countries percentage of payment should be depending on the budget. The budget for 2013-14 was 7.5 billion. Currently the United States pays the majority of the budget at 22% with Japan following at 10%, Germany 7%, France 5%, United Kingdom 5% and China at 5%.

12. Overview: The United Nations also known as “UN” is an organization composed of many countries throughout the world. The organization was founded after World War II to help prevent another world war or major conflict from occurring. There is currently 193 member states part of the United Nations.