The History of International Organisations Group (HION) was founded in Geneva in Autumn 2008 by Professors Sandrine Kott (University of Geneva), Davide Rodogno (Graduate Institute), and Daniel Palmieri (ICRC).

HION has two guiding objectives:
- To unite the many researchers working on the history of international organizations
- To promote collaboration between researchers, archivists of international organizations, and international civil servants, particularly those in charge of institutional history projects.

In Spring 2011, HION is nearly 130 members strong.

The success of HION’s conferences and seminars during its first two years of existence reflects the growing interest of academia, but also of archivists and civil servants of the very organisations being studied, for such a collaborative effort. Researchers of, and specialists in, human rights, humanitarian action, international migration, refugees, epidemics, population issue, environmental issues, social politics, and many other pertinent issues, are more and more frequently turning to the documentation (printed and archival material) produced by international organisations (ICRC, League of Nations, ILO, UN, HCR, WHO, UNESCO, and many others). It is little wonder: international organizations provide excellent case studies for global and transnational research in historical or current issues.

The history of international organizations is a relatively new research field, and no obvious national or international society or institution exists yet to promote and coordinate these dispersed research activities. The HION website seeks to fill this gap by becoming the pre-eminent virtual forum for researchers interested in, and archivists of, international organisations. HION aims at making it easier for the growing number of scholars and PhD students worldwide working on topics related to the history of international organizations to keep in touch with one another.

Interested researchers and archivists can join HION by clicking 'membership' and filling all relevant information:
- name and contact information
- affiliation (academic institution, international organisation, NGO, etc.)
- research interests
- relevant publications

By joining, researchers and archivists will:
- become a member of a diverse and welcoming scientific community
- be able to connect with researchers and archivists conducting related research
- have a space to publicize their recent research

Through this network, HION aspires to become the reference for the history of international organisations on the web. We hope this website will bring historians, international civil servants and archivists with similar interests, but dispersed around the globe, together, in order to explore ways in which we might help one another intellectually and practically. We encourage all interested parties and institutions to exchange information on current projects, research findings, and publications, as well as the opening of new archives all over the world.