The United Nations is an imperfect yet unique model of international cooperation. The UN provides aid to developing nations, peacekeeping in troubled areas, awareness of human rights violations, and a world court. It remains fifty-seven years after its inception in 1945. Unlike the League of Nations which had less international support and subsequently disbanded, the United Nations appears to have enough, although sometimes wavering, commitment from the major world powers to continue for years to come. Some limitations inhibit the effectiveness of United Nations’ operations. Yet, the United Nations continues to operate in the world community. The success and limitations of the United Nations’ model and experiences provides excellent material for teachers and students to examine international relations, globalization, the world economy, world cultures, diplomacy, and conflict resolution. The imperfection of the United Nations may draw criticism. However, it also lends itself to questions and discussion in the classroom on how the international community can collectively resolve problems. Pregnant questions regarding the purpose and role of the United Nations can drive general discussion or act as a launching pad for more in-depth study. Has the UN made the world a better place? What has the UN been effective at? How could the UN be more effective? What limits the UN from being more effective? Under what conditions do you think the powers of the world would support making the UN more powerful and effective? What should individual countries have to contribute in order to make the UN more effective? Does the survival of the UN owe itself to UN effectiveness? Or, does the specter of unprecedented destruction in a world war keep the world community interested in the UN? What challenges will the UN face in the near future? How effective has the United Nations been in performing a peacekeeping role and resolving conflict in the international community? All of the above questions may serve as driving questions in looking at the United Nations and international relations. This unit will inevitably nibble at some of these questions. However, the primary focus, will aim at the peacekeeping role that the UN has played in attempting to resolve conflict and maintain peace. By investigating conflict resolution and peacekeeping, students will examine and critique a framework that they may be able to internalize and apply to their experiences as an adolescent and an adult.
Certainly the world is much different than the world that rejected the League of Nations. The fall of the Soviet Empire seems to have opened the door for the ascension of the UN to prominence in managing world affairs. Yet, the specter of old problems in the Balkans and the Middle East continues to challenge the UN. The emergence of new problems such as world terrorism and reactions to terrorism are straining international relations. The proliferation of technology, world population boom, and the growing demands of developing nations will continue to pose challenges to the world community. Can the UN effectively help resolve these issues?