The course aims to provide knowledge of the evolutionary processes of the main international and regional organizations of the contemporary era, highlighting progress and limits in light of historical-international events.
At the end of the course, the student is able to:
SDGs
This course contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.
10. Reduced Inequalities
16. Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
17. Partnership for the Goals
Basic knowledge of European history after the Vienna Congress and of the history of international relations of the 20th century.
Knowledge of English.
Lectures will be in presence but attendance in not compulsory.
The course consists of frontal lectures, for a total of 36 hours, delivered by the lecture. During the lectures, the topics indicated in the “Syllabus/Content” section will be covered, with a focus on some specific cases. During the lectures, slides will be shown, then uploaded to Aulaweb, which will allow attending and non-attending students to have an overview of what has been presented.
There are no ongoing tests or pre-exams or post-exams.
The course will address the following topics:
1) cooperation and security in 19th century Europe: the congress system and the “concert of Europe”;
2) the “first globalization” and its effects: transnational political movements, international public unions, collaboration in legal matters, the “Hague system”;
3) the Paris peace conference and the League of Nations system;
4) rise and decline of “collective security”: the political action of the League of Nations between the two wars;
5) successes and limits of socio-economic cooperation in the 20s and 30s: the ILO, the economic commissions of the League of Nations, the other experiences of economic collaboration;
6) the “internationalist” perspectives during the Second World War and the birth of the United Nations;
7) the UN system, specialized agencies and Bretton Woods organizations;
8) the UN and security problems in the cold war years;
9) the impact of decolonization and the new focus on development problems;
10) the international economic organization from the “golden age” to the “second globalization”;
11) notes on the evolution and problems of the UN system after the cold war.
Slides on Aulaweb and Bob Reinalda, Routledge history of international organizations: from 1815 to the present day, London and New York: Routledge, 2009 [Chapters: 2-3 (p. 17-33), 7 (p. 65-82), 11 (p. 120-135) and 15-41 (p. 177-694)]: the book is available as an e-book and can be found at the Library of the School of Social Sciences (Albergo dei Poveri).
Ricevimento: Upon request by writing to lara.piccardo@unige.it.
LARA PICCARDO (President)
MARIA ELEONORA GUASCONI
MONICA PENCO (Substitute)
FRANCESCO PIERINI (Substitute)
First semester, 16 September 2025.
Tuesday h. 10-12, classroom 7
Wednesday h. 8-10, classroom 7
Thursday h. h. 8-10, classroom 7
Classrooms and hours of lectures and exams on Easyacademy Unige: https://easyacademy.unige.it/portalestudenti/
The timetable for this course is available here: EasyAcademy
The exam (in English) consists of a written test lasting one hour.
The written test focuses on the topics covered during the lectures and in the textbook and indicated in the “Syllabus/Content” section of this teaching sheet. The written test consists of three open-ended questions. Each answer will be scored on a scale of 0 to 10. For sufficiency, all answers must reach the minimum score of 6/10. The final mark out of thirty is given by the sum of the partial marks of the three answers.
Written exam assessment: knowledge of historical events, of the links among events, of the structures of the OI are the main elements of evaluation. These are accompanied by the ability to synthesize information and clarity in the presentation of contents. Requests for additional questions to increase the mark will not be accepted. The written exam lasts 1 hour.
English, being a vehicular language, does not fall within the evaluation criteria, but it must be understandable.
Students with valid certifications for Specific Learning Disorders (SLDs), disabilities or other educational needs are invited to contact the teacher and the School's contact person for disability at the beginning of teaching to agree on possible teaching arrangements that, while respecting the teaching objectives, take into account individual learning patterns. Contacts of the School's disability contact person can be found at the following link Comitato di Ateneo per l’inclusione delle studentesse e degli studenti con disabilità o con DSA | UniGe | Università di Genova.
