Professor & Reference and Instruction Librarian Coordinator
Diane Duesterhoeft
she/her
Contact:
Louis J. Blume Library, Room 201
St. Mary's University
One Camino Santa Maria
San Antonio, TX 78228-8608
USA
dduesterhoeft@stmarytx.edu
St. Mary's University
One Camino Santa Maria
San Antonio, TX 78228-8608
USA
dduesterhoeft@stmarytx.edu
210-436-3346
Coverage
The United Nation has produced a large variety of documents since it was founded in 1945. The main bodies (aka main organs, principal bodies) of the UN are the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the UN Secretariat. All of these sections are represented by the sources listed in this section.
However, this page of the guide will highlight the General Assembly, the Security Council, and the International Court of Justice as many of our students research topics related to these bodies.
- UN Main OrgansDescription and links to the principal bodies of the United Nations which were all established in 1945.
Documents Databases
- Official Document System (ODS) of the United NationsProvides full-text of documents issued since 1993; resolutions of all principal organs & Security Council plenary documents since 1946. Older documents are added regularly. Be sure to read the help page to see how to search since the ODS interface is complicated.
- United Nations Digital LibraryIncludes UN documents, voting data, speeches, maps, and open access publications. Provides access to some digital materials and records for other print materials. Back to 1979.
Blume Library
- HeinOnline This link opens in a new windowMulti-faceted databases that includes a United Nations Law Collection which "contains exact reproductions of major United Nations legal publications, including the complete collection of the United Nations Treaty Series, the League of Nations Treaty Series, the Monthly Statement of Treaties & International Agreements, UNCITRAL Publications, UNIDIR Publications, the United Nations Legislative Series" and more.
General Assembly
- General AssemblyMain deliberative body of the United Nations. It includes all Member States with one nation, one vote. As of 2019, there were 193 Member States.
- General Assembly - Quick LinksUN Dag Hammarskjöld Library table which links to General Assembly documents by year (1946-present), and by special sessions. Useful if you know which year(s) you want to examine. Otherwise, you should search a UN database like ODS.
Security Council
- Security CouncilUN body that has "primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security". There are 15 members and each member has one vote. The five permanent members are China, France, Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
- Annual Reports of the Security CouncilReports provide a good place to find the main issues of the UN Security Council for each year. 1946-present.
- Security Council - Quick LinksUN Dag Hammarskjöld Library table which links to Security Council meetings & outcomes by year (1994-present), and by vetos (1946-present). Useful if you know which year(s) you want to examine. Otherwise, you should search a UN database like ODS.
International Court of Justice
- International Court of JusticeUN body whose "role is to settle ...legal disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal questions" by the United Nations.
- ICJ CasesLists current and pending cases and provides judgements and opinions. Full-text.