Confronting Global Issues

Confronting Global IssuesHow effectively do international organizations respond to global issues?

Vocabulary

Glossary Vocabulary Cards

intergovernmental organization (IGO)

nongovernmental organization (NGO)

collective security

sustainable development

convention

global climate change

protocol

Introduction

C O N F R O N T I N G G L O B A L I...

© 2020 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

Foreign nations used air supplydrops to distribute aid to Haitifollowing the 2010 earthquake.

On January 12, 2010, a disastrous earthquake hit Haiti, toppling major towns andtriggering a series of aftershocks. Homes, hospitals, power lines, and roads weredestroyed. 100,000 died, and millions were left injured and homeless. As one ofthe most impoverished nations in the Western Hemisphere, Haiti did not have theresources to deal with this emergency alone. But help was soon on the way fromall parts of the globe.

Governments and organizations around the world pledged around $4 billion to aidearthquake survivors and rebuild Haiti. Some of this money supported reliefefforts organized by intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), which are formedby the governments of many countries. The largest IGO is the United Nations(UN). Within hours of the tragedy, workers with UNICEF, the UN Children’s Fund,shipped emergency supplies to devastated areas. “The devastation is staggering,”reported Léo Mérorès, the Ambassador of Haiti to the UN. “UNICEF teams areworking assiduously in the country.”


Level: A © 2020 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

Private donors large and small also contributed to the relief efforts. Americanbusinesses donated everything from drinking water and medical supplies toclothing and cash. Much of the money was funneled through humanitarian groupsthat work independently of governments. These nongovernmentalorganizations (NGOs) receiving funds included the Red Cross, CARE, andOxfam.

In the fall of 2016, another hurricane, Hurrican Matthew, hit Haiti, Cuba, and theBahamas before gradually weakening and dissipating. Haiti, which was stillreceiving aid for recovery from the earthquake of 2010, experienced widespreaddestruction. The UN once more sought funds aid the Haitian survivors.

When faced with the consequences of these disasters, the world has shown itswillingness to assist countries during times of emergency. But what about long-term problems like poverty, disease, and climate change? This lesson exploreshow international organizations are attempting to deal with these and other difficultglobal issues.

A meeting of the UN GeneralAssembly brings togetherrepresentatives from almostevery country on Earth. Theassembly meets in regularsession from September toDecember each year.Representatives wearheadphones that allow them tohear simultaneous translations ofthe speaker’s words into theirown language.



1. The United NationsWith a membership of 193 nations, the United Nations represents almost everynation in the world. Since it was founded in 1945, it has become the forum fordebating every major issue facing humankind. UN agencies like UNICEFcoordinate efforts to deal with short-term crises, like the 2010 Haiti earthquake.The UN also focuses its attention on tougher, longerterm issues ranging frompeacekeeping to poverty.

The Founding of the United Nations Bloody conflicts have taken place acrossmuch of world history. After World War I, with its nearly 40 million casualties,many countries wanted to move away from resolving their disputes on thebattlefield. The League of Nations was formed in 1920 to serve as an internationalpeacekeeper. 44 nations joined from the start, and at its peak membership mid-1930s, there were 58 members. However, the United States never joined, and theSoviet Union was only briefly a member. Germany and Japan both left the leaguein 1933, followed by Italy in 1937. The League of Nations failed to prevent WorldWar II—Germany invaded Poland as a non-member. In 1945, as World War IIwas ending, 50 countries joined together to form a more robust intergovernmentalorganization, the United Nations.

The founding countries adopted a constitution for the new IGO known as theUnited Nations Charter. The Preamble to the UN Charter identifies four maingoals for the UN:

to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice inour lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankindto reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of thehuman person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations largeand smallto establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligationsarising from treaties and other sources of international law can bemaintainedto promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom.

The UN Charter established several organs, or bodies, to accomplish its goals:the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council,the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the Secretariat.The General Assembly is the most democratic UN organ. Representatives from



all member states, each have one vote. Problems that arise anywhere in theworld can be brought to this body. The General Assembly responds by passingresolutions that are taken seriously by member states.

The Security Council is the most powerful UN organ. The council is made up offive permanent members—the United States, Russia, Great Britain, China, andFrance—and ten members elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms.This body is responsible for maintaining international peace.

The UN’s Main Activity: Keeping the World at Peace The most importantactivity of the UN is peacekeeping. At the end of 2018, some 110,000 UNpeacekeepers were carrying out a total of 14 missions in 13 countries.

