Comprehensive Study Guide to International Organizations and Globalization

        Course Metadata and Introductory Remarks

• Presenter's Log: The speaker notes that this is the final presentation scheduled for recording for the academic year.

• Cumulative Workload: Prior to this recording, the total accumulated presentation time for the year stands at $18$ hours and $42$ minutes.

• Active Participation Incentive: The instructor offers extra credit to the first student in class to identify the point where the presentations reach a total of $19$ hours.

• Presentation Status: While this is the last recording currently planned, the final calendar has not been set, meaning other presentations could potentially appear later.

• Duration Forecast: The speaker expects this specific session to last for a minimum of at least $10$ minutes.

Essential Question and Framework of International Organizations

• Core Essential Question: How did globalization change international interactions between states since $1900$?

• Historical Scope: While the prompt indicates since $1900$, the focus of many organizations is on developments occurring after the conclusion of World War II.

• Functions of Twentieth-Century Organizations: Since the $1900$s, international organizations have been created to promote:   - Collective security.   - Economic integration.   - Humanitarian aid.   - Environmental preservation.

The First Global Security Attempt: The League of Nations

• Historical Context: The first attempt at such an organization occurred after World War I with the creation of the League of Nations.

• Inspiration: The association was inspired by the United States, although the U.S. never became a member as evidenced by historical maps and the Treaty of Versailles discussions in Unit $7$.

• Definition of the League: It was the first permanent international security organization dedicated specifically to fostering world peace.

• Outcome and Failure: The League is characterized as a failure because it proved unable to prevent the outbreak of World War II.

• Critical Weaknesses and Causes of Failure:   - Lack of Enforcement: The organization possessed no substantive means of enforcing its mandates or resolutions.   - Participation Issues: There was a lack of universal participation among world powers.   - Specific Departures: Germany and Japan both left the organization by $1934$. The Soviet Union also exited in $1934$.   - British Obstruction: Britain refused to ratify the defense program or the defense fund required for the organization's functionality.   - U.S. Isolation: The United States never joined the organization.

The Second Global Security Attempt: The United Nations (UN)

• Formation: The United Nations was established in $1945$.

• Catalysts: It was formed as a response to the devastation of World Wars I and II and the destructive role of nationalism in igniting those conflicts.

• U.S. Involvement: Unlike the League, the United States approved this organization and stepped into the role of a global police force at the conclusion of World War II.

• Objectives: All major powers agreed to participate with the goals of preserving international peace and fostering international cooperation.

• Efficacy: While many wars have occurred since World War II, the speaker notes that there has been no World War since the UN's inception.

• Headquarters: The organization is headquartered in New York City.

• The General Assembly:   - A body where all nations are represented.   - Currently consists of approximately $197$ countries.   - Principles: Each country receives exactly $1$ vote.

• The Security Council:   - This is considered the most significant part of the UN.   - Membership: Contains $15$ total members.   - Permanent Members (P5): There are $5$ permanent members: The United States, the British, French, China, and the Soviet Union (the latter of which is now Russia again).   - Rotating Members: The other $10$ seats rotate membership every $2$ years.   - Voting Protocol: Majority rule is followed unless one of the $5$ permanent members exercises a veto (says "no"). This can result in a failure even if the vote is $14$ to $1$.

Global Economic Institutions and the Bretton Woods System

• Post-War Economic Shift: Since World War II, international economic institutions have initiated an era of global cooperation.

• Bretton Woods Conference ($1944$): Western powers met in Bretton Woods to redefine commercial and financial regulations for the world's industrial states and avoid global economic conflict.

• The International Monetary Fund (IMF):   - Established to help developing nations achieve high growth rates.   - Amed at assisting countries undergoing decolonization after World War II to establish economic stability.

• The World Bank:   - Created to help countries rebuild in the aftermath of World War II.   - Functions by lending money to struggling countries.   - Funding Mechanism: Charter members contribute money, though the percentages contributed are not always equal.

• World Trade Organization (WTO):   - Originally established in $1947$ as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).   - Renamed the World Trade Organization in $1995$.   - Objective: Supports global trade and organizes the methods by which countries conduct international commerce.

Regional Economic Integration and Trading Blocs

• Definition: Regional areas that agree to mutual assistance to protect local interests in the global market.

• Strategic Utility: These blocks help smaller countries leverage assistance from larger countries.

• European Economic Integration:   - First appeared among European states to diminish nationalistic agendas and promote peace.   - Treaty of Rome ($1957$): Signed by $6$ European nations to create the European Economic Community (EEC), also known as the "Common Market."   - EEC Purposes: Eliminate trade barriers like tariffs; promote shared markets, labor forces, and natural resources.

• The European Union (EU):   - Established through the Maastricht Treaty in $1991$.   - Core Goals:     1. Strengthen the democratic legitimacy of institutions.     2. Improve institutional effectiveness.     3. Establish economic and monetary unions.     4. Develop a community social dimension.     5. Establish a common foreign security policy.   - Achievements: Became the world's largest free trade zone. Benefits include no internal trade tariffs, a single passport system for inter-country travel, and shared resources/labor.

• The Euro:   - Introduced in $2002$ as a common currency supported by a central bank.   - While supported, not all EU members use it.

• Challenges to the EU:   - Defenders argue the collective ability to solve economic issues and compete with the U.S. outweighs the loss of individual economic freedom.   - British Departure (Brexit): The British felt "chain-linked" to lesser nations and believed they could build a better system independently; Brexit began in $2016$ and was finalized in $2020$.   - The Great Recession ($2008$): Wealthy EU nations had to bail out poorer members, including Portugal, Spain, Greece, and Italy.

Energy and Other Regional Organizations

• Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC):   - Established in $1960$ to control oil sources.   - Founder Nations: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Iran, and Venezuela.   - Objective: Control the global oil industry by setting standardized production levels and prices.   - Market Share: As of $2016$, these $14$ nations accounted for $45\%$ of the world’s oil.   - The $1973$ Oil Crisis: OPEC halted oil exports to the U.S. and other nations that supported Israel, leading to skyrocketing prices and gas rationing. Rationalization involved license plates: people with odd-numbered plates could get gas on certain days, while even-numbered plates could on others.

• Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN):   - Created to promote economic cooperation, social progress, and peace within the Southeast Asian region.

• Moskior (South American Trading Bloc):   - Established in $1991$ in South America.   - Facilitates the sharing of goods, workers, and currency while seeking deeper regional integration.

• The G20:   - Developed in $1999$ as a group of $20$ countries including both industrial and emerging economies.   - Focus: Developing global responses to international economic crises through frequent meetings and regulations.

Humanitarian and Environmental Organizations

• Scope: These groups focus on assistance for health crises, natural disasters, and the environment rather than just politics or economics.

• World Health Organization (WHO):   - Developed in $1948$ by the United Nations.   - Mission: To prevent, treat, and control outbreaks of infectious diseases.

• Humanitarian Entities:   - Organizations mentioned include the Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, and Amnesty International, which assist people in need of medicine and crisis relief.

• Environmental Advocacy:   - Greenpeace International was created in $1979$ to address global environmental issues.