This publication contains two papers each of which deals with the relationship between "North" (developed nations) and the "South" (developing nations). The publication is one in a series of working papers commissioned by the World Order Models Project in its effort to stimulate research, education, dialogue, and political action aimed at contributing to a movement for a just world order. The first paper re-examines the relationship between the economic growth of the developing and the developed nations. It considers the implications of this relationship for two major issues: basic needs and exhaustible resources. The connections between international trade and national policies are explored on the basis of the theoretical research and empirical results of a United Nations Project on Technology, Distribution, and North-South Relations. The second paper analyses both the basic assumptions and the results of the better known and widely used global models--specifically, the UN world model, the RIO (Reshaping the International Order) model and the Bariloche model--in relation to basic needs and to North-South interdependence. The rationale is that these very assumptions underlie various development strategies and give legitimacy to competing claims on the world's resources. Even if some of the findings of the analysis are critical of the suitability of a particular model for the study of the questions posed, they serve a useful purpose in that they suggest what strategies and structures built into the model do not work. The paper ends by summarizing the conclusions and indicating their implications for policy as well as for further modeling world. (RM)