The UN has no permanent peacekeeping force—no standing army of its own. Itdepends on member states to provide troops if called upon. This system is basedon the principle of collective security. This principle calls for the uniting ofindividual countries against an aggressor in order to, as the UN Charter says,“maintain international peace and security.”

Typically, peacekeeping involves sending lightly armed soldiers to the site of aconflict—but only after the two sides have formally agreed to stop fighting. UNpeacekeepers, easily identified by their blue helmets, often position themselvesbetween hostile forces. By providing a buffer zone, or neutral area, thepeacekeepers help the two sides maintain their peace agreement. UNpeacekeepers work under orders not to fire their weapons except in self-defense.On missions to dangerous hotspots, however, they may use their weapons todefend civilians and UN personnel.

On rare occasions, the Security Council has authorized the use of armed forceagainst a country that has broken the peace. In 1950, for example, a UN forcemade up of troops from 16 nations helped South Korea push back an invadingarmy from North Korea. The UN took a similar action in 1991 after Iraq invaded itsneighbor Kuwait.

The United Nations is also a key player in efforts to halt the spread of nuclearweapons. Nearly all UN members are party to the 1968 Nuclear Non- ProliferationTreaty. Only four member states are not: India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea.

The UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency conducts inspections to verify thatcountries are complying with the nonproliferation treaty. In July 2006, the UNSecurity Council took steps to discourage Iran from producing nuclear weapons



and thus violating the treaty. The council imposed sanctions on Iran that bannedthe shipment of materials or technology used for nuclear activities to that country.In 2015, sanctions on Iran were lifted in favor of the Joint Comprehensive Plan ofAction, otherwise known as the Iran nuclear deal. This deal would force Iran tochange its nuclear program according to the UN’s stated constraints. In 2018,however, the U.S. withdrew from the deal, reenforcing sanctions which aimed toalter Iranian policies.

Other UN Activities: Improving People’s Lives Besides peacekeeping, theUN works to improve the lives of people around the world. UN agencies andprograms have, for many years, devoted their resources toward issues of poverty,education, health, and human rights. The UN has also been a champion ofsustainable development. This approach to economic development focuses onways to meet the needs of the world’s people today without exhausting theresources that will be needed to sustain future generations. Even so, as the 20thcentury drew to an end, more than a billion people worldwide were living on lessthan $1 a day.

In 2000, the UN hosted one of the largest gathering of world leaders in history todiscuss the role of the United Nations in the 21st century. The leaders of over 189countries signed an agreement known as the Millennium Declaration. Thisdocument committed members of the UN to “free our fellow men, women, andchildren from the abject and dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty.” Toreach this objective, the Millennium Declaration laid out a list of goals to bereached by the year 2015:

1. Eradicate extreme hunger and poverty. Reduce by half the number ofpeople living on less than $1 per day.

2. Achieve universal primary school education.3. Promote gender equality and empower women. Eliminate barriers that

keep women from receiving an education.4. Reduce child mortality. Cut the death rate of children under five by two-

thirds.5. Improve maternal health. Reduce the death rate of mothers by three-

fourths.6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases.7. Ensure environmental sustainability. Reverse the loss of environmental

resources, and cut by half the number of people without safe drinkingwater.

8. Develop a global partnership for development. Address poor countries’



need for good government, debt relief, economic growth, and jobs foryoung people.

After the creation of the Millennium Declaration, the UN launched a number ofprojects to achieve these ambitious goals. Projects in places such as India andEthiopia helped contribute—the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange, for example,arranged ways for farmers and exporters to trade. By 2015, the poverty rate indeveloping regions was 14 percent, a decline of about 50 percent in 1990. Goal 1,halving hunger and poverty rates, was more than reached.

There has also been progress made toward Goal 5, improving maternal health.As part of the effort to attain this goal, The United Nations Population Fund, whichaddresses sexual and reproductive health, trained doctors to treat childbirthcomplications. Access to skilled help was on the rise, and between 1990 and2015, the maternal mortality ratio declined by 45 percent worldwide.

Although HIV/AIDs and malaria are still serious threats around the globe, therehave been significant efforts to stop them from spreading. In December of 2015,access to antiretroviral therapy for people living with HIV had increased to 17



million people, compared to 7.5 million in 2010. AIDS-related deaths havedecreased by almost 50 percent since 2005.

