Political Science: PoliSci Topics

Executive

• The United Nations (UN)

Legislative

• UN General Assembly
  • UN Member States
  • UN Charter
• EUR-Lex - European Union Law
• GlobaLex - Use to research international and foreign law.
• The World Law Guide - "More than 70,000 web links to legal websites in over 180 countries."

Judicial

• World Legal Information Institute
• International Court of Justice - main judicial figure of the UN

Other

• UNESCO Institute for Statistics
• UN Statistics Resource Guide
• Global Health Observatory - World Health Organization
• EuroStat - European statistics
• Comparative Agendas Project - "Comparing policies worldwide"
• UN Public Administration Network
• ICMA - International City/County Management Association
• EIPA - European Institute of Public Administration
• Constitute Project - Find any constitution from around the world.
• WANGO - World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations
• Eurobarometer - Public opinion in the EU.

What are think tanks?

Think tanks are research institutes focused on researching and advocating specific topics like human rights, public policy, social policy, and much more. Individuals who work in think tanks are experts in these topics. They have master's and doctoral degrees; have many years of experience in government or international affairs; and constantly contribute to these topics. Check out this webpage from Wellesley College (MA) for an Introduction to Think Tanks.

• Congressional Research Service Reports
• US State Department Policy Issues
• Centers & Initiatives - Harvard Kennedy School. Their listing for think tanks.
• Think Tank Search - Harvard Kennedy School
• Worldpress.org NGO Directory - International listing
• VoteSmart - National Special Interest Groups
• Kettering Foundation
• Jamestown Foundation
• IACFS (International Association of Centers for Federal Studies)
• International IDEA (Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance)
• International Affairs Resources - International listing of think tanks.
• PolicyExperts.org - Think tank directory
• Freedom House - Watchdog
• CATO Research and Educational Institutes
• Bipartisan Policy Center
• Africa Portal
• Africa Center for Strategic Studies

• JURIST - Legal news and commentary in collaboration with the University of Pittsburgh
• US Department of Justice
• Law Library at the Library of Congress

• Pew Research Center - "A nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. They conduct public opinion polling, demographic research, content analysis and other data-driven social science research."
• Louis Harris Data Center - Access Harris polls dating back to 1958 covering all kinds of topics, like environmental issues, foreign affairs, and crime.
• Gallup: Polling Info - A *Non-partisan* global analytics and advice firm that helps leaders and organizations solve their most pressing problems. Find overviews, reports, and more about current issues.
• American National Election Studies - Covers election data from 1948-present.
• VoteSmart
• Open Secrets - Center for Responsive Politics and the National Institute on Money under one entity, "following the money in politics."
• NORC (National Opinion Research Center) - "NORC helps governments, nonprofits, and businesses make better decisions through data and analysis."
• AAPOR (American Association for Public Opinion Research) - "Leading association of public opinion and survey research professionals."
• ESS (European Social Survey) - "An academically driven cross-national survey that has been conducted across Europe since its establishment in 2001."

Definitions: 

Non-Governmental Organization = NGO

United Nations = UN

• UNESCO NGO Directory - Also has a map.
• WANGO - World Association of NGOs
• UN NGO Branch

Have some downtime? Need a fun teaching tool?

Visit Harmony Square where you play as someone spreading election misinformation. Will Harmony Square be able to withstand your false attacks or will the town fall into disharmony?

Play Here: Breaking Harmony Square

Enter Hexapolis and see if you can gerrymander your way to a political win!

Play Here: Can You Gerrymander Your Party to Power?