Introduction
Sometimes, researchers only seek general information, and are not concerned with learning everything about a subject. For example, one might want to know what the UN's role has been in Rwanda lately. In other cases, researchers may be new to UN research and want to start their research gradually. In either case, starting out with complex indexes can be counter-productive. The search strategies, the lists of documents, and the symbol system can be overwhelming.
For general research, using one of the following text-based sources is a more user-friendly approach. They often provide more than enough information to satisfy requests. Alternatively, they are great starting points. Note that in most cases humans, not computers, compile these sources. The benefit of this is that the sources are user-friendly. The disadvantage is that publication is quite slow. These strategies may not be appropriate for current research.
Recommended Resources
Everyone's United Nations by Call Number: JX1976.A21 Ev271Publication Date: 1979-This provides a good summary of major events in UN history. This publication comes in three, chronological volumes. This is a great place to start when trying to determine when the United Nations dealt with an issue. It is an ideal introduction to the next source, The Yearbook of the United Nations.- The Yearbook of the United Nations by Call Number: JZ4947 .Y43Publication Date: 1947-Free online from the United Nations (https://www.un.org/en/yearbook). This excellent source describes the workings of the UN in essay format, and includes helpful references to selected UN Documents. The table of contents and index make this a very valuable research tool. References to "YUN" are references to the Yearbook itself. This source is usually several years behind and it does not list all UN Documents. Note, check both print and online to see which format has the most recent issue.
- For the record. The United Nations human rights system. by Call Number: JX1 F7442Publication Date: 1997-2003Published from 1997 to 2003, this was a great source for human rights information. Each country's involvement in the UN human rights area is described. Citations and often links to specific documents are also included.
- United Nations Home PageThe UN home page can be a great place to start research. There are several subject links from the main page: International Law, Peace and Security, Economic and Social Development, Human Rights, and Humanitarian affairs. These pages provide useful links to information and other bodies specializing in the subject areas.