The global community made great progress toward its target of cutting thenumber of people without safe drinking water in half as 2015 approached.Programs, such as the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia,helped monitor water supply and sanitation in developing regions. North Africa,East Asia, Southeast Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean had mostly met thegoal by 2010.

The Millennium Development Goals were not fully reached. However, efforts byorganizations around the world helped developing countries make great stridestoward meeting the 2015 targets. And as 2015 was drawing to a close, the UNadopted a new sustainable development agenda that outlines new goals to meetby 2030.



All members of the UN areassessed dues based on theirability to pay. For 2018, theUnited States’ dues wereassessed at over $591 million,the most any country paid thatyear. This made up 22 percent ofthe total UN budget, which is themaximum any one country canbe assessed. The smallestpercentage a country can beassessed is 0.001 percent of thebudget.

The Limitations of the UN The United Nations has helped to make the world asafer, more livable place. Yet, critics often point out that the UN has not fullyresolved many of the issues that it has tackled. Poverty, human rights abuses,war, and environmental destruction still persist, they say, in spite of decades ofattention from the UN. One reason for this is the sheer size and complexity ofthese problems. They are the most difficult issues facing the global community.However, there are other factors that limit what the UN can accomplish.

One is the reluctance of the world’s nations to cede any of their nationalsovereignty to the UN. Most resolutions approved by the General Assembly orSecurity Council lack enforcement. In general, only decisions related to collectivesecurity are legally binding on all members. Moreover, the UN’s lack of a standingarmy means it must rely on member states to carry out peacekeeping missions.



Another factor is the structure of the Security Council. The five permanentmembers have the power to veto any action by the council. As these nations oftenhave different foreign policy agendas, it is sometimes difficult for the UN to reacteffectively to problems.

In the 1990s and 2000s, the UN was rocked with corruption scandals andcharges of mismanagement and waste. This led many to question whether the UNcan be trusted to deal with important global issues. Reform efforts began, butchange was slow. In November of 2018, the UN announced a new website andhiring effort that addressed multiple facets of reforming the UN: development,management, and peace and security.

Despite some limitations, the UN has made progress in many areas. Because ofthe UN’s world health programs, diseases that once plagued the world, such assmallpox and polio, have been eliminated or greatly reduced. Every year, the UNWorld Food Programme helps feed tens of millions of people in countries aroundthe world. As Kofi Annan, who served as secretary general of the United Nationsfrom 1997 to 2006, has observed, “More than ever before in human history, weshare a common destiny. We can master it only if we face it together. And that,my friends, is why we have the United Nations.”

2. Intergovernmental OrganizationsYou have probably heard it said that there is strength in numbers. What anindividual country cannot do alone, it might be able to do with the help of othercountries. The United States understood this well when it joined the Allies in theirstruggle to defeat the Axis powers in World War II. An intergovernmentalorganization (IGO) is a type of alliance, though it need not be military in nature.



NATO, the North Atlantic TreatyOrganization, is headquartered inBrussels, Belgium. Thisintergovernmental militaryalliance contains 29 countriesspread throughout Europe andNorth America.

Promoting International Cooperation Through IGOs Through IGOs, groupsof nations cooperate to achieve common objectives. Those objectives vary fromone organization to another, ranging from mutual defense to free trade.

Some IGOs share economic interests. For example, the Organization of thePetroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is made up of 15 oilproducing countries.They have joined together to create a stable market for oil at the best possibleprice for OPEC members. Trade promotion is the objective of other economicIGOs. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), for instance,removed trade barriers among Canada, the United States, and Mexico creating alarge free-trade zone.

Other IGOs are formed to serve the security interests of their members. The



countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) share militaryresources and strategies for protecting their region. ANZUS is another IGO thatcreates military ties among the countries of Australia, New Zealand, and theUnited States.

Still other IGOs focus on political as well as economic issues. The African Union(AU) promotes democracy and sustainable development among its members. TheAU has also taken on peacekeeping duties in Africa. Similarly, the Association ofSoutheast Asian Nations (ASEAN) promotes regional peace and stability whileencouraging economic, social, and cultural development.

The UN has formed its own specialized agencies and programs that areconsidered IGOs. The World Bank, the International Atomic Energy Agency, andthe World Health Organization are all IGOs with links to the UN.

The 15 oil-producing countries inthe Organization for thePetroleum Exporting Countries(OPEC) determine what priceswould best stabilize the oilmarket. Members of OPEC oftenwork together to make decisionsabout the oil industry.

