United Nations Headquarters
The most extensive UN web site. Use the site index to access material on the organization's
main concerns: human rights, the environment, human development, international security,
international law, and humanitarian assistance.
Official
Document System of the United Nations (ODS)
Scope: Contains the full text of UN masthead documents and Official Records. Coverage since
1993 is nearly comprehensive; for earlier years it is selective.
Limitations: Does not include sales publications or unofficial monographs and serials. Very
recent documents may be awaiting translation into English.
Tip 1: Avoid the Simple Search--the Advanced Search is as easy to use and provides more
options.
Tip 2: When searching by document symbol (e.g., A/63/13), omit all punctuation (as in A6313).
Note: The Global Search uses the Google search engine.
AccessUN
1945-present
Scope: Not nearly as complete as
UNBISnet for the period 1979 to date. But many documents
published before 1978 have online records only in this index.
Limitation 1: Records contain too many subject headings, making it difficult to find the main
documents on a given topic.
Limitation 2: Records seldom include links to full-text items.
Tip: Use
UNBISnet, instead of AccessUN, to identify documents published
since 1979.
Caution: Any group of two or more words is treated as a phrase unless
AND is inserted between those words.
UNBISnet: Bibliographic
Records
Scope: The most complete and useful index of UN documents, publications, and articles issued
since 1979. Provides links to full-text documents in
ODS, when available.
Tip 1: Begin all subject and author searches for UN documents published since 1979 in this
database. The subject indexing is better here than in
ODS.
Tip 2: Records usually contain too many subject headings, making it difficult to identify the
main texts on a given topic. So when conducting subject searches for items issued since 1999,
search by primary subject, which in the pull-down menu appears as follows:
Subject (Primary Subj., 1999-).
UNBISnet: Voting
Records
Scope: Indexes all resolutions adopted by the Security Council and General Assembly since
their initial sessions in 1946. Records link to full-text documents in
ODS.
Limitation: No subject access.
UNBISnet: Index to
Speeches
Scope: Covers speeches made in the General Assembly, Security Council, and Economic and
Social Council since 1983, and in Trusteeship Council meetings since 1982. Most records incorporate
links to the full text.
Documents
Scope: Provides links to key full-text documents, such as resolutions. Also includes links to
UN databases and web sites of special importance.
Limitation: No subject access.
United
Nations Treaty Collection
The most complete collection of full-text international treaties. See also: this
tutorial video on searching the Treaty
Collection, created by students at the Pratt Institute School of Library & Information
Science.
Intergovernmental Organization Search Engine
Uses the Google search engine to provide access to UN and other IGO web sites.
Using UN Information Resources: A Guide for General Reference Librarians in Academic
Settings.
Reference Services
Review 36, no. 2:119-146.
United Nations Documents at
the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign: A User's Guide
Provides essential information on the use of United Nations information resources on the
campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
United Nations Documentation: Research Guide
This is the indispensable guide of the Dag Hammarskjold Library at UN Headquarters. Contains
special sections on disarmament, the environment, human rights, peacekeeping, international law,
and the UN budget.
Guide to Online UN Information
Resources
From the Dag Hammarskjöld Library, this guide contains alphabetical
and topical lists of United Nations databases and reference works.
Yearbook of the United
Nations
Scope: Gives a thorough overview of the work of the organization.
Limitations: The lag time between events and their description in the Yearbook is about two
years.
Tip: Use the Yearbook to access summaries of UN actions related to particular countries and
topics.
Other formats: Print (call no. UN.DPI/S1) and DVD (call no. DVDUN.DPI/S1).
ProQuest Statistical
Datasets
Begin here. Indexes thousands of UN datasets.
Human
Development Reports web site
The options in the upper left-hand corner helps users to identify and download tables on a
wide array of topics related to the quality of life. Provides data by country and region, and
worldwide.
Millennium Development Goals Indicators
This source, like the
Human Development Reports web site, focuses on variables
closely related to the quality of life. Contains links to numerous publications.
Monthly Bulletin of Statistics
Online
An excellent place to start when you need monthly economic data.
UN News Centre
Includes full-text searching of press releases, full-text magazines, and
UN Newslinks, which connects the user to
full-text news sources of UN bodies and other IGOs around the world.
UN
Pulse
Provides announcements on the most important UN documents and publications.
Permanent Missions to the United Nations
Contains links to the web site of each member state's permanent mission at UN
Headquarters.
University LibraryFor comments on this page contact: Government Information Services, Access and Collections
Last modified by: Stephanie Martin on 4/11/13