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Serving in Time of Need

Country Profiles and Information

Find background information on nations of the world.  These resources include history, political information and economic conditions.

  • Country Profiles from Facts on File (Bellarmine Students Only) - Facts on File: Country Profiles contains concise information and statistics on population, geography, government, economy, and history. Each Country Profile links to articles on recent news events and the World Almanac Encyclopedia.
  • Country Profiles (Recent) - Country profiles from the Library of Congress. Brief studies include information on nations from around the world. Highlights include politics, economics, social conditions and more.
  • Country Studies (Historical) - Country Studies are from the Library of Congress. Complete studies of nations from around the world. Information includes politics, economics, social conditions and more.
  • Country Watch (Bellarmine Students Only) - Country Watch povides up-to-date news and information on each of the recognized countries of the world.
  • CultureGrams (Bellarmine Students Only) - CultureGrams includes cultural information on the countries of the world. History, customs, cultural behavior are some of the featured topics.
  • Department of State Background Notes - Background Notes include facts about the land, people, history, government, political conditions, economy, and foreign relations.
  • Gale Encyclopedia of World Cultures (Bellarmine Students Only) - This reference set lists and describes more than 1,500 global cultures. Based on research of social scientists, it is the source for historical, social, political, economic, linguistic, religious, and other information on virtually every existing culture.
  • Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life (Bellarmine Students Only) - Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life covers cultural groups in Asia, Europe, the Americas and Africa. Each volume is organized for quick reference by continent, cover history, politics, customs, religion, education, human rights issues, teen life and much more for culture groups such as Kurds, Amish, Germans and more than 500 others.

Print Reference Resources

Note that these titles are in the library's print reference collection.  The reference room is the first door on the right after you come into the main library entrance.  Please ask for assistance the the reference desk if you need help finding these titles.  The sections you need of these books can be photocopied using your Bellarmine ID card.

Venture Project Ideas

Organizations that provide assistance to countries
These organizations provide assistance and programs to nations that have difficult issues to overcome.  Good sources to check for ideas for your venture project.

  • Amnesty International - Amnesty International is a global movement of people fighting injustice and promoting human rights. We work to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.
  • Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations - Achieving food security for all is at the heart of FAO's efforts - to make sure people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. FAO's mandate is to raise levels of nutrition, improve agricultural productivity, better the lives of rural populations and contribute to the growth of the world economy.
  • International Committee of the Red Cross - The ICRC is an independent, neutral organization ensuring humanitarian protection and assistance for victims of war and armed violence. It takes action in response to emergencies and at the same time promotes respect for international humanitarian law and its implementation in national law.
  • United Nations Children's Fund - United Nations Children's Fund: an agency, created by the United Nations General Assembly in 1946, concerned with improving the health and nutrition of children and mothers throughout the world.
  • United Nations Development Program - The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UN’s global development network, advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life
  • World Bank - In 2004 the World Bank provided $20.1 billion for 245 projects in developing countries worldwide, with its finance and/or technical expertise aimed at helping those countries reduce poverty.
  • World Health Organization - WHO is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.

Other Non-Governmental Organizations
The amount of information on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) on the Internet is enormous, so locating NGO information by subject or geography can be difficult. The following links and especially the NGO search engine below may help you get started.

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