Paper/Speech Details of Conference Program for the 27th NISPAcee Annual Conference Program Overview Main Theme Author(s) Jaroslava Bobková University of Economics of Prague Prague 3 – Žižkov Czech Republic Title NGO Engagement in the United Nations and its Impact on the International System File Paper files are available only for conference participants, please login first. Presenter Abstract The paper presents conclusions of a research on consequences of the role acquired by NGOs directly engaged in the UN on the form of the international system. Is the role which NGOs gain in the UN big enough for us to be able to talk about emergence of a qualitatively new form of the international system? Drawing upon ideas by neo-liberal institutionalists and social constructivists, the presented research focuses on revealing possible contribution of NGO engagement in the UN to fulfilling traits characteristic for different alternative international system designs, such as global governance, multi-layered governance and world government. The research is based on preliminary determination of structural elements of these alternative international system designs which are then confronted with contribution towards their realization by NGOs engaged in the UN. This contribution is assessed independently for each of the structural element of the alternative international system designs with use of a method relevant for the nature of the concrete structural element. The study thus combines a number of both qualitative and quantitative methods through which contribution of NGOs engaged in the UN to a shift from the international system in its classical understanding towards each of the examined alternative forms is assessed. The research concludes with a realisation that NGO engagement in the United Nations really fosters advent of a new kind of international system the form of which combines several aspects of global governance and of multi-layered governance despite not leading to their realisation in full.