IGOs Have Strengths and Limitations Intergovernmental organizations wouldnot exist if they did not provide definite benefits to their member countries. IGOsmake it easier for nations to share resources, expand trade, and increase nationalsecurity. They can also be helpful in coordinating responses to natural disasters.

However, membership in an IGO can have its downsides. The need to get amajority of members to support a decision may slow an IGO’s response to



pressing problems. Once a decision is made, each member is expected to abideby it. At times, those decisions may conflict with a nation’s foreign policy ornational interests. Going along with the majority may mean surrendering a bit ofnational sovereignty or the power to act independently.

The question of how much power to give up to an IGO has become an issue indebates over the International Criminal Court (ICC). Founded in 2002, the ICC isan independent court presently headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands. Itspurpose is to prosecute individuals accused of crimes against humanity, such asgenocide, ethnic cleansing, and aggression. The ICC can exercise its jurisdictiononly when national courts are unwilling or unable to prosecute such crimes. By2018, 28 cases had been brought before the court.

By the end of 2018, 123 countries had joined the ICC. Several other countries,however—including China, India, and the United States—had not joined.Opposition in the United States centered on fears that the ICC might be misusedto bring politically motivated charges against U.S. leaders and troops serving inother countries.

One U.S. senator summed up his concerns in these words:

It is no secret that the majority of UN peacekeeping operations are conducted incountries that are non-democratic and whose leaders are hostile to U.S. policies.Leaving our leaders, troops, and personnel vulnerable to arrest and use aspolitical pawns would be a colossal mistake.

—Jon Kyl. (R-AZ), 2004

U.S. supporters of the ICC, however, dismiss fears of the ICC targeting the U.S.in any unjust way. As one editorial put it when the ICC was first founded,

The court has no jurisdiction over an alleged war criminal if the suspect’s homecountry conducts a genuine investigation into the allegations. U.S. peace-keepershave been accused of war crimes in the past, but never prosecuted . . . Inaddition, prosecutors would have to obtain the permission of a three-judge courtto even initiate an investigation of U.S. forces.

—St. Louis Post-Dispatch , July 2, 2002



Many NGOs focus on helpingpeople in developing countries. Inthis photo, students in Kenyaattend computer class at a schoolsupported by Wema Centre, anNGO. The program is intended torehabilitate homeless andotherwise vulnerable children.

3. Nongovernmental OrganizationsAnother important player on the international scene is the nongovernmentalorganization (NGO). Generally, NGOs tackle problems that governments, throughforeign aid or IGOs, cannot deal with as effectively. For this reason, governmentsand IGOs often look to NGOs for assistance in dealing with everything fromhealth care to economic development.

NGOs Tackle a Host of Global Problems There are now an estimated 10million NGOs worldwide, with approximately 1.5 million operating in the UnitedStates. Most NGOs are nonprofit organizations. Their funding comes from privatedonors, such as individuals, corporations, and foundations. Funding also comesfrom official sources: governments and IGOs. All these funders believe in theability of NGOs to help solve global problems.

NGOs vary greatly in size and purpose. The largest deal with a single issue.Amnesty International, for example, focuses on abuses of human rights and theplight of political prisoners. Save the Children is dedicated to making a differencein the lives of poor children and their families worldwide.

Many NGOs help people in the world’s least developed countries (LDCs).



These are the 50 or so countries with the lowest per capita incomes and livingstandards. NGO staff members in these countries make connections with localleaders and educate themselves about the needs of the people. They often take ahands-on approach to delivering assistance, whether that involves teaching,providing medical care, or caring for victims of a natural disaster.

Disaster relief is the purpose of other NGOs like the International Committee ofthe Red Cross. When Hurricane Matthew struck Haiti in 2016, some NGOs werealready “on the ground” in the affected areas. They were able to act as a bridgethat linked victims with outside sources of relief. They helped evacuate people toshelters and to pinpoint the worst-hit areas in order to direct the distribution ofsupplies accordingly.

NGOs serve another purpose. They provide valuable information and analyses togovernments about global issues. Like other interest groups, they may lobbygovernment officials to influence decisions on global issues that matter to them,such as foreign aid and sustainable development.

Some NGOs define their purpose as advocacy, or speaking out on their areas ofconcern. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines is an advocacy networkof more than 1,400 NGOs in over 100 countries. These groups are working to endthe production and use of land mines. Compassion International is a ChristianNGO that advocates for children living in poverty by allowing people to sponsorindividual children’s lives.

