This special topics course will focus on the evolution of the United Nations from its founding in 1945 to the present as well as on prospects for reform in the future.  Topics will include:  key UN structures (Security Council, General Assembly, Human Rights Council etc.); how the UN “really” works (and when it doesn’t); the role of states, groups of states (blocs), and NGOs; as well as key issues relating to the UN’s role in maintaining international peace and security, peacekeeping, human rights, environmental protection, and development. 

Course Objectives

·         To gain a solid understanding of the United Nations Charter, structure and the operations of the basic organs and how these have evolved;

·         To increase understanding of the dynamics and politics of multilateral diplomacy within the UN system;  

·         To gain familiarity with the UN’s handling of a range of global problems over time;

·         To develop problem-solving, analytical, and negotiating skills through preparation for and participation in simulations of UN decision-making processes;

·         To improve capacity to think critically and to analyze policy choices and outcomes by examining issues of UN reform.

 Course Requirements and Grading

Readings, Class Preparation and Attendance policy:  Just as you expect me to be prepared for class, you are responsible for doing all assigned readings prior to the class for which they are scheduled and for coming to class prepared to participate actively and intelligently.   (I reserve the right to give periodic, unscheduled quizzes to check reading.)   

UN-related acronyms and Charter provisions:  As part of meeting course objective #1, it is important that everyone gain a mastery of major provisions of the UN Charter and a working knowledge of many acronyms.  To this end, there will be periodic quizzes to assess how well you are meeting the objective. 

UN News:  Everyone is expected to follow current UN actions on a daily basis by subscribing to the UN Wire, a free daily summary of UN news stories from around the world that is distributed via email.  To subscribe, go to http://www.smartbrief.com/un_wire.  You are also encouraged to read the New York Times regularly by obtaining a discounted subscription through the UD Bookstore or reading the paper on the web at http://www.nytimes.com and to monitor UN news directly at http://www.un.org/News/.  The UN’s websites are a key resource for information and documents. The UN’s homepage is:  www.un.org; the site for the UN system as a whole is www.unsystem.org

You are expected to attend all classes and to let me know if you must miss a class.  The quantity and quality of class participation can positively or negatively impact all borderline grades.  If you must miss a class, you are responsible for getting notes from other students and for checking on any missed assignments.   If illness or family emergency force you to miss an exam, you are expected to make every reasonable effort to notify me prior to the time of the exam.  No make-up exams will be given without documentation of the reasons for absence and they should generally be taken within one week of the exam date.  Late papers will be penalized 5 points per day of lateness, unless you have obtained prior permission for late submission.  

Cheating and Plagiarism: Cheating and/or plagiarism will not be tolerated in any form.  Cheating is defined as working with or borrowing from others on exams or quizzes.  Plagiarism is defined as submitting another’s work as your own or using someone else’s words or ideas without proper attribution.  It is particularly easy to plagiarize material from the Internet.  Students are responsible for making themselves aware of the University of Dayton’s Policy on Academic Dishonesty.  Any instance of cheating or plagiarism will result in an automatic zero (O) for the assignment and could result in a failing grade for the entire course. 

Grading:  Your performance in this course will be evaluated on the following basis:

            Two Exams  (50%)

            Quizzes (5%)

            Research Project  (25%)  (Guidelines will be distributed separately)

            Class Participation (10%)

Extra credit opportunities, including speakers – up to 5 points 

Grade Scale:   93-100  A                    

90-92               A-

87-89               B+

83-86               B

80-82               B-

77-79               C+

73-76               C

70-72               C-

60-69               D

Below 60  F 

Required Books and Case Studies for Purchase:

Michael Barnett, Eyewitness to a Genocide (2003)

Richard Jolly, Louis Emmerij, and Thomas Weiss, UN Contributions to Development Thinking and Practice (2004)

David Malone, The International Struggle over Iraq:  Politics in the UN Security Council 1980-2005 (2007)

Karen A. Mingst and Margaret P. Karns, The United Nations in the 21^st Century (3^rd ed.), 2006

Courtney Smith, Politics and Process at the United Nations:  The Global Dance (2006)

Case Studies: to be purchased on-line using any of four credit cards, then downloaded using Adobe.  The site address is:  www.guisd.org.  The purchase price is $3.50.

