Governance context

Since its foundation, the UIA has sought every possible means to use information to frame the challenges and opportunities of governance in an increasingly complex world.

Profiling international advocacy groups (+working links)

A core activity of the UIA is the profiling of some 50,000 international bodies, whether nongovernmental, civil society bodies (NGOs) or intergovernmental agencies (IGOs). This notably includes indication of the working relationships between them so as to provide an understanding of the interweaving network of bodies that constitutes the social fabric -- the social ecosystem through which society is governed.

Profiling articulated world issues (+systemic links)

The challenges of governance of the world are those detected by the vast network of international bodies through which national and local concerns are articulated. From 1972, the UIA has developed profiles of over 50,000 world problems from the documents of international bodies. Great emphasis is placed on the network of relationships between these issues through which particular problems aggravate or alleviate others through "vicious" feedback loops.

Profiling advocated world strategies (+systemic links)

In response to the problems detected by international bodies, strategies and initiatives have been advocated or undertaken. These are effectively governance initiatives, whether undertaken through intergovernmental or nongovernmental bodies. Since 1984, the UIA has developed generic profiles of some 50,000 of these initiatives. Again the emphasis is on indicating the systemic relationships through which individual strategies support or undermine each other.

Registering international meetings

International meetings are the most visible manifestation of the activities of international bodies, in articulating and implementing their strategies in response to the challenges of society -- or in celebration of their values and interests. Since its foundation, the UIA has registered over 250,000 such meetings and continues to focus on the registration of some 7,000 scheduled future international meetings. This information is made available to support the initiatives of international organizations and the scheduling of their activities.