Global community : the role of international organizations in the making of the contemporary world / Akira Iriye.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Iriye, Akira

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Non-governmental organizations.

Physical Description:

ix, 246 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Berkeley : University of California Press, [2002]

Summary:

The "Global Community" is a term we take for granted today. But how did the global community, both as an idea and as a reality, originate and develop over time? Akira Iriye's book examines this concept by looking at the emergence, growth, and activities of international organizations -- both governmental and nongovernmental -- from the end of the nineteenth century to the present. Iriye, one of this country's preeminent historians, proposes a significant rereading of the history of the last fifty years, suggesting that the central influence on the international scene in this period was not the Cold War but rather an expanding web of international interactions. This groundbreaking book, the first systematic study of international organizations by a historian, moves beyond the usual framework for studying international relations -- politics, war, diplomacy, and other interstate affairs -- as it traces the role played by international organizations in determining the shape of the world today.

Iriye's sweeping discussion of international organizations examines multinational corporations, religious organizations, regional communities, transnational private associations, environmental organizations, and other groups to illuminate the evolution and meaning of the global community and global consciousness. His incisive analysis shows that only by understanding the evolution and reach of these organizations can we account for some of the most fascinating international developments of our time.

While states have been preoccupied with their own national interests, such as security and prestige, international organizations have been engaged in promoting cultural exchange, offering humanitarian assistance, extending developmental aid, protecting the environment, and championing human rights. In short, they have helped to make the world a more interdependent and peaceful place. This book, tracing the development of the global community in a truly innovative way, will win a wide readership among those interested in understanding the growing phenomenon of globalization and its meaning for us today. Global Community is based on Iriye's Jefferson Memorial Lecture at the University of California, Berkeley.

Contents:

The origins of global community

The new internationalism

Beyond the cold war

More states, more nonstate actors

The growth of civil society

Toward global community.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0520231279

0520231287

OCLC:

47364053