Case #241:  “The Dutch in Srebrenica: A Noble Mission Fails.” 

Optional/Recommended (especially for Human Rights students):

Julie Mertus, The United Nations and Human Rights:  A Guide for a New Era (2005)

                                                Course Schedule (subject to change) 

Jan. 10            Case Study:  The UN and Iraq          

                        a. “Iraq:  Not Just America’s Problem”  -- copy

b. William Luers, “Changing US Policy Toward the UN and Diplomacy in

Iraq,” UNA/USA August 14, 2007 – copy

c. Amb. Khalilzad, “Why the United Nations Belongs in Iraq” New York Times, July 20, 2007, http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/20/opinion/20khalilzad.html

d. James Traub, “The UN and Iraq:  Moving Forward?”  Stanley Foundation Policy Analysis Brief, October 2007, http://www.stanleyfoundation.org/publications/pab/Traub_PAB_1007.pdf

e. UNHCR 2008 Iraq Situation Supplemental Appeal – Executive Summary – Read at least through summary of 2007 activities.  http://www.unhcr.org/partners/PARTNERS/477b8f744.pdf 

Suggested additional reading:  Carlos Pasqual, “The United Nations in Iraq,” Brookings Policy Paper, No. 3, September 2007, http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/papers/2007/09iraq_pascual/pascual200709.pdf 

Jan. 15            The UN in World Politics

                        Mingst and Karns, The United Nations in the 21^st Century, Ch. 1

                        Dumisani S Kumalo, “The UN:  a personal appreciation,” in The UN at 60 edited by Garth le Pere and

                              Nhamo Samasuwo (2006), Reserve 

Jan. 17            The UN’s Roots

                        Mingst and Karns, Ch. 2, pp. 17-22

                        Alexandru Grigorescu, “Mapping the UN-League of Nations Analogy:  Are There Still Lessons to be

                               Learned from the League?  Global Governance 11:1 (Jan-Mar 2005), Reserve 

Jan. 22             The Charter, Structure and Major Organs

                        Mingst and Karns, Ch. 2, pp. 22-51

                        Smith, Politics and Process at the UN, Ch. 6

                        UN Charter:  Preamble, Chapter I-V, X, XIV, XV (see back of Mingst/Karns)             

Jan. 24-29       Actors on the UN’s Stage:  States, Groups, NGOs

                        Mingst/Karns, Ch. 3, to p. 72

                        Smith, Politics and Process, Chs. 2, 3, 5

                        James Traub and Joanne J. Myers, “The Best Intentions: Kofi Annan and the U.N. in the Era of American

                            World Power.”  Carnegie Council, Nov. 16, 2006. http://www.cceia.org/resources/transcripts/5406.html 

Jan. 31            The Secretary-General

                        All read:

                        Mingst and Karns, Ch. 3, pp. 72-80

                        Smith, Politics and Process, Ch. 4

                        Individual assignments:

                        Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, “The Role of the UN Secretary-General,” from United

