ABSTRACT
At the outset of the third decade of the twenty-first century and as the UN celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2020, the global geopolitical, economic, and ideological settings look significantly different from those during the UN’s creation at the end of World War II. To its credit, the world body has managed to remain relevant, not least by reinventing itself time and again, and adjusting to changing circumstances. More than that, the UN has contributed to shaping those circumstances, as demonstrated through such innovations as peacekeeping, the various human rights-related instruments, global goals like the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and their successor, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, and the Global Compact for Migration. Acting collectively, the UN member states (First UN) have negotiated all this, in one form or another, with the support of and at times following an initiative by the UN Secretariat (Second UN) or civil society (Third UN). 1