How One NGO Has Evolved: CARE CARE was founded in 1945 as ahumanitarian relief agency to help survivors of World War II. The new NGO sentmillions of CARE packages containing food, supplies, and medicine to war-ravaged Europe. Since then, CARE has evolved into one of the world’s largestNGOs. Its mission also changed from helping victims of war to assisting people inneed anywhere in the world. “Every CARE Package is a personal contribution tothe world peace our nation seeks,” said President John F. Kennedy in 1962. “Itexpresses America’s concern and friendship in a language all peoplesunderstand.”

Today, CARE is engaged in long-term projects aimed at reducing global poverty.These projects include efforts to improve basic education, prevent HIV/ AIDS,increase access to clean water, boost economic opportunity, and promoteenvironmental awareness. In 2017, CARE’s work affected the lives of some 63million people in 93 countries.



CARE is one of the many NGOsproviding relief to people living inpoverty-stricken countries. Attimes, CARE works with otherorganizations to address globalissues. Here, CARE workersdistribute food aid provided by theWorld Food Programme to thepeople of Burundi.

CARE continues to provide emergency aid to victims of war, famine, and naturaldisasters. After conflict erupted in the Darfur region of Sudan in 2003, forexample, CARE supplied humanitarian aid. In 2018, CARE was providing food,water, and medical care to nearly half a million refugees from the Darfur conflict.

In addition, CARE worked to end the conflict in Sudan. It met with governmentleaders in the United States and Europe to suggest ways their governments mightpromote peace and stability in this region. It also brought representatives ofdifferent ethnic groups together in “peace committees” to help rebuild trust amongthem. “A sustainable solution will have to involve ordinary people at thecommunity level,” observed a CARE official, “living together and sharing limitedresources.”

What NGOs Do Well and Not So Well NGOs like CARE take a hands-onapproach to problems. They understand the needs of the people “at the grassroots.” With that kind of relationship, they can effectively make the case togovernments and donors that their concerns deserve attention and funding.

NGOs are also flexible. This makes them natural “first responders” to naturaldisasters such as Hurricane Matthew. Often, NGOs are able to bring help tosurvivors much faster than government relief agencies or IGOs. At the same time,NGOs frequently lack the personnel and resources to carry out large-scale, long-



term relief efforts. Governments and large IGOs like the UN are better organizedand funded for rebuilding efforts.

When a number of NGOs respond to an emergency, they may have issuescoordinating their efforts. Each group may try to attack a problem from a differentangle, depending on its resources and expertise. Without an overarching plan,they may find themselves duplicating efforts or getting in each other’s way. This iswhere the UN can help. The UN is large enough to provide an effective plan ofaction and coordinate the work of a number of NGOs.

Individual NGOs working in foreign countries face other obstacles to theireffectiveness. One is corruption. Throughout the world, many public officials willnot provide needed documents or take official action without a bribe. Anotherobstacle is civil unrest. In some LDCs, the government may not be able tomaintain law and order. Working in an area of civil unrest is dangerous. Warringfactions may make conflicting demands of NGO staff members. In such situations,staff members must be skilled at negotiation to keep their projects going—andsometimes simply to stay alive.

NGOs have been established to serve a variety of goals and purposes. The threefeatured here are a tiny sample of the NGOs at work on projects around theglobe.



4. Protecting Human RightsIn 2006, Zmitser Dashkevich and some friends took part in a peaceful protestagainst the government. No big deal, right? Except that the protest occurred inBelarus, a former republic of the Soviet Union that has resisted democraticreform. Police arrested Dashkevich and charged him with “organizing orparticipating in an activity of an unregistered non-governmental organization.”After a closed-door trial, Dashkevich was sentenced to 18 months in prison.Where could he turn for help? The answer was one of the NGOs that focus onhuman rights.

Defining the Basic Rights of All Human Beings The basic rights that allhuman beings should enjoy are defined in a landmark UN document known asthe Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The declaration includes many rightsand freedoms that are familiar to any student of the U.S. Constitution. Theseinclude the rights to life, liberty, and equal protection under the law. They alsoinclude social and economic rights, including the right to work, own property, getan education, and enjoy a decent standard of living.

Adopted by the General Assembly in 1948, the Universal Declaration of HumanRights is nonbinding. Such is not the case with two related documents, theInternational Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenanton Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. A covenant is a legally bindingagreement. Together with the Universal Declaration, the covenants form what theUN calls the International Bill of Human Rights.



These teenagers are protestingthe arrest of Chinese artist andcivil rights activist, Ai Weiwei. Ai,a vocal critic of China’sgovernment, was arrested in2011 for alleged “economiccrimes.” Upon his arrest, NGOssuch as the International Councilof Museums petitioned for hisrelease.

