Academy for Educational Development (AED) (www.aed.org)

Organization concerned with various social problems around the world, including income inequality and health problems such as AIDS.

American Friends Service Committee (www.afsc.org)

A Quaker organization concerned with humanitarian and social justice issues.

Arms Control, Disarmament and International Security (ACDIS) (www.acdis.uiuc.edu)

An interdisciplinary program at the University of Illinois devoted to international diplomatic affairs and military issues. The site makes available a considerable number of valuable papers and articles.

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (www.carnegieendowment.org)

Non-profit organization dedicated to advancing international cooperation and “active international engagement by the United States.” The website is an excellent source of expert and thought-provoking reports, essays and other material on international political issues and important domestic political developments around the world.

Centre for Defense and International Security Studies (www.cdiss.org)

Britain-based independent organization which studies military affairs and related international political issues. The website provides access to valuable original and external essays and articles.

Chatham House (www.chathamhouse.org.uk)

Also known as the Royal Institute of International Affairs. The site provides free access to many excellent papers on international relations and internal conflicts.

Cold War International History Project (wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=topics.home&topic_id=1409)

This program of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars provides a wealth of relevant historical documents, particularly from the former Soviet Union.

Council on Foreign Relations (www.cfr.org)

Independent American organization which seeks to provide a better understanding of international politics and US foreign policy alternatives. The website offers material which reflects the vast scope of the Council’s interests. This includes substantial access to articles from the CFR’s journal, Foreign Affairs.

EurasiaNet.org (www.eurasianet.org)

Provides news and analysis of developments in the Caucasus and Central Asia. The site is a good starting point for research into these sub-regions.

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) (www.fao.org)

The Global Beat (www.nyu.edu/globalbeat/index.html)

Offers thought-provoking news and opinion mostly about US foreign policy. The overall tone is critical but not harsh.

INCORE (www.incore.ulst.ac.uk)

A joint project of the United Nations University and University of Ulster which provides a wealth of material on internal conflicts.

International Committee of the Red Cross (www.icrc.org)

Organization involved with the alleviation of suffering in war zones, the development of international humanitarian law and the growth of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

International Crisis Group (ICG) (www.crisisweb.org)

Offers detailed reports on various global trouble spots, complete with recommendations for conflict prevention and resolution.

International Organization for Migration (IOM) (www.iom.int)

A major NGO dealing with migration issues.

International-Relations.com (www.international-relations.com)

This sprawling website contains many interesting items, especially on the Asia-Pacific region, though it could be better organized.

International Republican Institute (IRI) (www.iri.org)

NGO that has programs in many countries to promote democracy. The website has some valuable information on domestic politics in various states.

International Telecommunications Union (www.itu.int/home/index.html)

An international organization within the UN system which serves as a forum for the coordination of telecom standards and policies.

Jane's Information Group (www.janes.com)

Very good information source for geopolitics, military affairs, security and transportation.

Oxford Research Group (www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/home.htm)

British NGO which works for non-military solutions to international conflict. The site offers many thought provoking papers on international military issues. A theme of their recent work seems to be constructive criticism of US policy in the Middle East.

Peace Brigades International (www.peacebrigades.org)

Organization that assists human rights activists in dangerous areas.

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (www.rferl.org)

US-based government-funded private non-profit corporation which seeks to promote democracy by “disseminating factual information and ideas”. Its focus is on Eastern Europe, the Balkans, Central Asia, Iran and Iraq. The website is a rich source of news and background information and an excellent starting point for research.

Reuters (www.reuters.com)

Provides consistent and comprehensive news coverage.

United Nations (www.un.org)

Official website; has a considerable amount of information on all aspects of the UN.

United Nations Development Programme (www.undp.org)

Excellent source of economic and vital statistics. Go to “Human Development Data.”

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (unfccc.int)

Official website. Contains complete and up-to-date information on the Kyoto Protocol.

United Nations Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) (www.irinnews.org)

This service offers timely and detailed information on crises in Africa and central Asia.

United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) (www.oosa.unvienna.org)

Well-developed site providing material pertinent to the UN’s work on space issues.

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) (www.unodc.org)

Site provides access to fact-filled, analytical reports on global illegal drug supply and demand.

World Health Organization (www.who.int)

Official website of the UN agency.

World News Network (www.wn.com)

Major web portal which collects articles from numerous news sources and groups them by subject. The Network consists of over 5,000 global thematic and regional news sites. It is well-organized and breathtakingly comprehensive in the range of topics covered, making it easy to quickly find relevant news items.

World Nuclear Association (www.world-nuclear.org)

A global organization of the nuclear power industry. The website contains an impressive amount of information on all aspects of nuclear power.

Economic affairs

Action Against Hunger-USA (www.aah-usa.org)

AAH is a major international relief and development organization.

International Monetary Fund (www.imf.org)

The IMF is an international organization which seeks improved economic outcomes for its members and the world as a whole. The website is an outstanding source of information on economic affairs – providing detailed economic reports and related resources – and on the IMF itself.

Civil affairs

Article 19 (www.article19.org)

Organization concerned with civil affairs issues related to free expression.

Human Rights Watch (www.hrw.org)

Provides extensive news, commentary and background material on civil affairs and humanitarian issues.

International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) (www.icj.org)

Organization concerned with civil affairs and human rights issues.

International Humanitarian Fact-Finding Commission (IHFFC) (www.ihffc.org)

Inspired by the Geneva Conventions of 1949, the Commission’s purpose is to investigate serious violations of international humanitarian law.

Reporters Without Borders (www.rsf.fr/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=20)

Very valuable source of information on press freedom around the world.

Reference

Babel Fish Translation (world.altavista.com)

Service offered by AltaVista which translates web pages or blocks of text.

Columbia International Affairs Online (www.ciaonet.org)

Online database of material on international relations; requires subscription. There are many subscribing institutions around the world, so you may be able to gain access through them.

CountryReports.org (www.countryreports.org)

Subscription-based site which offers detailed information on the world’s countries.

Country Studies - Federal Research Division, Library of Congress (lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cshome.html)

Online collection of reports and profiles of many countries published by the US government from the late 1980s through the late 1990s. The site provides a wealth of information of general and historical interest. According to the site, funding was recently provided to update the Country Studies.

Election Watch (www.cnn.com/WORLD/election.watch)

CNN.com webpage that provides information on elections courtesy of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems.

Encyclopedia Britannica (www.britannica.com)

Highly regarded online encyclopedia; requires subscription.

MSN world map (encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/MapCenter/map.aspx)

This online globe offers a suprising amount of detail.

PARLINE Database (www.ipu.org/parline-e/parlinesearch.asp)

Developed by the Inter-Parliamentary Union, this is an outstanding reference providing detailed information on the national legislatures of every country, including election results complete with historical background.

Perry-Castanida Library Map Collection (www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/index.html)

This site contains a portion of the printed map collection of the University of Texas. There are an enormous number of useful maps here covering every region of the world, some of which contain specialized information or are not widely available. The site is well organized and fast.

Rulers (www.rulers.org)

Exhaustive resource on names and dates of political leaders/regimes.

Website directories

Fairfax County Public Library / Reference Resources / Homework and Student Support / Websites by Subject) (www.co.fairfax.va.us/library/internet/homework.htm)

Good starting point for general research.

International Relations and Security Network (ISN) (www.isn.ethz.ch)

Contains extensive links to geopolitical-/military-related sites.

RadWaste.org (www.radwaste.org)

Provides about 10,000 links to sites related to nuclear waste and related nuclear power issues. The site is comprehensive and balanced.