    Nations, Divided World edited by Roberts and Kingsbury (1993) Reserve

                        Ian Johnstone, “The Role of the UN Secretary-General:  The Power of

     Persuasion Based on Law,” Global Governance 9:3 (Oct-Dec 2003) Reserve

Shashi Tharoor, “’The most impossible job’ description,” Ch. 2 in Secretary or

    General? Edited by Chesterman, Reserve

Colin Keating, “Selecting the World’s Diplomat,” Ch. 3 in Ibid  Reserve

Ian Johnstone, “The Secretary-General as Norm Entrepreneur,” Ch. 7 in Ibid Res

Adekeye Adebajo, “Pope, pharaoh, or prophet?  The Secretary-General after the

    Cold War,” Ch. 8 in Ibid   Reserve

James Traub, “The Secretary-General’s political space,” Ch. 10 in Ibid  Reserve

                        Richard Smith, “Ban Ki Moon: Alone at the Top of the World,”  Newsweek,

            Oct, 27, 2007, http://www.globalpolicy.org/secgen/ban/2007/1027alone.htm 

Feb. 5              The UN as an Bureaucracy

                        Barnett and Finnemore, “International Organizations as Bureaucracies,” Ch. 2

                        In Rules for the World (2004) Reserve 

Feb. 7-12         The Dynamics and Politics of the UN

                        Smith, Politics and Process, Chs. 7-9 

Feb. 14            The UN and State Compliance

                        Smith, Ch. 10

                        Michael Byers, “Agreeing to Disagree:  Security Council Resolution 1441 and

    Intentional Ambiguity, Global Governance 10:2 (Apr-June 2004), Reserve 

Feb. 19            Midterm Exam 

Feb. 21           The UN and the Maintenance of International Peace and Security: Overview

                        All:  Mingst/Karns, Ch. 4

        Charter, Chapters VI, VII, VIII

                        Individual Assignments:

                        Alexandros Yannis, “The UN as Government in Kosovo,” Global Governance 

    10:1 (Jan-Mar 2004), Reserve

Barnett Rubin and Bruce Jones, “Prevention of Violent Conflict:  Tasks and

    Challenges for the UN,” Global Governance 13:3 (July-Sept 2007), Reserve 

Feb. 26            Case Study:  Peacekeeping  and the Challenges of Bosnia

                        GUISD Case #241:  “The Dutch in Srebrenica: A Noble Mission Fails.”

                        Jane Boulden, “Mandates Matter:  an Exploration of Impartiality in United

    Nations Operations,”  Global Governance 11:2 (Apr-June 2005), Reserve 

Feb. 28-Mar 4 Case Study:  Never Again?  The UN and Rwanda

                        Barnett, Eyewitness to Genocide, ALL                       

Mar. 6-13        Case Study:  The Security Council and Iraq

                        David Malone, The International Struggle over Iraq:  Politics in the UN Security

                            Council 1980- 2005  ALL

                        Mats Berdal, “The UN after Iraq,” Survival 46:3 (Autumn 2004), Reserve 

                        Spring Break 

Mar. 25-27      TBA 

Apr. 1-8           The UN and Development

                        Mingst/Karns, Ch. 5

Richard Jolly, Louis Emmerij, and Thomas Weiss, UN Contributions to   

    Development Thinking  and Practice, ALL

                        Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, “Millennium Development Goals:  Why They Matter,”

                            Global Governance 10:4 (Oct-Dec 2004), Reserve 

Apr. 9              Stander Symposium 

Apr. 10-15       The UN and Human Rights

                        Mingst/Karns, Ch. 6

                        Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro, “Musings of a UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights,”

    Global Governance 9:1 (Jan-Mar 2003), Reserve 

                        Recommended:  Julie Mertus, The United Nations and Human Rights:  A Guide

                        for a New Era (2005), particularly Chs. 2-4  

Apr. 17           The UN, the Environment, and Human Security

                        Mingst/Karns, Ch. 7 

Apr. 22           UN Reform – What should the UN look like in the future?

                       Mingst/Karns, Ch. 8

                      Kofi Annan, “In Larger Freedom: Towards Security, Development, and Human Rights for All” (Executive     

                         Summary). UN: March 21, 2005.  http://www.un.org/largerfreedom/summary.html

                      Anne-Marie Slaughter, Security, Solidarity, and Sovereignty: The Grand Themes of UN Reform.

                           American Journal of International Law, Vol. 99, No. 3. (Jul., 2005), pp. 619-631.

                       Edward Luck, “How Not to Reform the United Nations,” Global Governance

    11:4 (Oct-Dec 2005), Reserve

Satyabrata Pal, “A Perspective on UN Reform,” in The UN at 60 edited by Garth    

    le Pere and Nhamo Samasuwo (2006), Reserve 

Key Resource:  Global Policy Forum  http://www.globalpolicy.org/reform/index.htm 

Apr. 24           Ellen Laipson, “The United Nations in 2015:  Some Alternative Futures,”

Stimson Center Workshop Summary, August 2006, http://www.stimson.org/pub.cfm?ID=321

Friday, May 2  10:10 - 12:00  FINAL EXAM