The Relations of the United States and the United Nations Essay

The Relations of the United States and the United Nations The history of the US’s relationship with the UN is complex, seeming to vacillate between warm cooperation and abject disdain as the national interests of the US and the rest of the world, and the short- and long-term interests of the US itself, align or oppose each other. The UN was originally the vision of US president Franklin Roosevelt and the product of US State Department planning and diplomacy. It was designed to forward the national interests of its strongest members, the P-5, to reflect and channel the geopolitical power structure rather than twist it into an unnatural and unsustainable hierarchy of weak nations trying to dominate strong. Because the Charter is based in a realist view of the world, during the Cold War, when the national interests of the two world powers diverged, the UN was paralyzed to deal with any of the world’s conflicts. When the Cold War ended it gave rise to the first war that should have been authorized by the Security Councilâ€⠀the Persian Gulf War from later 1990 to early 1991. Many hoped for a â€Å"new world order† after the success of the Gulf War, but the interests of the US and the rest of the world, primarily the rest of the members of the Security Council, soon divided again. Today, the world is still struggling to cope with the blow dealt to the UN by the US’s use of force in Iraq, including the US, which has not even begun to feel the long-term negative effects of its unilateralism. However, the war in Iraq could have been less detrimental to the UN and the US in particular, and by extension to the rest of the world, if the US had argued that it was acting to uphold resolution 1441 under the authorization of the Security Cou... ...Furthermore, by offering a little more of its power to the world, the US would appear to bind its hands and encourage cooperation in future operations. The US will not be the world’s strongest power forever, and it would be wise to invest some of its power today in strong norms and international laws that future countries, like China for example, would be bound to follow in the future. The UN is â€Å"a theatre of realpolitik where members (the powerful ones, in particular) pursue their own interests.† Over the past sixty years of its existence, it has remained the same picture of the world that it reflected in 1945, but the world has drifted away from this picture. For the UN to regain its effectiveness, especially after the war in Iraq, it must reform. The true test of President Roosevelt’s vision for global peace and security is whether change is possible today.

Nike Responses Corporate Social Responsibility Essay

Background: Nike is the leading company in sports and fitness fields and located near Beaverton, Oregon (CSRwire, 2012). In 1998, The New York Times exposed that Nike paid workers in China and Vietnam less than two American dollars a day. The aim of this report is to search how Nike response Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Theory: There are five dimensions of corporate social responsibility: physical environment, social (community), consumer, supply chain, and employee relation. ‘Corporate social responsibility is encompasses not only what company do with their profits but also how they make them. It goes beyond philanthropy and compliance and addresses how companies manage their economic, social, and environmental impacts, as well as their relationships in all key spheres of influence: the workplace, the marketplace, the supply chain, the community, and the public policy realm. ’(HARVARD Kennedy School, 2008) Corporate social responsibility Physical environment The chart from Nike Corporate Responsibility Report in 2012 showed the total emission volume of CO2 (Million Tonnes), which is the major element that causes the global warming. As can be seen from this table, the emission of CO2 from 2003 to 2009 is significantly lower than it of year 1997-98. To create a sustainable market, Nike’ fabric suppliers produce jerseys based on used plastic bottles from landfill sites in Japan and Taiwan and a design tool which cost Nike seven years and six million dollars to help designers to reduce the impact on environment. In 2011, Nike doubled its use on recycled plastic bottles, which were 82 million bottles. (CSRwire, 2012) Community The table shows that total community investment increased dramatically from 2004 to 2009 and in 2007, Nike estimated that it would support 315million dollar to the community (Nike corporate responsibility report, 2009). In 2007, Nike awarded 1million dollar to help schools, which were in finance problem and a Jordan Fundamental Program was set up to give finance support to the educators who have a significant achievement (CSRwire, 2012). In 1999, Jordan Fundamental Program aid more than eight million dollars on lunch program in public secondary school for teachers. (CSRwire, 2012). In 2007, Nike joined the United Nation Refugee Agency and raised 2 million dollar in the first year to support refugee youth education and sports. Nike also sold T-shirt associated with refugee to raise global awareness and capital. (CSRwire, 2012). Nike also had a Partnership with the Lance Armstrong Foundation that aim to encourage people who suffered cancer. (CSRwire, 2012) Consumer Nike issued the Privacy Policy, which include how they collect and use information through different kind of digital devices and what kind of information they will gather. For instance, If a person use a computer and access the Nike website to purchase Nike product or register personal information, the Privacy Policy will protect this customer. And it also help parent to supervise their children, such as parental control tools. (Privacy Policy) According to the news on FOX 59 WXIN, Nike delayed the release of Foamposite Galaxy shoes because of the safety problem of this pair of new shoes. Supply chain ‘The contractor does not use forced labor, including prison labor†¦Employees are age16 or older†¦Contractor’s employees are not subject to discrimination in employment†¦Contractor’s employees are timely paid at least minimum wage required by country law. Working hours are not excessive. Working place is healthy and safe†¦ the Code is fully implemented’ In 2005, Nike was the first company that listed the location of more than 800 contractors publicly, and the location can be seen from the Manufacturing Map on Nike official website. Employee relation In terms of sexual discrimination, the table indicates that 40-percent female and 60-percent male administrators are in Nike in 2009. From 2007 to 2009, the difference between male and female declined steadily. In 2009, Nike hired more women than men in Europe, the Middle East, and in the U.S. (Nike corporate responsibility report, 2009). According to the survey done by CNNMoney, paid vacation, onsite childcare, job sharing program and telecommuting are provided to employees by Nike. Conclusion Nike reduce the emission of greenhouse gas and use recycled plastic to produce products, support community to help schools and refugees, issue Privacy Policy and Code of Conduct to protect consumers and set standard to its supply chain and decline gender discrimination and promote working condition for employees.

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