Why are civil society organisations excited about strengthening the UN when momentum seems distinctly in the opposite direction? When divisions are rife and the international system is in damage limitation mode, as the US cuts funding and repeatedly pulls out of UN bodies?

The opportunity is the UN’s 75th anniversary (UN75) next year and there are modest reasons for hope. The General Assembly (through GA.RES.299) will host world leaders on 21 September 2020 to reaffirm their collective commitment to multilateralism. What could make this more than a talking shop is the associated intergovernmental preparatory process to agree a forward-looking outcome document on the theme: ‘The future we want, the UN we need’. The first clause seems somewhat redundant given we already have the Sustainable Development Goals, but the second clause speaks to a long overdue exercise which, if done well, could get to the heart of how multilateralism must radically adapt to face the challenges of the 21st century.

Commemorative moments have a mixed track record. The UN’s 50th anniversary, with all the hope surrounding the dawning of a new post-Cold War era, achieved little other than warm words and intangible commitments. Conversely, ten years later the 2005 World Summit made significant progress, upgrading the Human Rights Commission to the Human Rights Council complete with its Universal Periodic Review, global endorsement at the highest level of the ‘Responsibility to Protect’, and the establishment of meaningful peacebuilding architecture. These developments have not been without their controversy, yet the example of the UN’s 60th shows that if there are promising ideas on the shelf a world summit can provide a way to usher them in.

Are there ideas on the shelf this time around and might the bitterly divided political landscape allow for progress? Global threats like climate change, ecosystem collapse and cyber insecurity make it undeniably apparent that initiatives which can move us towards something much deeper than state-level cooperation are necessary. States must know that maintaining a monopoly on global governance is like clutching a poisoned chalice with potentially existential ramifications.

Overcoming such threats will require deep global partnerships between states, business, civil society and leaders at all levels. 2020 can provide a trigger to address this new reality and a launchpad for states to initiate much-needed programmes of renewal within the world organization. To be successful in identifying what constitutes ‘the UN we need’, states will need to listen to those beyond the New York bubble. Supported by a diverse coalition of civil society organisations, two initiatives: Together First and UN2020 are making this case, including through Together First’s recently launched call for ideas.