Defending Civil and Political Rights The vast majority of UN members haveratified both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and theInternational Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. A number ofNGOs are working to see that they keep their word.

One of them, Amnesty International, took up Zmitser Dashkevich’s cause. Arguingthat the young man’s rights to free assembly and speech had been violated, theNGO started a campaign to free him from prison. Members of AmnestyInternational around the world flooded the Belarus government with lettersdemanding Dashkevich’s release. In the past, such letter-writing campaigns haveshortened the sentences of many “prisoners of conscience.”

The letters on behalf of Dashkevich were part of Amnesty’s “Make Some Noise”campaign. The purpose of the campaign is to show human rights violators that theworld is watching and that further abuses will also be exposed. Probably due tointernational pressure, Dashkevich was released early in 2008. However, he wasarrested again in 2011 for alleged assault. Many said that he was innocent,arguing that his arrest was used to prevent him from protesting the reelection ofBelarus’s president. These claims, in addition to the fact that he was mistreated inprison, inspired Amnesty International to carry out another campaign. The



organization again asked people to write appeal letters calling for Dashkevich’srelease. He completed his sentence and was released in 2013.

Defining the Rights of Children In addition to the International Bill of HumanRights, the UN has created agreements called conventions aimed at protectingthe rights of specific groups. There are conventions dealing with the rights ofwomen, minorities, disabled persons, and other vulnerable groups, includingchildren.

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child spells out the basic human rightsthat children everywhere have. Among these rights are the right to life, survival,and protection from abuse and exploitation. The convention addresses childlabor, saying,

Parties recognize the right of the child to be protected fromeconomic exploitation and from performing any work that is likely tobe hazardous or to interfere with the child’s education, or to beharmful to the child’s health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral orsocial development.

—UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted Nov. 20, 1989

Enforcing this right, however, has been difficult. In many countries, children areemployed in mines, in factories, and on farms at a young age. Families send theirchildren to work because they need the money to survive. Employers hire childrenbecause they can pay them less than adult workers and because children may beeasier to control.

Some countries have been slow to enact or enforce laws protecting child workersfor fear of hurting their economies. As a result, many of the nearly 220 million childlaborers worldwide work full time, often in unhealthy conditions. Most get noschooling.



Nearly 220 million childrenworldwide work to supportthemselves and their families.This boy is working at a factory inBangladesh. Although laws inBangladesh and many othercountries prohibit or regulatechild labor, these laws are oftenpoorly enforced.

Ending Child Labor Abuses The UN is working with NGOs to encouragegovernments to pass stricter laws against employing children, to investigateemployers who exploit children, and to improve access to education for childrenwho do work. One such NGO is Human Rights Watch, an organization thatinvestigates human rights abuses around the world.

In 2007, Human Rights Watch shone its spotlight on child labor abuses in theAfrican nation of Guinea. It reported that thousands of girls as young as eightworked in near-slave conditions as household servants. Many were forced tolabor up to 18 hours a day, often without pay. This and other similar reports byHuman Rights Watch influenced the International Labor Organization to adopt atreaty in 2011 geared towards improving domestic and child labor laws.

WE Charity, formerly known as Free the Children, is one of the largest youth-serving organization in North America. WE takes a different approach, fightingchild labor by giving parents the farm animals, tools, and machinery they need tosupport their families while sending their children to school. WE Charity also helpspoor villages build schools and meet their basic health care needs. As of 2018,this NGO had built more than 1,500 schools around the world, providing educationto more than 200,000 children.



5. Tackling Environmental Issues: AFocus on Climate ChangeFor many years, the UN and a variety of NGOs have worked to bringenvironmental issues to the world’s attention. They have often expressed theirposition in dramatic terms. In the 1990s, a group of scientists issued this alarmingwarning of trouble ahead:

Human beings and the natural world are on a collision course.Human activities inflict harsh and often irreversible damage on theenvironment and on critical resources. If not checked, many of ourcurrent practices put at serious risk the future that we wish forhuman society and the plant and animal kingdoms, and may soalter the living world that it will be unable to sustain life in themanner that we know. Fundamental changes are urgent if we are toavoid the collision our present course will bring about.

