Module 11: Independence and Challenges in the Modern World
Courtesy Joowwww
In this animation, each country turns blue to indicate the year in which it joined the United Nations.
After World War II, the struggles of colonial peoples to become independent received a boost from the establishment of the United Nations, which listed the right of all peoples to self-determination in its charter. As the major colonial powers rebuilt their economies after the war, colonial populations continued their efforts to win independence, especially in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. Over the next 20 years, many countries would become independent either through peaceful and/or violent means. By the end of the century, almost every former colony was independent.
Since these events mostly took place during the years of the Cold War, the history of these struggles was shaped by the competition between the United States and the Soviet Union. Often, either the U.S. or the Soviet Union would fund the enemy of the other. For example, the countries would support separate sides in a revolution or give support to a neighboring country. This led to indirect conflicts between the two superpowers. Thankfully, none of those conflicts resulted in outright war between the two superpowers.
The joy of independence in the new countries was often diminished by the circumstances in which these countries found themselves after they became free. Much of the infrastructure in these countries was old, and the economies were often more tightly linked to the old colonial powers rather than to their newly independent neighbors. As these new countries struggled to meet the needs of their rapidly-growing populations, they found they had to make hard choices between the needs of the present, and the dreams of the future.
As the world becomes more interconnected, the fate of the people in these newly independent countries is more and more connected to the rest of the world. The poverty and environmental destruction of one place does not remain isolated, but increases in pollution and results in a loss of natural habitats. The effects of global climate change disrupt the global community.
Pre-Assessment
After World War II, many countries gained independence from colonial powers. In the activity below, see how well you can identify some of those countries. Click the player to get started.
Key Vocabulary
To view the definitions for these key vocabulary terms, visit the course glossary.
| Al Qaeda | Jomo Kenyatta |
| apartheid | mandate system |
| bioethics | migration |
| civil disobedience | Mohandas Gandhi |
| developed nations | Munich Olympics Massacre |
| developing nations | Nelson Mandela |
| ethnic cleansing | North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) |
| European Union | Osama bin Laden |
| famine | passive resistance |
| Gamal Abdul Nasser | refugee |
| genetic engineering | self-determination |
| Golda Meir | September 11, 2001 |
| illiteracy | suicide bomber |
| Indian National Congress | terrorism |
| interdependence | United Nations (UN) |
| International Monetary Fund (IMF) | World Trade Organization (WTO) |
| Irish Republican Army | Yom Kippur War |
| Jawaharlal Nehru |