ABSTRACT
Besides maintaining international peace and security, the Charter of the United Nations commits the organization to international cooperation “in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all” (Article 1). This injunction has become increasingly important in the twenty-first century, as public policy issues have found a shared ground between domestic and international jurisdictions. As a product of globalization and the communications revolution, the diminished monopoly of national governments over all issues touching their citizens’ lives has opened a space for international organizations to become actors in their own right on policies that affect people in many parts of the globe. More than simply the creatures of their founding states, institutions like the United Nations promote their own agenda, organize a world community of supporters for their purposes, marshal large bureaucracies to implement policies, and convene significant world events that cannot be ignored by national governments. International organizations may not yet be “parliaments of man,” but in the twenty-first century, they are far more than cooperative forums in the service of members’ unique national interests.