—Union of Concerned Scientists, “Warning to Humanity,” 1992



This graph shows the changes inthe global average temperatureand the concentrations of carbondioxide in the atmosphere. Whenthe data are compared, Earth’stemperature correlates to howmuch carbon dioxide is in the air.This shows that carbon dioxidecauses a rise in air temperature

Some Environmental Successes and a New Challenge The Union ofConcerned Scientists is one of the many international environmental groups thathave worked to reduce air and water pollution, save endangered species,preserve the world’s rainforests, and protect unspoiled places. As a result of thesegroups’ efforts, many governments have taken steps to limit damage to theenvironment. In addition, people worldwide are much more aware ofenvironmental issues than they were a few decades ago.

The latest environmental challenge confronting the world is global climatechange. This term refers to variations in Earth’s overall climate over periods oftime ranging from years to millions of years. Natural processes, such as volcaniceruptions and variations in the intensity of the sunlight reaching Earth, can causeclimate change.

Scientists argue that human activities, mainly the burning of fossil fuels, arecausing a global warming of Earth’s climate. They say that Earth’s temperatureis rising as the result of a process known as the greenhouse effect. Gases in theatmosphere, such as carbon dioxide, act like panes of glass in a greenhouse byletting energy from the sun pass through the atmosphere to warm the surface ofEarth. But they do not let all of that heat radiate back through the atmosphere into



space. The gases absorb some of the heat and keep it trapped in theatmosphere. At natural levels, the greenhouse effect is beneficial-without it,Earth’s average temperature would be about 60 degrees Fahrenheit cooler, toocold to sustain life.

However, human activity generates additional greenhouse gases, which magnifiesthe greenhouse effect and causes greater warming. Since humanindustrialization, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has beenincreasing at unprecedented levels.

The rate of global warming has nearly doubled since 1975. Further warming couldcause significant melting of mountain glaciers and polar ice sheets. This meltdownwould release an enormous amount of water into the oceans, causing a rise insea levels. As seas rise, low-lying islands and coastal areas are likely to beflooded. Rising temperatures are also likely to change weather patterns. Someregions might suffer famine caused by floods or droughts.

Many countries from all over theworld continue to come togetherin hopes of slowing or stoppingthe effects of climate change.Here, leaders attend the UnitedNations COP 24 conference onclimate change.

International Efforts to Slow Climate Change The United Nations hasresponded to the challenge of climate change in two ways. The first is bysponsoring research on climate change by its Intergovernmental Panel onClimate Change (IPCC). This group, made up of leading climate experts, hasbeen researching the issue since 1988.



The UN has also sponsored a number of conferences focused on climate change.A 1992 meeting known as the Earth Summit produced the United NationsFramework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). This internationalenvironmental treaty is aimed at reducing emissions of greenhouse gases tocombat climate change. It set no mandatory limits on greenhouse gas emissionsand contained no enforcement provisions. But it did call for later amendments,called protocols, to set such limits.

A 1997 UN conference held in Kyoto, Japan, resulted in an agreement to setmandatory emission limits. This agreement, known as the Kyoto Protocol, hasbecome much better known than the UNFCCC itself. The Kyoto Protocolcommitted the world’s industrialized nations to making significant cuts in theirgreenhouse gas emissions. Thirty-seven of these nations agreed to reduceemissions to 5 percent below their 1990 levels by 2012. In 2013, these nationsagreed to reduce emissions by 18 percent by 2020.

No binding goals for emission cuts were set for developing countries at the Kyotoconference. Representatives of those countries argued that most of the emissionscame from countries that had already industrialized. They also claimed thatlimiting emissions would unfairly stunt their economic development. As arepresentative from China observed, “In the developed world only two people ridein a car, and yet you want us to give up riding on a bus.”

By 2013, about 190 countries had ratified the Kyoto Protocol. The most notableexception is the United States, which until recently was the top emitter ofgreenhouse gases in the world. President George W. Bush argued that meetingthe emissions reduction target set for the United States in the protocol would hurtthe U.S. economy. He also argued that developing nations, especially China,which now ranks first in annual emissions, should also be forced to acceptmandatory cuts.

An update to the protocol came at the 2015 United Nations Climate ChangeConference, which took place in Paris, France. The UNFCCC adopted the ParisAgreement, which, like the Kyoto Protocol, addressed the global threat of climatechange.

The goal of the Paris Aggreeement was to keep the global temperature rise below2 °C above the pre-industrial levels. The 2 °C maximum warming was based onscientific research that suggested warming above 2 °C, or even 1.5 °C, wouldbring lasting and catastrophic consequences to the environment.



