Civil Society and Intergovernmental Negotiations at the United Nations
Exclusion Despite Inclusion
By Leah Kimber
- Paperback
-
Open Access coming soon
Published
Jan 30, 2025Page count
304 pagesISBN
978-1529233247Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University PressPublished
Jan 30, 2025Page count
304 pagesISBN
978-1529233254Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University Press
Civil Society and Intergovernmental Negotiations at the United Nations
EPDF and EPUB available open access under CC-BY-NC-ND licence.
Civil society organizations (CSOs) and non-governmental organizations have increased at the United Nations (UN) since the 1990s. Yet few studies discuss the notion of inclusion and what it entails in intergovernmental negotiations.
This book delves into the UN’s relationship with CSOs, exploring who participates in negotiations and how their input is integrated into ratified documents. Drawing on ethnographic research, the author uncovers the complexities of accreditation, participation, and the interpretation of CSOs’ contributions. Offering a sociological analysis, she highlights the increased exclusion of CSOs despite their apparent inclusion in institutions of global governance unbounded to public accountability.
Leah R. Kimber examines the practices of exclusion CSOs are subjected to in UN negotiations by opening the machinery of intergovernmental negotiations in light of the UN’s future and legitimacy.
"Kimber’s brilliant analysis shows how civil society inclusion and exclusion co-occur in the United Nations – a must-read for proponents of more democratic global governance.” Lisa Dellmuth, Stockholm University
"A compelling and important account of civil society’s role in the UN and disaster risk reduction.” Nina Hall, Johns Hopkins SAIS
"This book offers an intriguing micro-perspective on the practice of civil society participation at the United Nations." Jens Steffek, TU Darmstadt
“A captivating read of the inclusion and exclusion dynamics in the United Nations based on in-depth ethnographic work. An outstanding book!” Katharina Glaab, Norwegian University of Life Sciences
Leah R. Kimber, PhD is Lecturer in the Department of Sociology at the University of Geneva.
1. Grasping UN’s Civil Society Inclusion: Looking Backwards, Forwards and Sideways
2. Spotlighting Disaster Risk Reduction
3. “We, the Peoples”
4. Disentangling the Social
5. And [The Text] is before all Things and in [it] all things hold together
