Political Science (101): Associations & Organizations

Also refer to the" Websites" tab in this guide.

Selected Associations & Organizations

• The American Political Science Association
• American Society for Public Administration
• International Political Science Association
• Midwest Political Science Association
• National Governors Association
• The United States Conference of Mayors
• National Conference of State Legislatures

Departments, Institutes, Think Tanks

• Political Science Dept., University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
• Center for Political Studies (University of Michigan)

• Think Tanks:
  • Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) (University of Pennsylvania) - Produces the Global Go-To Think Tank Index and a directory of think tanks
  • Badger Institute (formerly Wisconsin Policy Research Institute, Inc.

United Nations
Below the major UN bodies are listed, but you also can link to these and their many subsidiary entities from the about the UN web page and a UN System Chart., and/or see a profile of the UN from BBC News.

Major UN documents include its Charter (1945), Report of the Secretary-General on the Work of the Organization, and Andersen Library has the Encyclopedia of the United Nations and International Agreements, 3rd ed. (2nd-floor Reference Collection, KZ4968 .O84 2003) and major UN yearbooks, including Yearbook of the United Nations (1946-2007 available online), which is the "principal reference work on the United Nations and provides a detailed overview of the Organization's concerns and activities."

• General Assembly
  • United Nations Development Programme
  • United Nations Environment Programme
  • Listing of Subsidiary Organs of the General Assembly
• Security Council
  • Listing of Subsidiary Organs Branch
• Economic and Social Council
  • Commission for Social Development
  • Listing of Subsidiary Bodies of ECOSOC
• International Court of Justice
• Secretariat

  Headed by the Secretary-General, the Secretariat manages the day-to-day operations of the UN.

• Trusteeship Council - dormant since 1994

Other IGOs:

• African Union
• Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
• Commonwealth of Independent States - former Soviet Republics
• European Union
• Inter-American Development Bank (IADB)
• International Criminal Court

  The United States is not among the countries that are parties to the ICC's Statute. See a summary of the U.S. policy toward the ICC from the State Dept. online.

• League of Arab States
• Organization for Security and Co-Operation in Europe (OSCE)
• Organization of American States (OAS)
• World Trade Organization

See also profiles of international organizations from BBC News and an appendix to the CIA's World Factbook on International Organizations and Groups.

• Amnesty International

  Envisioning "every person to enjoy all the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards," AI actively campaigns in more than 150 countries and territories to end abuses of human rights.

• Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

  "The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life."

• Doctors Without Borders

  DWB "works in nearly 70 countries providing medical aid to those most in need regardless of their race, religion, or political affiliation."

• Human Rights Watch

  "Dedicated to protecting the human rights of people around the world," HRW investigates and exposes human rights violations.

• The Hunger Project

  The Hunger Project is a "global, non-profit, strategic organization committed to the sustainable end of world hunger," operating in 11 countries in Africa, South Asia and Latin America.

• Greenpeace

  Greenpeace's goal is "to ensure the ability of the earth to nurture life in all its diversity."

• Nature Conservancy

  The Nature Conservancy is active in more than 30 countries "to protect ecologically important lands and waters fs nature and people."

• Open Society Foundations

  The Foundations "work to build vibrant and tolerant democracies whose governments are accountable and open to the participation of all people."

• Oxfam International

  "Oxfam is an international confederation of 17 organizations networked together in more than 90 countries, as part of a global movement for change, to build a future free from the injustice of poverty."

• Sierra Club

  Although its primary focus is on the United States, the Sierra Club works with domestic and international partners on its international climate policy and other issues.

• Transparency International

  Works to "create change towards a world free from corruption," and provides resources on the subject, publishing a variety of corruption indices and research.

• World Wildlife Fund

  WWF's vision is "to save a planet, a world of life" by practicing conservation that reconciles the needs of humans and others that share the planet.

Would you like to find more?

• Charity Navigator (create account to see some information, e.g., IRS filings)
• Search the NGO database at Duke University Libraries (Those included in the database refect the interests of Duke researchers.).
• Browse the List of non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council as of 1 September 2018. An explanation of the statuses is available from the NGO Branch of the UN Dept. of Economic and Social Affairs, as well as a searchable database of "Civil Society Organizations."

Please refer to Andersen Library's guide for Government Resources.

Think before you use these! Read: "What to think about think tanks?" (National Public Radio) and "FAIR Study: Think tank spectrum 2012" (Fariness & Accuracy in Reporting).

See also Think Tanks links on the "Associations & Organizations" tab in this guide.

IGOs are political bodies created by states for carrying out specified tasks for their mutual benefit.

NGOs are not-for-profit organizations that are institutionally separate from government. They vary widely in goals and sources of support, but most attempt to influence government policy by setting agendas, participating in negotiations, conferring legitimacy on or publicly contesting government actions, and implementing programs. Many are concerned with social change. Some are closely tied to business interests.