The agreement entered into force in November of 2016, a month after theminimum of 55 countries had accepted it. This included the United States andChina, the nations with the greatest amount of greenhouse gas emissions. InJune of 2017, however, President Trump announced his intention to withdraw theUnited States from the agreement. Trump argued that the Paris Agreement was adisadvantage to United States workers and taxpayers.

U.S. Efforts to Confront Climate Change Although the United States is nolonger party to the Paris Agreement, the global warming challenge can still beconfronted at many levels. In 2012, the Obama administration decided on astandard for cars and light-trucks to reach a fuel efficiency of 54.5 miles pergallon by 2025. This decision also provided funding for research on science andtechnologies related to renewable energy. However, in 2018, the Trumpadministration announced that this standard would be retired, citing high costs forconsumers.

State and local governments have also become active in efforts to slow climatechange. California led the way with the California Global Warming Solutions Act of2006, an ambitious program aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 1990levels by 2020. In 2012, this program was updated to aim for emissions being 80percent less than 1990 levels by 2050. New Mexico promotes wind and solarenergy by providing tax incentive for businesses and individuals. Portland,Oregon, also took action. By 2014, the city had reduced total carbon emissions to14 percent below 1990 levels, and in 2015, Portland adopted a new ClimateAction Plan that outlined new goals to meet by 2030.

Environmental NGOs have been active as well. The Sierra Club’s “Cool Cities”campaign encourages cities to take steps to reduce their carbon dioxideemissions. The Environmental Defense Fund has used “Fight Global Warming”TV ads to educate the public about the urgent nature of the problem. The NaturalResources Defense Council has launched a campaign aimed at cutting electricityuse to reduce the burning of fossil fuels in power plants.



This map shows emissions of carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas, incountries around the world. The United States is one of the largest carbondioxide emitters.

In the private sector, some companies have made efforts to cut greenhouse gasemissions for economic reasons. For example, by replacing refrigerator lights withenergy-efficient light bulbs, Wal-Mart saved $12 million a year. An organizationcalled the Science Based Targets initiative encourages companies to commit tocontributing to decarbonization by helping them set specific targets and takeactions to meet those targets.



Electric cars are an alternative tovehicles that run on fossil fuels.Some states provide taxincentives to individuals whopurchase hybrid or electric cars.

The urgency of addressing climate change was highlighted in October 2018 by anIPCC report prepared as part of the Paris Agreement. The report emphasized thata 1.5 °C increase in global temperatures was enough to have lastingconsequences, such as coral death and drought, and should be set as theincrease to be avoided rather than 2°C. More specifically, the report stated thatmany lasting negative changes to the environment would occur as soon as 2040without efforts like those outlined in the Paris Agreement being extremelysuccessful at preventing the 1.5°C warming.

Americans are still debating how much focus should be on combating climatechange. Some Americans believe that the United States should prioritize climatechange in order to become less reliant on foreign oil. One benefit of energyindependence is that OPEC would have less influence over the price of crude oilin the United States. However, others worry that a focus on climate change willput regulations on businesses and slow down economic growth.

Public and private groups will continue to influence policy on climate change.However, as you have learned, what position the government ultimately takes onissues such as climate change largely depends on the actions of governmentofficials, political parties, interest groups, and public opinion.

SummaryOver the past century, the nations of the world have learned to work together to



confront global issues. Preventing violent conflict is one major concern. Otherproblems include extreme poverty, human rights abuses, and environmentaldestruction. A variety of international organizations are addressing these issueson different levels.

United Nations The UN takes on most major global issues. Its main missionhas always been maintaining world peace. Working with other internationalorganizations, the UN also pursues the goal of improving the lives of the world’speople.

Intergovernmental organizations Nations form IGOs—such as the UN—toachieve common objectives. Those objectives include national security, improvedtrade, and political and economic cooperation.

Nongovernmental organizations NGOs are private, nonprofit groups ofcitizens that tackle problems through people-to-people contacts. The typicalinternational NGO focuses on a single issue, such as poverty, disaster relief,human rights, or health concerns.

Human rights The UN made human rights a global concern when the GeneralAssembly ratified the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. Since then,the UN and a number of NGOs have made it their mission to monitor and reporthuman rights abuses.

Climate Change Most scientists today believe that Earth is warming rapidlybecause of the burning of fossil fuels. Many people believe that global climatechange and the environment are issues that should be on the forefront of ournation’s agenda. However, others worry that prioritizing policies related to climatechange could hurt certain industries.



Documents

Confronting Global Issues